Hitting level 40 used to be the end of the road. Back in the day, once you saw that 40 badge, you’d basically "won" the game, outside of shiny hunting or grinding for a perfect IV Mewtwo. Then Niantic decided to move the goalposts. Now, the level up requirements Pokémon GO players face to reach level 50 are legitimately punishing. It’s not just about the XP anymore; it’s about proving you actually know how to play every single mechanic in the game.
XP is a grind. We know this. But the Level 40 to 50 stretch introduced "Level-Up Research." These are specific tasks you have to finish before you can advance, even if you already have 200 million XP sitting in your account. You can’t just buy your way through this with Lucky Eggs. You have to catch, battle, and walk. A lot.
Most people get stuck. I’ve seen players sitting at level 43 for six months because they hate the Battle League. I’ve seen level 47 players lose their minds trying to get 20 Platinum medals. It’s a marathon that feels like a sprint while wearing lead boots.
The XP Wall is Real
Let's talk numbers. To get from level 1 to level 40, you need 20 million XP. That sounds like a lot when you’re starting out. But to get from level 49 to level 50? You need 30 million XP just for that one level. Total XP for level 50 is a staggering 176 million.
If you aren't maximizing your Excellent Throws, you're essentially playing on hard mode. An Excellent Throw on a first-catch Pokémon with a Lucky Egg active nets you over 4,000 XP. Do that during a 2x Catch XP event? You’re looking at nearly 10,000 XP for a single Pidgey. That’s how the top-tier players actually close the gap.
Level 41 to 43: The Easy Wins
Level 41 is basically a "welcome to the grind" gift. You need to catch 200 Pokémon in a single day. Sounds hard? Not really. Just wait for a Community Day or a Spotlight Hour. If you can't catch 200 Pokémon in three hours with an Incense running, you’re probably spending too much time checking IVs. You also need to power up Legendary Pokémon 20 times, which is mostly just a drain on your Stardust and Rare Candy.
Level 42 is where things get slightly more technical. You have to evolve Eevee into every one of its unique evolutions.
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Remember the Eevee trick? It only works once per name. If you already used "Kira" to get a Sylveon years ago, you have to do it the manual way now. That means walking 10km for Espeon and Umbreon, using the specific lures for Glaceon and Leafeon, and earning 70 buddy hearts for Sylveon. Don't waste your name tricks on these requirements; save them for when you’re desperate for a shiny version later.
By level 43, Niantic expects you to be a master of the basics. You need 100,000 Stardust. You need 200 super effective Charged Attacks. Honestly, you can cheese the Charged Attacks by battling a friend or a Team GO Rocket grunt with a Pokémon that has a fast-charging move like Power-Up Punch or Leaf Blade.
The Battle League Gatekeeper: Level 44
This is where the casual players start to fall off. Level 44 requires you to win 30 battles in the Great, Ultra, and Master Leagues.
I know. Most people hate GBL. The lag is annoying, and the meta is repetitive. But here is the secret: you don't actually have to do these in the ranked GBL queue. You can battle a friend. Have your friend bring three 10 CP Pidgeys, and you can blow through all 90 wins in about an hour. It’s boring, but it works. If you try to do this in the actual competitive leagues, you’re going to be sweating through Medicham and Carbink mirrors for weeks.
Level 45: The Rocket Grinder
If you don't like Team GO Rocket, Level 45 is your nightmare. You have to defeat 100 Grunts and 50 Rocket Leaders.
Do the math. 50 Leaders means you need 300 Rocket Radars. That is 300 Grunt battles just to get the radars. Total? 400 battles. It is a massive time sink. My advice? Don't ignore the Rocket balloons that show up every six hours. If you miss those, you’re relying entirely on finding PokeStops, which is a massive disadvantage for rural players.
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The Platinum Medal Problem (Level 47 and 48)
Level 47 is widely considered the hardest "skill" check in the level up requirements Pokémon GO progression. You need 20 Platinum Medals.
If you haven't been playing consistently since 2016, this is a brick wall. Most players get their type-catcher medals (the ones for catching 2,500 of a specific type like Water or Normal) naturally. But getting 20 requires you to dive into the weird medals.
- Wayfarer: Reviewing PokeStop submissions.
- Purifier: Purifying 1,000 Shadow Pokémon (this costs a fortune in Stardust).
- Fisherman: Catching 1,000 "Big" Magikarp.
Level 48 focuses on your Buddy. You need to walk 200km and find 300 souvenirs. Souvenirs are random. There is no way to force your buddy to find them faster other than keeping them "Excited" so the cooldown is shorter. It’s just a slow, daily slog of feeding berries and taking snapshots.
The Final Stretch: Level 49 and 50
Level 49 is about friendship. You need to make 10 Long Distance trades (100km apart) and send 500 Gifts. This is basically Niantic’s way of making sure you have a local community or at least a few friends on Discord. The most annoying part here? Obtaining 50 Lucky Pokémon through trades. If you aren't trading daily, this will take months.
Then there is Level 50.
- 999 Excellent Throws.
- Catch a Legendary Pokémon in your next 5 Legendary encounters.
- Defeat a Team GO Rocket Leader 3 times using Pokémon with under 2,500 CP.
- Reach Rank 10 in GBL.
The 999 Excellent Throws is actually the easiest part for veteran players. By the time you have the 30 million XP needed for this level, you’ll probably have thrown 2,000 Excellents anyway. The real challenge is the GBL Rank 10, though in the current system, Rank 10 is mostly just a measure of "did you play enough games," rather than "are you a god-tier strategist."
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Actionable Strategy for Efficient Leveling
If you are looking to tackle these level up requirements Pokémon GO sets before you, don't just wander around aimlessly. You need a plan.
First, hoard your Stardust. You’ll need millions of it for the "Power up Pokémon" tasks and the "Purify 100 Shadows" tasks. Don't waste it on a random 91% IV Pokémon you’ll never use in raids.
Second, tag your trade bait. Create a tag called "Distance" for Pokémon you caught while on vacation or from 7km eggs sent by international friends. You’ll need these for the level 49 trade requirements. Having a stack of them ready to go will save you from begging in local Facebook groups later.
Third, learn the "Fast Catch" glitch. It’s not really a glitch—it’s a technique. Hold the berry menu with one finger, slide it slightly, throw the ball with your other hand, and then exit the encounter immediately. It cuts the catch animation from 15 seconds down to 2. If you want to hit the XP goals for level 50, you simply cannot afford to sit through the "shaking ball" animation 100,000 times.
Lastly, focus on Medals early. Check your "Medal" tab today. If you see you're close to Platinum on something like "Berry Master" (feeding 15,000 berries at gyms), start dumping your excess Nanab berries into friendly gyms whenever you pass them. It is much easier to chip away at these over a year than to try and do them all at once when you hit the level 47 roadblock.
The path to Level 50 is designed to take years for the average player. Niantic didn't want people finishing it in a weekend. Respect the grind, optimize your Excellent Throws, and stop ignoring those Team GO Rocket balloons.