Budew is one of those Pokémon that looks adorable but is genuinely frustrating to catch. This tiny baby Grass-type flees the instant it spots you, spawns in limited locations, and requires friendship evolution to transform into Roselia. If you’re working on completing your Pokédex or collecting Grass-types for Mable’s Research Challenges, you’ll need to hunt down Budew eventually.
I spent way too long chasing Budew around rooftops before figuring out the optimal catching strategy. Let me save you that headache with this complete guide to finding, catching, and evolving Budew into Roserade.
Where to Find Budew in Pokémon Legends: Z-A
Budew is a Grass-type Pokémon with specific habitat preferences. According to the Pokédex lore, it prefers sunny, isolated locations where it can photosynthesize without human interference—which explains why it’s so skittish around trainers.
Primary Budew Location: Wild Zone 2
Best spawn point: Entrance area of Wild Zone 2
Unlock requirement: Complete Main Mission 5
Time availability: All times of day (despite preferring sunlight, it spawns day and night)
Wild Zone 2 is your guaranteed Budew spawn and the easiest place to catch one for basic Pokédex completion. Check our Wild Zone 2 complete guide for full details on all Pokémon in this area.
Alternative Budew Locations: Vert District Rooftops
If you’re Shiny hunting or want multiple Budew for different purposes (trading, evolution variations, etc.), you have more options.
Secondary spawn locations:
- Rooftops of buildings surrounding Wild Zone 2
- Vert District rooftop areas
Other Pokémon sharing these rooftops:
- Vivillon
- Pidgey
- Cleffa (also rare and worth catching—see our Cleffa evolution guide)
Why rooftops matter: These elevated areas have different spawn tables than ground-level zones. Many baby Pokémon and evolved forms appear exclusively on rooftops, making vertical exploration essential. Check our all Wild Zones guide for more rooftop spawn patterns.
How to Catch Budew: The Skittish Problem
Here’s the challenge: Budew is extremely skittish and will flee instantly when it spots a trainer approaching. Unlike aggressive Pokémon that attack or passive ones that ignore you, Budew operates on hair-trigger flee response similar to Audino in Wild Zone 7.
Best Catching Strategies
Method 1: Stealth Approach (Recommended)
- Crouch and enter stealth mode before Budew spots you
- Approach slowly from behind for a back strike opportunity
- Throw a Poké Ball while still in stealth for increased catch rate
- Use Ultra Balls or Quick Balls for higher success chance
Method 2: Quick Ball Rush
- The moment you see Budew, immediately throw a Quick Ball
- Quick Balls have boosted catch rates on the first turn
- This bypasses combat entirely if successful
- Stock up on Quick Balls at the Poké Mart beforehand
Method 3: Sleep/Paralysis Status
- Send out a Pokémon with Sleep or Paralysis moves
- Inflict status conditions immediately
- Status effects prevent fleeing and increase catch rates
- Follow up with Ultra Balls
Pro tip: Budew’s flee response is instantaneous. Don’t bother with regular combat strategies—you need to either catch it immediately or immobilize it with status moves.
What NOT to Do
- Don’t approach Budew head-on without stealth
- Don’t waste regular Poké Balls (catch rate is too low)
- Don’t assume you’ll get a second chance if it flees
- Don’t forget to save before attempting if you’re Shiny hunting
How to Evolve Budew into Roselia
Budew is a baby Pokémon that evolves through friendship (happiness) + time of day requirement. This is the same evolution method used by several other Pokémon in Z-A.
Evolution Requirements
To evolve Budew → Roselia:
- Max out Budew’s friendship level
- Level up Budew once while friendship is maxed
- Must be during daytime
If all conditions are met, the evolution symbol will appear over Budew’s thumbnail in your menu, allowing you to evolve it.
How to Max Friendship Quickly: The Café Method
Pokémon Legends: Z-A has streamlined friendship evolution significantly compared to older games. Instead of walking thousands of steps or battling endlessly, you can just take Budew to a café.
Fast friendship method:
- Add Budew to your active party (not in boxes)
- Go to any Café in Lumiose City
- Order 3-4 teas with Budew as your partner
- Roserade Tea is most effective (ironic, since it’s named after Budew’s final evolution)
- After 3-4 drinks (costs ~1,000-1,500 Pokédollars total), friendship maxes out
Why this works: Each café drink significantly boosts friendship. The entire process takes 2-3 minutes of real time, making it dramatically faster than traditional friendship grinding.
Check our complete happiness guide for more details on friendship mechanics.
Evolving During Daytime
Once Budew’s friendship is maxed:
- Make sure it’s daytime in-game (check the sky or your menu)
- Level up Budew once (battle, Exp. Candy, anything works)
- The evolution prompt appears
- Confirm the evolution
Time-change shortcut: If it’s currently nighttime, find a bench near any Pokémon Center and interact with it to change the time of day. This instantly switches between day and night without waiting.
Important: Evolution control in Z-A has changed from previous games. You now manually choose when to evolve Pokémon—the Everstone item isn’t needed to prevent evolution anymore. This means you can safely max friendship and wait for the perfect moment to evolve.
How to Evolve Roselia into Roserade
Once you have Roselia, the final evolution is straightforward: Shiny Stone.
Getting the Shiny Stone
Where to buy: Stone Emporium on Vernal Avenue
Other sources:
- Found in red Pokéballs on Lumiose City streets and rooftops
- Random drops from defeating/catching certain Pokémon
- Mission rewards (occasionally)
Cost: Check the Stone Emporium for current prices (usually a few thousand Pokédollars)
Pro tip: The Stone Emporium sells all evolution stones. If you’re working on multiple stone evolutions, stock up while you’re there. Check our special evolutions guide for the complete list of stone-evolved Pokémon.
Other Pokémon Using Shiny Stones
If you’re collecting Shiny Stones, these Pokémon also evolve with them:
- Floette → Florges (see our Flabébé locations guide)
- Minccino → Cinccino
- Togetic → Togekiss
Complete Evolution Chain Summary
Budew → Roselia → Roserade
| Stage | Evolution Method | Requirements |
|---|---|---|
| Budew → Roselia | Friendship + Level Up | Max friendship during daytime, then level up once |
| Roselia → Roserade | Evolution Stone | Use a Shiny Stone (buyable at Stone Emporium) |
Total cost: ~1,500 Pokédollars (café drinks) + Shiny Stone cost (~2,000-5,000 Pokédollars depending on game economy)
Total time: 5-10 minutes if you have resources ready
Is Roserade Worth Using Competitively?
Let me be honest—Roserade is a solid mid-tier Pokémon, but it’s not breaking any competitive tier lists in Z-A.
Roserade’s Strengths
Pros:
- High Special Attack stat (good for offensive moves)
- Grass/Poison dual typing gives some coverage
- Access to decent Special moves (Giga Drain, Sludge Bomb, etc.)
- Useful for specific type matchups
Pokédex/Research value:
- Counts toward Grass-type Research Challenges for Mable
- Required for full Pokédex completion
- Helps unlock Rank 50 (Master Ball) and Rank 51 (Shiny Charm)
Roserade’s Weaknesses
Cons:
- Too many type weaknesses: Fire, Flying, Psychic, Ice
- Fragile defenses: Low HP and Defense stats
- Outclassed by Mega Evolutions: Can’t compete with Mega-evolved threats
- Weak to common Mega types: Gets destroyed by Mega Charizard X/Y, Mega Camerupt, Mega Pyroar
Specific counters that wall Roserade:
- Mega Beedrill (Bug/Poison with better stats)
- Mega Pidgeot (Flying destroys Grass)
- Any Fire-type Mega Evolution (one-shot potential)
When to Use Roserade
Good situations:
- Early-to-mid game teams (before Megas become common)
- Water/Ground-type matchups (Grass is super effective)
- Rock-type matchups (Grass is super effective)
- Pokédex completion and Research Challenges
Avoid using against:
- Fire-types (you’ll get destroyed)
- Flying-types (4x weakness from Poison typing)
- Psychic-types (Poison weakness)
- Any opponent with Mega Evolution potential
Better alternatives: Check our Mega Evolution Tier List and best early Pokémon guide for stronger team options.
Research Challenge Connection: Why Budew Matters
Even if Roserade isn’t your competitive ace, catching and evolving Budew is essential for Mable’s Research Challenges.
Key Research Challenge categories:
- Pokédex completion: Budew line counts as 3 entries (Budew, Roselia, Roserade)
- Grass-type catches: Each Grass-type caught progresses this challenge
- Evolution challenges: Evolving Pokémon contributes to evolution-specific research
Major Research Rewards:
- Rank 50: Master Ball (catch anything guaranteed – see our Master Ball guide)
- Rank 51: Shiny Charm (dramatically increases Shiny encounter rates)
These are arguably the two best rewards in the entire game, making Pokédex completion (including Budew) absolutely worth the effort.
Alternative Grass-Types to Consider
If you’re building a Grass-type team or completing Research Challenges, consider these alternatives:
Better Grass-type options:
- Mega Venusaur (Bulbasaur line – Mega Evolution available)
- Gogoat (pure Grass with better bulk)
- Chesnaught (Chespin line – Grass/Fighting dual typing)
Other catchable Grass-types:
- Bellsprout → Weepinbell → Victreebel (Leaf Stone evolution)
- Pansage → Simisage (Leaf Stone evolution – see our Pansage guide)
- Snover → Abomasnow (Grass/Ice dual typing)
Tips for Budew Hunting & Evolution
Catching preparation:
- Stock 20+ Quick Balls before hunting
- Practice stealth approach on easier targets first
- Save your game before attempting (especially for Shinies)
- Check rooftops if Wild Zone 2 entrance is empty
Evolution preparation:
- Have 2,000+ Pokédollars for café drinks
- Buy Shiny Stone from Stone Emporium in advance
- Use a bench to switch to daytime if needed
- Level Budew to at least level 10 before friendship grinding (makes post-friendship leveling faster)
Shiny hunting considerations:
- Budew has a distinct color difference when Shiny (lighter/brighter)
- Rooftops around Wild Zone 2 provide multiple spawn points
- Shiny Charm (Rank 51 reward) dramatically increases odds
- Save before every encounter when Shiny hunting
Related Evolution & Catching Guides
Similar evolution mechanics:
- Riolu Evolution (Lucario) – Also friendship + daytime
- Cleffa Evolution Chain – Friendship evolution baby Pokémon
- Eevee Eeveelutions – Multiple friendship evolutions
- Complete Special Evolutions – All non-level evolution methods
Other skittish Pokémon guides:
- Audino Catching (Wild Zone 7)
- Espurr Catching (Wild Zone 9)
- Abra/Kadabra Catching
Wild Zone exploration:
My Experience With Budew
Budew was one of those Pokémon I initially ignored because “it’s just a baby Grass-type, how useful can it be?” Then I started working on Pokédex completion and realized I needed the entire evolution line for Research Challenges.
The catching part was annoying but manageable once I learned the stealth approach. The friendship evolution was trivially easy thanks to the café system—honestly one of my favorite quality-of-life features in Z-A.
As for using Roserade competitively? I benched it pretty quickly once Mega Evolutions became available. It’s fine for mid-game content, but it gets outclassed hard in late-game battles. Still, I’m glad I caught and evolved it for Pokédex completion and Research progress.
If you’re a completionist working toward that Shiny Charm, Budew is non-negotiable. If you’re just building a competitive team, you can probably skip it unless you specifically need a Grass/Poison-type for coverage.
Final Thoughts
Budew is worth catching primarily for Pokédex completion and Mable’s Research Challenges. The catching process is frustrating due to its flee response, but Quick Balls or stealth approaches solve that problem. Evolution is quick and easy thanks to the café friendship system and readily available Shiny Stones.
Competitively, Roserade is serviceable but not exceptional. It has too many weaknesses and gets hard-countered by common Mega Evolutions. Use it for mid-game content if you like Grass-types, but plan to replace it with stronger options for post-game challenges.
For Pokédex completionists? Absolutely catch and evolve Budew. Those Research Challenge rewards (Master Ball and Shiny Charm) are too valuable to skip.
For official game information, visit the Pokémon Legends website or grab the game from Nintendo’s store.
Now get out there, catch that skittish Budew, and add another entry to your Pokédex!
