Melmetal
Steel
Best attacking moveset: Thunder Shock and Double Iron Bash, worth 13.6 damage per second against a neutral target.
Best moveset
Melmetal can learn 7 combinations. Thunder Shock with Double Iron Bash does the most damage per second of them, at level 40 with a perfect attack stat. Same-type moves get the 1.2× bonus, and the cycle assumes the charged attack fires the moment it has the energy.
That set is legacy. Double Iron Bash is only obtainable with an Elite TM or from the event that gave it out, so the Melmetal you catch today cannot learn it. The best set it can learn now is Thunder Shock and Flash Cannon, worth 11.1 damage per second.
Stats and moves come straight from the game's own data files. Every number on this page is a raid and gym number, not a PvP one.
Type matchups
| Fast attack | Type | Power | Duration | Energy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunder Shock | Electric | 4 | 0.5s | +7 |
| Charged attack | Type | Power | Duration | Energy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dynamic Punch | Fighting | 85 | 2.5s | -50 |
| Flash Cannon | Steel | 100 | 2.5s | -100 |
| Hyper Beam | Normal | 150 | 4.0s | -100 |
| Rock Slide | Rock | 75 | 2.5s | -50 |
| Super Power | Fighting | 85 | 3.0s | -50 |
| Thunderbolt | Electric | 80 | 2.5s | -50 |
| Double Iron Bash Legacy | Steel | 70 | 2.0s | -33 |
Shiny
Yes. Shiny Melmetal has been released. Players have found it from: wild, research, evolution, photobomb.
Evolution family
Numbers
| Max CP | 4,069 at level 50, 3,599 at level 40 |
|---|---|
| Raid catch | 2,056 CP at level 20, or 2,571 if weather boosted (perfect IVs) |
| Lowest possible raid catch | 1,971 CP. Raid encounters can't roll below 10/10/10 |
| Base stats | 226 attack · 190 defense · 264 stamina |
What it costs
| Candy to evolve | 25 Candy |
|---|---|
| Second charged move | 100,000 Stardust and 100 Candy |
| Buddy distance | 20 km per Candy |
| Size | 2.5 m and 800 kg |
Best moveset against each type
Melmetal does not have one best moveset, it has 4. Which one wins depends on what you are attacking, because a move only gets its bonus against something weak to it. Best against Rock, Ice, Fairy.
| Against | Best moveset | DPS |
|---|---|---|
| Rock | Thunder Shock + Double Iron Bash | 19.8 |
| Ice | Thunder Shock + Double Iron Bash | 19.8 |
| Fairy | Thunder Shock + Double Iron Bash | 19.8 |
| Thunder Shock + Thunderbolt | 15.9 | |
| Water | Thunder Shock + Thunderbolt | 15.9 |
| Normal | Thunder Shock + Dynamic Punch | 15.4 |
| Steel | Thunder Shock + Dynamic Punch | 15.4 |
| Dark | Thunder Shock + Dynamic Punch | 15.4 |
| Bug | Thunder Shock + Rock Slide | 14.1 |
| Fire | Thunder Shock + Rock Slide | 14.1 |
| Fighting | Thunder Shock + Double Iron Bash | 13.6 |
| Poison | Thunder Shock + Double Iron Bash | 13.6 |
| Ghost | Thunder Shock + Double Iron Bash | 13.6 |
| Psychic | Thunder Shock + Double Iron Bash | 13.6 |
| Grass | Thunder Shock + Double Iron Bash | 12.5 |
| Dragon | Thunder Shock + Double Iron Bash | 12.5 |
| Ground | Thunder Shock + Double Iron Bash | 11.4 |
| Electric | Thunder Shock + Dynamic Punch | 9.8 |
Same maths as the headline number, run once per defending type: level 40, perfect attack IV, and the target's own type taken into account. Sorted by damage, so the top of this table is what Melmetal is actually for.
Counters: what beats Melmetal
| Attacker | Type | Moveset | DPS |
|---|---|---|---|
 Blacephalon | FireGhost | Incinerate + Mind Blown Legacy | 35.5 |
 Lucario | FightingSteel | Force Palm + Aura Sphere Legacy | 30.1 |
 Reshiram | DragonFire | Fire Fang + Fusion Flare Legacy | 29.5 |
 Pheromosa | BugFighting | Low Kick + Focus Blast | 27.6 |
 Terrakion | RockFighting | Double Kick + Sacred Sword Legacy | 27.4 |
 Blaziken | FireFighting | Counter + Aura Sphere | 27.2 |
 Chandelure | GhostFire | Fire Spin + Overheat | 27.0 |
 Cinderace | Fire | Fire Spin + Pyroball | 26.6 |
 Volcarona | BugFire | Fire Spin + Overheat | 26.3 |
 Darmanitan | Fire | Fire Fang + Overheat | 26.2 |
Ranked by damage per second against Melmetal's own defense, at level 40 with a 15 attack IV, one per evolution family.