The trek to total gym domination in Pokemon GO is a long one. It can take days or even weeks to reach the level required to take down a gym from an opposing team.
Thankfully, there are ways to “cheat” the system by boosting your character and quickly levelling up your XP.
The higher your character’s level, the better the Pokemon, and the better the Pokemon, the more likely you are to succeed in battle.
Pokemon GO Guides
- Pokemon GO Discussion Forum
- Pokemon GO XP Chart
- Pokemon GO facts that will blow your mind
- Pokemon GO – How To Get Pikachu guide
- Pokemon GO – Battery Saver tips
- Pokemon GO Tips To Get You Started
- Pokemon GO Data usage: How much you’ll use, and how to limit it
- Pokemon Go How To Battle guide
- Pokemon Go – How To Find And Catch Pokemon
- Pokemon GO common issues, and how to fix them
Pokemon GO XP Boosting
In Pokemon GO you level up by gaining experience, or “XP”. The primary way of earning XP is by doing the number one thing that defines Pokemon GO: getting out into the open and finding Pokemon. You gain XP for every Pokemon you catch, 100 XP to be exact. But that’s if you already have the Pokemon you’ve caught: you’ll earn 500 XP for catching a Pokemon for the first time, and then little XP bonuses on the side.
So naturally, capturing unique Pokemon is going to give you the biggest XP boost, but this can sometimes take too long. That means you most definitely shouldn’t ignore Pokemon you already own: capturing them will net you another 100 XP, and you can always just transfer any stacked Pokemon to the Professor. To do that, simply press the Poke Ball icon on the screen and select the Pokemon you want to transfer to the Professor. Sending a Pokemon there will net you a reward.
This method can be quite the grind: you’ll initially only come across low-level Pokemon, due to the fact your character level is low. However, improving your XP quickly and levelling up as fast as possible will attack better quality and more powerful Pokemon. Here are a few other methods to level up quickly in Pokemon GO.
Pokemon GO Spawn Locations
When you first start playing Pokemon GO, the level of the Pokemon you attract will be rather low. However, with every new level the Pokemon level will increase as well, so you should always return to past locations where you found Pokemon. If you found a Pokemon with, say 10 CP (Combat Power) outside your house and you return once you’ve levelled up a bit, the same Pokemon may be 100 CP or 150 CP, so it’s worth doubling-up and returning to areas you’ve already searched.
Pokemon GO XP Guide
For a deeper look at XP and how to level up, check out our Pokemon Go XP Chart.