Pokemon Go Candy Calculator
Enter your Pokemon's current level, target level, and type to find out exactly how many regular candies, XL candies, and stardust you need. Switch to Evolution mode to calculate how many Pokemon you can evolve and how far you need to walk to collect the remaining candy from your buddy. All cost modifiers for shadow, purified, and lucky Pokemon are included.
How candy and stardust power-up costs work in Pokemon Go
Every time you power up a Pokemon, it gains 0.5 levels and its stats improve. The cost of each power-up step is fixed by the Pokemon's current level and increases roughly every two full levels. Regular candy is used from Level 1 all the way to Level 40 - a full Level 1 to 40 journey costs 273 regular candy and 272,500 stardust for a standard Pokemon. Once a Pokemon reaches Level 40, you switch to XL Candy for levels 40.5 through 50, costing another 296 XL Candy and 296,000 stardust. Lucky Pokemon reduce stardust cost by 50%. Shadow Pokemon increase both candy and stardust costs by 20%. Purified Pokemon reduce both by 10%, making them slightly more efficient to power up than shadows if you care about resource efficiency.
Evolution candy costs and the Lucky Egg strategy
Evolving a Pokemon costs a flat candy fee that depends on the species. Common species like Pidgey, Caterpie, and Weedle cost only 12 candy per evolution - making them ideal for mass evolution sessions. Magikarp to Gyarados costs 400 candy, the highest in the game. When you evolve a Pokemon you earn 500 XP, or 1,000 XP if you have a Lucky Egg active. Since lower-candy evolutions let you run more evolutions per candy stock, they generate more XP per candy during a Lucky Egg session. If your goal is to level up your trainer fast, collect as many 12-candy species as possible and trigger your Lucky Egg just before the mass evolution. The buddy candy mechanic gives you a predictable way to accumulate candy without relying on lucky catches: most starter and rare Pokemon require 5 km per candy while legendary and mythical buddies require 20 km.
XL Candy: how to get it and what it costs
XL Candy is a separate resource introduced in 2020 alongside the Level 41-50 expansion. You earn it by catching Pokemon of the matching species (usually 1 XL Candy per catch at Trainer Level 31+, with a chance of more), transferring Pokemon (small chance), walking your buddy (very slowly), trading Pokemon, using Rare Candy XL, or hatching eggs. To power a Pokemon from Level 40 to Level 50, you need exactly 296 XL Candy for a normal Pokemon, 355 for a shadow (rounded up with the 1.2x multiplier), or 267 for a purified (rounded with the 0.9x multiplier). The stardust cost for those same levels is 296,000 for normal, 355,200 for shadow, and 266,400 for purified. XL Candy is species-specific just like regular candy, so you cannot convert XL Candy between species.
Which Pokemon are worth powering up to Level 50?
Powering a Pokemon from Level 40 to Level 50 is an enormous resource investment - roughly equivalent to doing the entire Level 1 to 40 journey again, but in XL Candy instead of regular candy. The consensus among competitive players is to reserve Level 50 for the very best meta-relevant attackers and defenders: Pokemon you use in Master League PvP, or top raid counters with high IVs. For casual play or lower leagues, stopping at Level 40 or even Level 35 is usually sufficient and far more resource-efficient. A Level 40 Pokemon with good IVs will outperform a Level 45-50 Pokemon with poor IVs in almost all scenarios, so invest in IVs before chasing max level.
Power-up cost by level range
| Level range | Candy per step | XL candy per step | Stardust per step |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 - 9.5 | 1 | 0 | 200 - 2,200 |
| 10 - 14.5 | 2 | 0 | 2,500 - 4,500 |
| 15 - 19.5 | 3 | 0 | 5,000 - 9,000 |
| 20 - 24.5 | 4 | 0 | 10,000 - 14,000 |
| 25 - 29.5 | 6 | 0 | 15,000 - 19,000 |
| 30 - 34.5 | 8 | 0 | 20,000 - 24,000 |
| 35 - 39.5 | 10-15 | 0 | 25,000 |
| 40 - 44.5 | 0 | 10 | 10,000 |
| 45 - 49.5 | 0 | 12 | 10,000 |
Standard costs per power-up step for a normal Pokemon. Shadow multiplies by 1.2, purified by 0.9, lucky halves stardust only.
Frequently asked questions
How many candies do I need to power up a Pokemon from Level 1 to 40?
A standard (non-shadow, non-purified, non-lucky) Pokemon requires 273 regular candy and 272,500 stardust to power up from Level 1 to Level 40. Shadow Pokemon need 328 candy (1.2x, rounded) and 327,000 stardust. Purified Pokemon need 246 candy and 245,250 stardust. Lucky Pokemon still use 273 candy but only 136,250 stardust (50% off).
How many XL candies do I need to reach Level 50?
Going from Level 40 to Level 50 costs 296 XL Candy and 296,000 stardust for a normal Pokemon. Shadow Pokemon cost 1.2x, so roughly 356 XL Candy and 355,200 stardust. Purified Pokemon cost 0.9x, so roughly 267 XL Candy and 266,400 stardust. Note that reaching Level 50 also requires your Trainer to be at least Level 40.
What is the difference between regular candy and XL candy?
Regular candy is used for powering up Pokemon from Level 1 to Level 40 and for evolving Pokemon. XL Candy is a separate, rarer resource used only for powering up Pokemon from Level 40.5 to Level 50. Each species has its own XL Candy pool. You cannot convert one species' XL Candy to another's, and Rare Candy XL is the only cross-species XL Candy.
Does a Lucky Pokemon use less candy to power up?
A Lucky Pokemon uses the same amount of regular candy as a normal Pokemon to power up, but only half the stardust. The candy cost is unchanged. If you are on a tight stardust budget, powering up a Lucky version of your target Pokemon is significantly more efficient than a normal one.
How many evolutions can I do with a Lucky Egg?
A Lucky Egg lasts 30 minutes and doubles evolution XP from 500 to 1,000 per evolution. With 12-candy species (Pidgey, Caterpie, Weedle) and pre-queued evolutions, experienced players can complete 60-90 evolutions in 30 minutes, earning up to 90,000 XP. Lower your candy cost per evolution to maximize the count. Use the evolve mode in this calculator to see how many evolutions your current candy stock supports.
How much do I need to walk to earn candy from my buddy?
Buddy candy distance varies by species: 1 km for species like Magikarp and Gyarados, 3 km for most common Pokemon, 5 km for starters and rarer species, and 20 km for legendaries and mythicals. The evolve mode in this calculator shows you exactly how far you need to walk to earn enough candy for your next evolution if you are currently short.
Is it worth powering up a Shadow Pokemon?
Shadow Pokemon deal roughly 20% more damage in raids and battles due to their attack boost, but also take more damage. They cost 1.2x the candy and stardust to power up compared to a normal Pokemon. For top-tier raid attackers where DPS is critical, a high-IV Shadow is often worth the extra investment. For most casual players, a normal high-IV Pokemon is easier to power up and is more than sufficient.