How To Train Your Pokémon: EVs
What are EVs?
Effort Values (EVs) are one variable that directly affects your Pokémon’s stats. EVs can be customized to your liking, allowing you to choose which stats you want to boost. To maximize your Pokémon’s battle potential, you’ll need to train its EVs by battling and catching other Pokémon or using EV-increasing items.
A Pokémon can earn a total of 510 EVs among all its stats, with a maximum of 252 EVs for a single stat. For every four EVs earned in a particular stat, the corresponding stat value will increase by one. This equates to 127 total stat points, or 63 in a single stat.
When your Pokémon levels up, the game calculates how much to increase your stats using a formula involving your Pokémon’s current level and EVs earned. All stat changes will take place by the time it reaches level 100. Remember, since it takes four EVs to increase a stat by one point, always be sure the final tally for each stat is divisible by four.
How To Change Your Pokémon’s EVs
Pokémon Battles
Like experience points, EVs are accumulated by defeating or catching other Pokémon. Each Pokémon species yields different EVs when defeated or captured, which will be distributed to either one or multiple stats, depending on the Pokémon.
For example, defeating or capturing a 
Grimer will increase your Pokémon’s HP EV by one, while defeating or capturing a 
Muk yields one HP EV and one Attack EV. It’s important to note that each Pokémon in your party will receive the same number of EVs at the end of battle, so be sure to remove any party members you don’t want to EV train.
Power Items
To speed up the EV training process, you can have your Pokémon hold a Power item. These items add eight EVs of the corresponding stat to whatever EVs you earn.
For example, defeating a 
Lechonk yields one HP EV. A Pokémon holding a Power Weight would receive nine HP EVs, while a Pokémon holding a Power Belt would receive one HP EV and eight Defense EVs. In Pokémon Scarlet & Violet, Power items can be purchased from Delibird Presents in Mesagoza, Levincia and Cascarrafa.
| Item | Effect | Location |
|---|---|---|
Power Weight | HP EV +8 | Delibird Presents |
Power Band | Attack EV +8 | Delibird Presents |
Power Belt | Defense EV +8 | Delibird Presents |
Power Lens | Special Attack EV +8 | Delibird Presents |
Power Bracer | Special Defense EV +8 | Delibird Presents |
Power Anklet | Speed EV +8 | Delibird Presents |
Vitamins
Vitamins can be used on your Pokémon to increase each corresponding EV by 10. In Pokémon Scarlet & Violet, Vitamins can be found as sparkling spots, obtained as rewards for winning the Academy Ace Tournament, defeating Tera Raid dens or conveniently purchased for 10,000 Pokédollars each from Chansey Supply shops. Supply shops are located in Mesagoza, Cascarrafa, Levincia and Montenevera.
| Vitamin | Effect | Locations |
|---|---|---|
HP Up | HP EV +10 | Tera Raid Battles, Academy Ace Tournament, Chansey Supply |
Protein | Attack EV +10 | Tera Raid Battles, Academy Ace Tournament, Chansey Supply |
Iron | Defense EV +10 | Tera Raid Battles, Academy Ace Tournament, Chansey Supply |
Calcium | Special Attack EV +10 | Tera Raid Battles, Academy Ace Tournament, Chansey Supply |
Zinc | Special Defense EV +10 | Tera Raid Battles, Academy Ace Tournament, Chansey Supply |
Carbos | Speed EV +10 | Tera Raid Battles, Academy Ace Tournament, Chansey Supply |
Vitamins are the easiest and fastest way to EV train your Pokémon. However, they are uncommon to find and will cost you around 500,000 Pokédollars if you wish to purchase enough to fully EV train a Pokémon from scratch. Fortunately, there is an easy way to farm money in Pokémon Scarlet & Violet.
Feathers
Feathers are a good way to fine-tune your Pokémon’s EVs. While Vitamins increase EVs in increments of 10, Feathers increase EVs by a single point. In Pokémon Scarlet & Violet, Feathers can be found scattered around the Casseroya Lake region of the map — just look for the sparkling spots on the ground and in the water. They can also be obtained from completing Tera Raids or by placing winning bids at the auction in Porto Marinada.
| Feather Name | Effect | Locations |
|---|---|---|
Health Feather | HP EV +1 | Casseroya Lake area, Tera Raid battles, Porto Marinada Auction House |
Muscle Feather | Attack EV +1 | Casseroya Lake area, Tera Raid battles, Porto Marinada Auction House |
Resist Feather | Defense EV +1 | Casseroya Lake area, Tera Raid battles, Porto Marinada Auction House |
Genius Feather | Special Attack EV +1 | Casseroya Lake area, Tera Raid battles, Porto Marinada Auction House |
Clever Feather | Special Defense EV +1 | Casseroya Lake area, Tera Raid battles, Porto Marinada Auction House |
Swift Feather | Speed EV +1 | Casseroya Lake area, Tera Raid battles, Porto Marinada Auction House |
Removing EVs With Berries
If you need to remove unwanted EVs from a particular stat, you’ll need to use EV-reducing berries. Each berry reduces the corresponding EV by 10 points. These berries have a secondary effect of increasing your Pokémon’s happiness level, which is useful for Pokémon that evolve by friendship. In Pokémon Scarlet & Violet, EV-reducing berries can be found as sparkling spots on the ground in the East Province or by placing winning bids at the auction in Porto Marinada.
| Berry | Effect | Locations |
|---|---|---|
Pomeg Berry | HP EV -10. Increases Friendship | East Province Area 2, Porto Marinada Auction House |
Kelpsy Berry | Attack EV -10. Increases Friendship | East Province Area 2, Porto Marinada Auction House |
Hondew Berry | Special Attack EV -10. Increases Friendship | East Province Area 2, Porto Marinada Auction House |
Qualot Berry | Defense EV -10. Increases Friendship | East Province Area 1, Porto Marinada Auction House |
Grepa Berry | Special Defense EV -10. Increases Friendship | East Province Area 1, Porto Marinada Auction House |
Tamato Berry | Speed EV -10. Increases Friendship | East Province Area 1, Porto Marinada Auction House |
How Do You Pick Which EVs To Train?
A good rule of thumb for deciding how to EV train your Pokémon is to answer the following questions:
- What are my Pokémon’s best stats?
- Increasing a Pokémon’s best stats allows it to perform what it does well even better.
- Sometimes, shoring up a weak stat makes a Pokémon more balanced. This is usually true for defensive Pokémon like Chansey, where training its weak Defense stat grants it better overall bulk.
- What role does this Pokémon perform on my team?
- Pokémon focused on dealing damage will usually need a boost to their Attack or Special Attack, while support Pokémon benefit most from buffs to their Defense and HP.
- What moves will my Pokémon have?
- Physical or special attacks.
- Support or damage-dealing moves.
By looking at a Pokémon’s base stats, you can usually tell what role it performs best. Take 
Alakazam, for example. Its highest stats are Special Attack and Speed. This Pokémon functions best as a special sweeper, meaning it hits hard and fast with special attacks to KO the opponent before taking a hit.
By maxing out its Special Attack and Speed with 252 EVs each, you will do more damage and have a better chance at moving before your opponent. The remaining four EVs could go toward HP or one of its Defense stats.
You also need to consider the moves your Pokémon knows. With the EV spread above, you will want to use special moves like Psychic instead of physical moves like Psycho Cut. Since Alakazam has a pitiful base Attack stat and only Special Attacks in its move set, any Attack EVs would be a waste.
How Do You Check Your Pokémon’s Current EVs?
In Pokémon Scarlet & Violet, open the main menu and select a Pokémon to check its summary. Navigate to the Moves and Stats page. Here you’ll see a graph of the Pokémon’s stats. Press the L button to switch the graph view. The dark yellow shape represents the Pokémon’s base stats, while the bright yellow shape represents EVs the Pokémon has accumulated.
If your goal is to max out the EVs of a particular stat, you know you have done so when sparkles appear around the stat's name. Additionally, you’ll know the Pokémon is fully EV-trained when the bright yellow shape turns light blue.
How Are EVs Different From IVs?
Individual Values (IVs) are another determining factor of your Pokémon’s stats. Unlike EVs, IVs are already in place from the moment you capture or hatch a Pokémon. To learn more, check out our companion IV training guide on Dittobase.