This guide explains how to level up your Pokemon fast in the games Pokemon Sword and Shield. Read on for tips on how to get Exp. Points and Exp. Candy, and other advice for leveling up.

How to Level Up Early in the Game

Raise the Pokemon's Affection stat to 3

Raising a Pokemon's Affection stat has the side effect of increasing the experience acquired by a Pokemon. Affection can be increased taking a Pokemon with you and walking with it on your adventure, setting up a Pokemon Camp with, making Curry with it, and other activities.

If a Pokemon's Affection stat is increased to 3, it will receive 110% the normal amount of Exp. Points any time it acquires them, so raising a Pokemon's Affection at the start of a game is a great investment in helping it reach a high level quickly.

	If a Pokemon's Affection stat reaches 5, the boost will increase to 120%, so start working on building up Affection first thing!

Defeat Trainers around the Map

Trainers found in Routes and Dungeons throughout the game will give comparatively more Exp. Points than wild Pokemon.

How to Level Up in the Middle of the Game

Battle Pokemon on the Map in the Wild Area

When wandering around the Wild Area, occasionally you will encounter Pokemon which always appear in a fixed spot on the Map. These Pokemon have a higher level than those found in random encounters, so by bringing out a Pokemon with a type advantage, you can bring down these giants and earn a sizable Exp. Point reward for it.

How to Level Up Late in the Game

Acquire huge amounts of Exp. Candy in Max Raids

You can quickly gather huge hauls of Exp. Candy as a reward for Max Raids Battles. Every Exp. Candy gives great Exp. Point boosts to one of your Pokemon, especially the XL Size, granting a whopping 30,000 points of experience.

Types and Effects of Exp. Candy

Repeat the Final Tournament

Repeatedly challenging the Gym Leaders helps you increase your level faster. Visit Wyndom Statium and try challenging Hop to get more experience. You can also receive a great amount of Poke Dollars. So, it is also a place to go when you need money.

Join the Galarian Star Tournament

After completing The Crown Tundra DLC, you will be able to access the Galarian Star Tournament, which is a series of double-battles. Compared to previous tournaments that you have encountered, this one is more challenging as your opponents are much stronger. With this, you have a chance to receive a great amount of experience. If you can defeat your opponents in this tournament, you will level up faster.

Galarian Star Tournament

The Basics of Leveling Up

Leveling Up with Exp. Candy

Exp. Candies are items which will instantly grant Exp. Points to Pokemon. This can save lots of time which otherwise would need to be spent grinding, so this is the most recommended way to earn Exp. Points quickly.

Exp. Candies are acquired primarily through Max Raid Battles, so challenging Max Raid Battles is a necessity for those who want to take advantage of this quick and easy method to level up.

Participate in Poke Jobs

Sending your Pokemon on Poke Jobs is an easy way for them to acquire Exp. Points automatically, with the disadvantage that you will not be able to use your Pokemon while they are away on a Poke Job. Your Pokemon can acquire more Exp. Points if their type matches the one requested for the given Poke Job.

Gloria's Advice

	A Pokemon can only take on one Poke Job per day, so this method is best suited to training several Pokemon at once to evolve them and fill your Pokedex.

Level Up by Playing at Pokemon Camp

By using toys to play with your Pokemon at Pokemon Camp, and making and eating Curry with them, your Pokemon can acquire a moderate amount of Exp. Points.

Gloria's Advice

	You won't receive many Exp. Points at once with this option, so only consider it when you're working on building up a Pokemon's Affection at the same time.

Give your Pokemon an Experience-boosting Item

When leveling up a Pokemon, giving them a held item or having an item in your possession, which increases their earned experience points, will take the edge off your daily grind.

Experience points add automatically while playing through the game, as the experience point received by a Pokemon holding a Lucky Egg or having Exp. Charm in your bag will boost even if they did not participate in the battle.

Items Assisting Level Up - Lucky Egg

Lucky Egg	Pokemon holding a Lucky Egg will gain 150% the normal amount of Exp. Points from battles.

When you give your Pokemon a Lucky Egg, the experience it will receive from the battle will increase to 1.5 times. So, if you are planning to level up a specific Pokemon in your party, you can use this item.

Items Assisting Level Up - Exp. Charm

Exp. Charm	Increases the amount of Exp. Points that Pokemon can get.

When you have Exp. Charm, the amount of experience that your Pokemon can get will increase to 1.5 times. It is a convenient item to level up the experience as all you need to do is to have it in your bag. You can also use this together with the Lucky Egg for more. To get Exp. Charm, you need to have The Isle of Armor DLC.

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