Its greatest asset is Defense — higher than 73% of species. Weak point: Sp. Atk — among the lowest in the entire Pokédex. Its stat total lands at the tail end — below 86% of species. Defensively it can rely on 3 weaknesses, 8 resistances and 1 full immunity. Watch out for the Fire, Fighting types — damage from them is quadrupled. Very easy to catch, often with the first Poké Ball.
Base stats
Last column: what percentage of 1084 species and regional forms have a lower value. Weak point: Sp. Atk.
A nature can improve this entry further: its boost hits hardest on Defense, the stat in which this species already leads. Which nature does that — see the list of natures.
Which nature to choose
It hits physically: its Attack (75) is 65 points higher than its Sp. Atk. So the drop hits a stat the set usually does not use at all.
- Adamant +Atk · −SpA It moves second and nothing will change that, so the whole boost goes into power.
- Brave +Atk · −Spe The Trick Room version: with the turn order reversed, the slower the better, and Gyro Ball calculates its power from exactly this lowered Speed.
- Hidden Power and Weather Ball still deal damage based on Sp. Atk. If either of them is going into the set, lowering Sp. Atk is no longer free.
- Slush Rush doubles Speed in hail or snow. Calculate Speed benchmarks with the ability active — it may change the point of a +Spe or −Spe nature.
A conclusion drawn from base stats alone — a specific moveset can reverse it. All 25 natures.
Regional numbers 11
The header shows the national number. Inside the game the Pokédex counts from the beginning — below is the number you will see in your version. The number belongs to the species, not to the form: in the Alola Pokédex this form has the same position as the base form.
| Kanto | #027 | Red/Green (Japan) , Blue (Japan) , Red / Blue , Yellow , FireRed / LeafGreen , Let's Go Pikachu / Eevee |
|---|---|---|
| Johto | #048 | Gold / Silver , Crystal , HeartGold / SoulSilver |
| Hoenn | #112 | Ruby / Sapphire , Emerald |
| Hoenn | #117 | Omega Ruby / Alpha Sapphire |
| Unova | #113 | Black 2 / White 2 |
| Kalos | #097 | X / Y |
| Alola | #251 home region | Sun / Moon |
| Alola | #328 home region | Ultra Sun / Ultra Moon |
| Isle of Armor | #168 | Sword / Shield , Sword/Shield: The Isle of Armor |
| Kitakami | #116 | Scarlet / Violet , Scarlet/Violet: The Teal Mask |
| Blueberry Academy | #155 | Scarlet / Violet , Scarlet/Violet: The Indigo Disk |
Abilities
- Snow Cloak Increases evasion to 1.25× during hail. Protects against hail damage.
- Slush Rush During Hail, this Pokémon has double Speed.
Pokédex entry
Burrows deep underground in arid locations far from water. It only emerges to hunt for food.
Resistances and weaknesses
Type chart →How much damage Alolan Sandshrew takes when it is hit by a move of each type. The multipliers of both its types are already combined here.
Variant gallery
The gallery shows only the appearance variants that exist for this Pokémon. Every image shows the same character and differs in source — a Pokémon HOME render or a pixel sprite — and in coloring, regular or shiny.
Breeding
All Egg Groups →Offspring can come from 276 species from the same Egg Groups (with opposite genders) or from Ditto. Below are the first 12 by Pokédex number.
Where to catch it (5)
All locations →The levels shown are the widest range across all game versions — in a specific release it may be narrower. The exact area, catch method and chance are on the page of each location.
Alola
Galar
Kanto
Moves (91)
Full move list →Below are the moves learned by leveling up. The rest (68 via TM/TR, 14 via Egg, 16 via tutor) are on the full list.
| Lv. | Move | Type | Cat. | Power | Acc. | PP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Defense Curl | Normal | Status | — | — | 40 |
| 1 | Scratch | Normal | Physical | 40 | 100% | 35 |
| 3 | Mist | Ice | Status | — | — | 30 |
| 4 | Bide | Normal | Physical | — | — | 10 |
| 6 | Powder Snow | Ice | Special | 40 | 100% | 25 |
| 7 | Ice Ball | Ice | Physical | 30 | 90% | 20 |
| 8 | Ice Shard | Ice | Physical | 40 | 100% | 30 |
| 9 | Rollout | Rock | Physical | 30 | 90% | 20 |
| 12 | Fury Cutter | Bug | Physical | 40 | 95% | 20 |
| 15 | Rapid Spin | Normal | Physical | 50 | 100% | 40 |
| 16 | Mirror Coat | Psychic | Special | — | 100% | 20 |
| 18 | Metal Claw | Steel | Physical | 50 | 95% | 35 |
| 21 | Swift | Normal | Special | 60 | — | 20 |
| 24 | Fury Swipes | Normal | Physical | 18 | 80% | 15 |
| 24 | Ice Punch | Ice | Physical | 75 | 100% | 15 |
| 27 | Iron Defense | Steel | Status | — | — | 15 |
| 30 | Slash | Normal | Physical | 70 | 100% | 20 |
| 33 | Iron Head | Steel | Physical | 80 | 100% | 15 |
| 36 | Gyro Ball | Steel | Physical | — | 100% | 5 |
| 39 | Swords Dance | Normal | Status | — | — | 20 |
| 42 | Hail | Ice | Status | — | — | 10 |
| 42 | Snowscape | Ice | Status | — | — | 10 |
| 45 | Blizzard | Ice | Special | 110 | 70% | 5 |