How to get it
- Catch Pokémon, hatch Eggs, battle, and collect eligible research and activity rewards.
- GO Battle League, Rocket battles, Gifts, Routes, and Adventure Sync are additional sources.
How to use it
- Read the Stardust and Candy cost shown for the action before confirming.
- Power-up costs rise with Pokémon level, so a high-level build can consume a large reserve.
Worth knowing
A Star Piece multiplies eligible earnings by 1.5 while active.
Choose the Pokémon, moves, and intended league before powering up. Extra CP can make a Pokémon ineligible for a league with a CP limit.
Separate earning more from spending less
Stardust is a shared bottleneck because many different projects draw from the same balance. A power-up, trade, second Charged Attack, purification, or Adventure Effect can all compete with the next Pokémon you want to build.
The capture reward does not increase simply because the caught Pokémon has a higher level or CP. Species, evolutionary stage, weather, and active bonuses determine the catch reward. This is why a high-Stardust species can be a better resource target than a harder, higher-CP catch.
Before committing to a large build, total the power-ups and the second-move cost separately. A Lucky Pokémon halves power-up Stardust, but its second Charged Attack is not covered by that discount.
A comparison of power-up discounts
The following is an illustrative 10,000-Stardust power-up cost at an otherwise equivalent point in the cost schedule. The Shadow surcharge, Purified discount, and Lucky discount are distinct modifiers. Actual multi-step quotes also depend on level and rounding.
Purifying a Pokémon changes its battle properties as well as its costs. A lower price alone is not a reason to give up a Shadow attacker that fits your plans.
| Status | Illustrative cost |
|---|---|
| Ordinary | 10,000 |
| Shadow | 12,000 |
| Purified | 9,000 |
| Lucky | 5,000 |
| Lucky and Purified | 4,500 |
Sources & further reading
- Pokémon GO: A Quantitative Approach by nick blackVersion 1.0.6 (October 4, 2026), §2.5, pp. 9–10; §9.1, p. 118; Table 2.8; §9.4, p. 120; §8.3, pp. 105–106
Event rewards, shop offers, and limits can change. Check the current in-game description for event-specific rules. Worked examples are illustrative calculations.