Finding a Unova Stone in Pokemon GO is your primary ticket to unlocking powerful Gen 5 evolutions that shape the competitive meta. Unlike basic candy upgrades, this rare black-and-white item acts as a hard gate for specific creatures like Chandelure and Bisharp. Without a steady supply of these stones sitting in your item bag, your best high-IV catches remain stuck in their middle stages.
The game doesn't hand these evolution items out easily. If you're tired of running low when a rare spawn pops up, you need a targeted strategy for drop rates, research tasks, and boss battles. Let's look at how you secure these stones and exactly which monsters demand them.
Where to Farm Unova Stones
You won't find Unova Stones spinning standard PokéStops on your morning commute. The drop mechanics are locked behind specific high-tier activities, meaning you have to grind particular features to stack them up.
Research Breakthroughs
Completing your Field Research stamp card for seven separate days grants a Research Breakthrough encounter. While Sinnoh Stones and traditional items often drop here, the Unova Stone is also part of this reward pool. It's a random drop, so you'll want to maintain a daily streak to maximize your weekly rolls.
Team GO Rocket Battles
Taking down the syndicate is arguably the most reliable way to farm evolution items if you have an active supply of radar components.
- Team GO Rocket Leaders: Defeating Cliff, Sierra, or Arlo gives you a chance at receiving a Unova Stone alongside mysterious components and 12km eggs.
- Giovanni: Defeating the boss himself also rewards special items, though your primary focus here is usually catching shadow legendary species. Make sure you leave open slots in your item storage before starting these fights, because a full bag means you lose the drop.
Complete List of Unova Stone Evolutions
Not every Generation 5 species relies on candy alone. When you're ready to evolve your roster, you'll need a mix of candies and one Unova Stone for specific evolutionary lines.
- Pansage into Simisage: Costs the stone plus 100 regional candy.
- Pansear into Simisear: Requires the stone and 100 candy.
- Panpour into Simipour: Requires the stone and 100 candy.
- Minccino into Cinccino: Uses the stone alongside 50 candy.
- Eelektrik into Eelektross: Demands the stone and 100 candy.
- Lampent into Chandelure: One of the most popular meta choices, requiring the stone and 100 candy.
- Doubleblaze and other specialized lines: Keep an eye out for periodic event updates from Niantic that shift which regional variants utilize standard inventory items.
Managing Item Bag Space and Priorities
Inventory management is a constant headache in Pokemon GO. Because Unova Stones share space with healing items, Pokéballs, and evolution shards from other regions, you need to manage your inventory limits carefully.
You don't need to hoard twenty Unova Stones. Realistically, keeping three to five in your bag is plenty unless you're preparing for a massive mass-evolution session during a Spotlight Hour or Community Day event with active double XP bonuses. If you're tight on space, prioritize tossing excess regular potions before deleting rare evolutionary components.
For official updates on upcoming global events and competitive shifts, check the Pokemon GO Live portal to see which raid rotations or field research rewards are currently active.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you buy Unova Stones from the shop?
No. Niantic does not currently list evolution stones for direct purchase using PokéCoins in the in-game shop. You must earn them through gameplay.
Do Unova Stones drop from standard raids?
Standard Tier 1 through Tier 5 raids do not reward Unova Stones. Your primary combat-related farming method remains focused on Team GO Rocket Leaders.
What is the easiest way to get candy for these evolutions?
Use Pinap Berries on every wild encounter of target species like Litwick or Minccino, and set your favorite evolution target as your buddy Pokemon to passively earn candy while walking.
Can you use a Unova Stone on shiny Pokemon?
Yes. If you have a shiny variant of Lampent or Minccino, the evolution mechanics work identically to standard forms, consuming the exact same amount of candy and one stone.
