How many natures are there in Pokemon?

There are 25 natures in Pokemon. 20 natures boost one stat by 10% and lower another by 10%. The remaining 5 natures (Hardy, Docile, Bashful, Quirky, Serious) are neutral and have no stat effect.

What is the best nature in Pokemon?

There is no single best nature. The ideal nature depends on your Pokemon's role. Adamant and Jolly are popular for physical attackers, Modest and Timid for special attackers, Bold and Impish for physical walls, and Calm and Careful for special walls.

How do natures affect stats?

Each non-neutral nature increases one stat by 10% and decreases another by 10%. The affected stats are Attack, Defense, Special Attack, Special Defense, and Speed. HP is never affected by natures.

Can you change a Pokemon's nature?

Since Pokemon Sword & Shield, you can use Mints to change the stat effects of a nature without changing the nature's name. For example, an Adamant Mint makes any Pokemon's stats behave as if it had an Adamant nature.

Pokemon Natures

All 25 natures – 20 boost one stat by 10% while reducing another, and 5 are neutral.

Nature Chart

Rows show the boosted stat (+10%), columns show the reduced stat (−10%). Diagonal cells are neutral natures.

+\−	−Atk	−Def	−SpA	−SpD	−Spe
+Atk	Hardy	Lonely	Adamant	Naughty	Brave
+Def	Bold	Docile	Impish	Lax	Relaxed
+SpA	Modest	Mild	Bashful	Rash	Quiet
+SpD	Calm	Gentle	Careful	Quirky	Sassy
+Spe	Timid	Hasty	Jolly	Naive	Serious

How to Read the Chart

Find the stat you want to increase in the left column (green), then look across the row. Each column represents the stat that gets reduced (red).

For example, if you need +Attack and can afford −Special Attack, look at the Atk row and SpA column – that's Adamant.

The Diagonal

The 5 highlighted cells on the diagonal are neutral natures – they boost and reduce the same stat, resulting in no net change. These are never used in competitive play.

Quick Rule

Always reduce the stat your Pokemon doesn't use. Physical attackers dump Special Attack (Adamant or Jolly). Special attackers dump Attack (Modest or Timid).

Competitive Tier Rating

Natures ranked by competitive viability in Scarlet & Violet. S-tier natures appear on the vast majority of teams, while D-tier (neutral) natures are never used.

Modest+SpA / −Atk Timid+Spe / −Atk Adamant+Atk / −SpA Jolly+Spe / −SpA

Meta-defining. Used on the majority of competitive teams.

Bold+Def / −Atk Calm+SpD / −Atk Impish+Def / −SpA Careful+SpD / −SpA Brave+Atk / −Spe Quiet+SpA / −Spe

Excellent. Core natures for walls and Trick Room.

Lonely+Atk / −Def Mild+SpA / −Def Hasty+Spe / −Def Rash+SpA / −SpD Naughty+Atk / −SpD Naive+Spe / −SpD

Niche. Useful for mixed attackers and specific sets.

Gentle+SpD / −Def Lax+Def / −SpD Relaxed+Def / −Spe Sassy+SpD / −Spe

Rare. Only viable in very specific scenarios.

HardyNeutral DocileNeutral BashfulNeutral QuirkyNeutral SeriousNeutral

Neutral natures. No stat change, never used competitively.

Best Natures by Role

Choose a nature based on your Pokemon's role. The key rule: always reduce the stat your Pokemon doesn't use.

⚔️Physical Sweeper

Fast or powerful physical attackers that aim to KO opponents before they can respond.

Adamant+Atk / -SpAMax power, safe dump stat Jolly+Spe / -SpASpeed ties, outspeeding threats

🔮Special Sweeper

Special attackers that use moves like Thunderbolt, Flamethrower, or Moonblast.

Modest+SpA / -AtkMax power, safe dump stat Timid+Spe / -AtkSpeed ties, outspeeding threats

🛡️Physical Wall

Tanks physical hits. Typically runs recovery and status moves.

Bold+Def / -AtkBest for special-based walls Impish+Def / -SpABest for physical-based walls Relaxed+Def / -SpeTrick Room or Gyro Ball

🔰Special Wall

Absorbs special hits. Often pairs with Wish, Protect, or status moves.

Calm+SpD / -AtkBest for special-based walls Careful+SpD / -SpABest for physical-based walls Sassy+SpD / -SpeTrick Room or slow pivots

🔄Trick Room

Pokemon that thrive under Trick Room, where the slowest moves first.

Brave+Atk / -SpePhysical Trick Room sweeper Quiet+SpA / -SpeSpecial Trick Room sweeper Relaxed+Def / -SpeTrick Room setter/wall Sassy+SpD / -SpeTrick Room setter/wall

💥Mixed Attacker

Uses both physical and special moves. Drops a defensive stat instead.

Naive+Spe / -SpDFast mixed, drops SpD Hasty+Spe / -DefFast mixed, drops Def Naughty+Atk / -SpDPhys-leaning mixed Lonely+Atk / -DefPhys-leaning, risky Mild+SpA / -DefSpec-leaning, risky Rash+SpA / -SpDSpec-leaning mixed

All 25 Natures

Nature	Tier	Boosted Stat	Reduced Stat	Likes Flavor	Hates Flavor
Hardy	D	Neutral	Neutral	None	None
Bold	A	+Def	−Atk	Sour	Spicy
Modest	S	+SpA	−Atk	Dry	Spicy
Calm	A	+SpD	−Atk	Bitter	Spicy
Timid	S	+Spe	−Atk	Sweet	Spicy
Lonely	B	+Atk	−Def	Spicy	Sour
Docile	D	Neutral	Neutral	None	None
Mild	B	+SpA	−Def	Dry	Sour
Gentle	C	+SpD	−Def	Bitter	Sour
Hasty	B	+Spe	−Def	Sweet	Sour
Adamant	S	+Atk	−SpA	Spicy	Dry
Impish	A	+Def	−SpA	Sour	Dry
Bashful	D	Neutral	Neutral	None	None
Careful	A	+SpD	−SpA	Bitter	Dry
Rash	B	+SpA	−SpD	Dry	Bitter
Jolly	S	+Spe	−SpA	Sweet	Dry
Naughty	B	+Atk	−SpD	Spicy	Bitter
Lax	C	+Def	−SpD	Sour	Bitter
Quirky	D	Neutral	Neutral	None	None
Naive	B	+Spe	−SpD	Sweet	Bitter
Brave	A	+Atk	−Spe	Spicy	Sweet
Relaxed	C	+Def	−Spe	Sour	Sweet
Quiet	A	+SpA	−Spe	Dry	Sweet
Sassy	C	+SpD	−Spe	Bitter	Sweet
Serious	D	Neutral	Neutral	None	None

Natures by Boosted Stat

How to Get the Right Nature

Four methods to get the nature you need, from easiest to most involved.

🌿Nature MintsGen VIII+

Buy Mints in the Battle Tower or from Chansey Supply shops. Using a Mint changes the stat effects to match the Mint's nature, but the original nature name stays the same. This is the easiest method in Scarlet & Violet.

Cosmetic only – the displayed nature doesn't change, but stats are recalculated. This means berry flavor preferences stay tied to the original nature.

🔁SynchronizeGen III – VIII

Place a Pokemon with the Synchronize ability (like Abra, Ralts, or Espeon) at the front of your party. Wild encounters have a 50% chance (Gen III–IV) or 100% chance (Gen VIII) of matching that nature.

Does not work in Gen IX (Scarlet & Violet) for wild encounters. Use Mints instead.

💎Everstone BreedingGen IV+

Give an Everstone to a parent with the desired nature. The offspring will always inherit that nature. Works for both male and female parents (and Ditto). Combine with Destiny Knot for IV breeding.

100% inheritance rate since Gen V. In Gen IV, only the mother's nature was passed (50%).

🎲Random (Wild / Tera Raids)All Gens

Wild Pokemon and Tera Raid catches have a random nature (1/25 chance per nature). Not recommended for competitive, but fine for casual play. Tera Raid rewards can be corrected with Mints afterwards.

4% chance of getting the exact nature you want. Soft-resetting is no longer viable in modern games.

Understanding Pokemon Natures

Natures are a core mechanic introduced in Generation III (Ruby & Sapphire) that affect a Pokemon's stat growth. Each of the 25 natures either increases one stat by 10% while decreasing another by 10%, or has no effect at all (neutral natures like Hardy, Docile, Bashful, Quirky, and Serious).

In competitive Pokemon, choosing the right nature is crucial for optimizing a Pokemon's performance. Physical attackers typically use Adamant (+Atk) or Jolly (+Spe), while special attackers prefer Modest (+SpA) or Timid (+Spe). Defensive Pokemon use Bold, Impish, Calm, or Careful depending on which defensive stat and attacking stat they need.

Since Generation VIII (Sword & Shield), players can use Mints to change the stat effects of a nature without changing the nature's name. This makes it easier to optimize natures for competitive play without extensive breeding. For Trick Room teams, Brave (+Atk, −Spe) and Quiet (+SpA, −Spe) are the go-to choices, as lower Speed is actually an advantage.

Natures also affect a Pokemon's flavor preferences for berries and Pokeblocks. The boosted stat corresponds to a liked flavor, while the reduced stat corresponds to a disliked flavor. Mixed attackers often opt for Naive or Hasty (+Spe) to keep both offensive stats intact, sacrificing a defensive stat instead.