Pokémon Red / Blue Starters

The Pokémon Red starters have been engraved into most Pokémon fans’ memories as the most iconic starting Pokémon, with Bulbasaur, Charmander & Squirtle forming the first-ever player choice into the franchise!

Pokémon Red & Blue take place in the Kanto region, habitat of the 1st generation of Pokémon. It’s worth mentioning that the Yellow version will also let you obtain the same 3 starters, but only later in the game, since your starting Pokémon will be Pikachu!

Below you can reference all the Pokédex entries of the Red & Blue version starters, their complete move lists, as well as min / max stats, helping you figure out what’s the best choice for your team, and the sweet evolution levels for each starter Pokémon.

What is the Best Starter in Pokémon Red / Blue?

Pokédex Entries for Bulbasaur, Charmander & Squirtle in Pokémon Red / Blue

Choosing the Fire Pokémon, Charmander, is the best early-game choice, and what became the staple of the Pokémon franchise, since in pretty much every generation, starting areas are filled with Pokémon that are weak to fire.

That doesn’t make Bulbasaur & Squirtle any less stronger, but they will definitely make your early game a bit more challenging. Squirtle will be very strong against Brock (the first gym leader) though, so he definitely gets an advantage there.

In the post-game, Charizard still has a small advantage over Venusaur & Blastoise (purely from a Base Stats perspective), but the difference is so small, that the choice should really be made based on your personal preference:

Grass-Type Starter – Bulbasaur, Ivysaur & Venusaur

Pokédex Entries for Bulbasaur, Ivysaur & Venusaur in Pokémon Red / Blue

Bulbasaur evolves to Ivysaur at Level 16, and Venusaur at Level 32.

Fire-Type Starter – Charmander, Charmeleon & Charizard

Pokédex Entries for Charmander, Charmeleon & Charizard in Pokémon Red / Blue

Charmander evolves to Charmeleon at Level 16, and Charizard at Level 36.

Water-Type Starter – Squirtle, Wartortle & Blastoise

Pokédex Entries for Squirtle, Wartortle & Blastoise in Pokémon Red / Blue

Squirtle evolves to Wartortle at Level 16, and Blastoise at Level 36.

All stats & move lists are compiled from the Pokémon Database.

How to Get All 3 Starters in Pokémon Red / Blue?

Getting all 3 starter Pokémon to your team is obviously the best choice, but it’s also going to “cost” you extra.

Since there are two different versions of Red & Blue available (the physical cartridges for Game Boy, as well as the Virtual Console versions for Nintendo 3DS), the process is going to be quite different.

I definitely suggest you follow the Virtual Console method, since this way you can also transport your starters into Poké Transporter, and later on to Pokémon Bank & Pokémon Home. This way, you can effectively bring them over to any later generations.

Getting a starter Pokemon deposited in a box and eligible for transfer, will only take 8 minutes in the Red or Blue version:

1. Go through Professor Oak’s intro and choose your Trainer name as well as your Rival’s.
2. Walk north of your house to the grass, and Professor Oak will bring you back to the lab where you can choose your Starter Pokémon.
3. After your choice, try to leave and you will be forced to fight with your Rival (just spam your attacks and you will win every time).
4. Then you can successfully leave, and go north until you reach Viridian City. You can safely Run from any Pokémon you encounter.
5. Visit the Poké Mart, and you will be given a Parcel for Professor Oak, so go back to his lab in Pallet Town, and speak with him (you can jump from the ledges as a quick shortcut).
6. After that’s done too, go to Viridian City again, visit the Poké Mart, and buy a couple of Poké Balls.
7. Then go south, encounter any Pokémon on the grass, hit it once, and catch it.
8. If you want to trade in later generations:
   1. Go to the Poké Centre, and Deposit your Starter Pokémon to Someone’s PC.
   2. Now you can use the Poké Transporter app on your 3DS to transfer the Pokémon into Pokémon Bank, then repeat the process two more times for the other two starter Pokemon!
9. Or if you want to trade between the Red & Blue versions, read on below!

How to Trade Between the Physical Versions of Red & Blue (Game Boy)

Keep in mind that if you want to trade from the physical versions of the games, you are limited only to Red, Blue, Yellow, Gold, Silver & Crystal, since there is no way to connect the Game Boy / Game Boy Color with the Game Boy Advance, in order to bring them in later generations. You can bring them with the digital versions though, so just skip to the next section if that’s what you want to do.

In order to trade with the physical versions, you will need to have at least two Game Boy / Game Boy Color consoles, and connect them with a Game Link Cable.

Once you have done that, you can visit the Pokémon Center in both games, and talk to the girl on the right, next to the PC (or in the second floor if you’re on Gold, Silver or Crystal), and initiate the Trade between the two consoles.

How to Trade Between the Digital Versions of Red & Blue (3DS)

Even though you can use the free Poké Transporter app for a one-way transfer to Pokémon Bank (in order to withdraw them in X, Y, Alpha Sapphire, Omega Ruby, Sun, Moon, Ultra Sun or Ultra Moon), as well as a one-way transfer from Pokémon Bank to Pokémon Home (in order to withdraw them in Sword or Shield), if you want to trade between them, the only way is with two separate systems.

Therefore you will need to have at least two 2DS / 3DS consoles, and each one should be using a unique NNID (since you can’t attach your Nintendo Network ID to more than one 3DS console).

Keep in mind that you can use this method with Red, Blue, Yellow, Gold, Silver & Crystal virtual console versions (even though the Gold, Silver & Crystal versions can only battle with each other, but you can still trade to the older games).

What’s more, since the virtual console versions are digital, you need to own the required games in separate systems / accounts.

Once you have unlocked Pokémon trading in both games / systems, you can simply:

1. Open both 2DS / 3DS consoles, and visit the Pokémon Center.
   1. If you are in Generation 1, talk to the girl on the right, next to the PC.
   2. If you are in Generation 2, go to the second floor and talk to the one on the left.
2. Choose “Invite a partner” in one game, and “Accept an invitation” in the other game.
3. Then simply initiate the trade!