You might associate Bug-types with the Bug Catcher trainers that you meet early on in most of your Pokémon journeys.
These trainers were always weak and hardly proved a challenge to your team.
However, you should never count a Bug-type out. Although sometimes seen as inferior to other types, they can prove to be quite a foe to the unprepared.
For example, there have been representatives of the Bug-type in both the Gym Leaders (Bugsy, Burgh, and Viola) and Elite Four (Aaron) in numerous games.
That’s also not forgetting the Champion Alder from Black & White, whose Bug Pokémon like Accelgor, Escavalier, and Volcarona truly showed what this type is capable of.
Don’t fear though! In this guide, we’ll take you through some of the best ways to beat Bug-type Pokémon!
Bug Type Pokémon Weaknesses & Strengths Chart
| Weak Against | Super-effective Against |
|---|---|
| Fire, Rock, Flying | Psychic, Dark, Grass |
Bug Type Pokémon Weaknesses
Bug-type weaknesses are Fire, Rock, and Flying-types, which are all super effective against them. This is good news, as often you can find wild Rock and Flying Pokémon quite early on in your game. If Bug-types are hit by these types of moves, they take double damage.
Thankfully, a lot of Pokémon types resist Bug-type moves, meaning that they are good against them even if you don’t have a super-effective move.
Fighting, Poison, Flying, Fire, Ghost, Steel, and Fairy-types all take half damage from Bug attacks. That’s quite a big list!
Although they grow and evolve quickly, often the defensive stats of Bug-types, and sometimes their offensive ones, can be low. You can use this to your advantage by being able to hit them hard with your attacks.
Bug Type Pokémon Strengths and Resistances
Bug-types are super effective against Grass, Psychic, and Dark-types. They can hit them for double damage.
Although they are not immune to any moves, they can resist a large number of attacks too. Fighting, Ground, and Grass-types will do half damage to Bugs, meaning they are a good switch in against these moves.
Bug-types are some of the quickest evolving Pokémon in the games, meaning you can have a very powerful fully evolved Pokémon quite early on. This can also be said for your opponents though, so watch out!
Pokémon Good Against Bug Types
There are plenty of Pokémon that can be good against Bug-type Pokemon, that either can exploit their weaknesses or resist their moves. 5 of the best Bug-type counters are:
1. Talonflame
As it is a Fire/Flying-type, Talonflame only takes a quarter of the damage from Bug-type attacks. Alongside this, its ability Gale Wings gives Flying-type moves priority.
This means it can almost always attack first with super-effective moves such as Brave Bird, and heal itself quickly with Roost.
Being a Fire-type also gives it the ability to burn opponents to lower their attack with Will o Wisp.
2. Hawlucha
Much like Talonflame, Hawlucha also is good against Bug-types as it only takes a quarter of the damage they deal.
Although its Fighting-type moves won’t do wonders, its Flying-type attacks are super effective.
It can also boost its Attack stat with Swords Dance which paired with its good Speed mean it will hit hard and fast.
3. Aggron
Aggron resists Bug-type moves with its Steel typing and can hit for super effective damage as it is also a Rock-type.
It has great Defense meaning it can tank a fair few hits, and its Attack stat also means it packs a punch in retaliation.
One notable feature Aggron has in its arsenal is the ability to use Stealth Rock, meaning Bug-types that switch in automatically take 25% damage if it is on the field!
4. Togekiss
Being both Fairy and Flying types means that Togekiss also has double resistance to Bug-type moves.
Togekiss has great Special Defense, and good bulk overall. The thing that sets Togekiss apart from the crowd is its ability, Serene Grace. This boosts the likelihood of the additional effects of attacks occurring.
This means that its move Air Slash has a greater chance of making the opponent flinch, making sure they are unable to attack on their turn.
5. Arcanine
Arcanine is a great choice for a Pokémon that is good against Bug-types as it can be built in multiple ways.
You can build one that focuses on physical attacks, such as Flare Blitz, Thunder Fang, and Extreme Speed. Alternatively, a special attacking one, with Flamethrower, Dragon Pulse, and Snarl.
Or, you could build it to be defensive, with Will o Wisp, Flamethrower, and Morning Sun.
There are plenty more Pokémon out there good against Bug-types. See our list below for some top choices with some recommended movesets.
| Pokémon | Type | Moves |
|---|---|---|
| Arcanine | Fire | Flare Blitz Wild Charge Morning Sun Will-o-Wisp |
| Talonflame | Fire/Flying | Brave Bird Roost Flare Blitz U-Turn |
| Hawlucha | Fighting/Flying | Swords Dance Acrobatics Close Combat Taunt |
| Aggron | Steel/Rock | Stealth Rock Head Smash Heavy Slam Roar |
| Togekiss | Fairy/Flying | Thunder Wave Air Slash Roost Flamethrower |
| Aerodactyl | Rock/Flying | Stone Edge Dual Wingbeat Hone Claws Earthquake |
| Crobat | Poison/Flying | Toxic Brave Bird Roost U-turn |
| Rhypherior | Rock/Ground | Stone Edge Earthquake Stealth Rock Rock Polish |
| Charizard | Fire/Flying | Air Slash Flamethrower Focus Blast Roost |
| Salazzle | Poison/Fire | Substitute Toxic Sludge Bomb Flamethrower |
| Omastar | Water/Rock | Shell Smash Meteor Beam Surf Ice Beam |
| Chandelure | Ghost/Fire | Shadow Ball Calm Mind Substitute Fire Blast |
| Rapidash | Fire | Flare Blitz Wild Charge High Horsepower Flame Charge |
| Dragonite | Dragon/Flying | Dragon Dance Dual Wingbeat Outrage Roost |
| Gliscor | Ground/Flying | Knock Off Earthquake Stealth Rock Toxic |
Attacks Super Effective Against Bug Type Pokémon
Rock, Fire, and Flying-type attacks will be your moves of choice to defeat Bug-type Pokémon quickly and easily.
It’s always key to remember that you don’t need a Pokémon that has Rock, Fire, or Flying typing to use a super effective move. Lots of different Pokémon can learn them and help you out in a pinch.
Here is a list of some of the top 10 moves to look out for.
- Stone Edge (Rock)
- Stealth Rock (Rock)
- Brave Bird (Flying)
- Flamethrower (Fire)
- Rock Slide (Rock)
- Flame Charge (Fire)
- Dual Wingbeat (Flying)
- Hurricane (Flying)
- Air Slash (Flying)
- Fire Fang (Fire)
Tips on Defeating Bug Type Pokémon
As we have discussed, Flying, Fire, and Rock-type moves are your go-to when fighting Bug-types. Always remember that lots of Pokémon can learn these types of moves.
This means you can always have them as a surprise trump card on a Pokémon your opponent might not expect!
Bug-type Pokémon, on the whole, have the lowest base stat total (BST) of any Pokémon type. As a result, they are often weaker in one or more stats which you can take advantage of.
Defensive Pokémon will often lack offensive capabilities, such as Shuckle or Forretress, and offensive ones will likely lack in their defenses.
One of the best ways to cripple Bug-type Pokémon, especially in prolonged battles, is to use Stealth Rock. This Rock-type move creates hazards on the field which damages Pokémon that switch in.
As Bug-types are weak to Rock, this will take away a quarter of their total health every time that they are brought out.
Even better, some Bug-type Pokémon will lose half their health due to having two weak types, such as Volcarona (Bug/Fire) or Butterfree (Bug/Flying)! As a result, your opponent is significantly weakened even before you start attacking them.
We hope you found our Bug-type Pokémon analysis useful! If Bug-types are still a Beedrill in your bonnet, be sure to ask for help from your fellow trainers in the comments!