Happiness is a number between 0 and 255 that gauges how friendly a Pokémon is towards its trainer.
Every Pokémon starts with a base happiness, which will change based on certain events:
- Keeping the Pokémon outside of its Poké Ball will cause it to slowly gain happiness.
- Leveling up the Pokémon will raise happiness.
- Letting the Pokémon faint will lower happiness.
- Trading the Pokémon will reset its happiness to 70.
- Capturing a Pokémon in a Friend Ball will set its initial happiness to 200 rather than its base happiness.
- Capturing the Pokémon in a Luxury Ball or letting the Pokémon hold a Soothe Bell will cause events that raise happiness to increase happiness by an additional one point each. These two conditions can stack with each other.
Evolution
A happiness of 220 or more upon leveling up is necessary to evolve:
- Golbat->Crobat
- Eevee->Espeon (day)
- Eevee->Umbreon (night)
- Pichu->Pikachu
- Igglybuff->Jigglypuff
- Munchlax->Snorlax
- Swadloon->Leavanny
Bugs
- A Pokémon caught with a Friend Ball will appear to have a happiness of 200 immediately after it is caught, but will revert back to its normal base happiness after gaining or losing happiness.