The 13 Best Pokemon To Learn Cut

In Pokemon, HMs (Hidden Machines) were TMs (Technical Machines) that helped you travel around the different regions. If you wanted to cross water, you needed a Pokemon that learned the Surf HM. If you wanted to move boulders, you needed a Pokemon that learned Strength. And if you wanted to cut down trees, you needed a Pokemon that learned Cut.

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Cut is not the strongest HM out there and might be considered the weakest with a base power of only 50 and no secondary effects. However, it is necessary if you want to progress through a Pokemon game released before Generation Seven or find hidden items.

Updated May 12, 2024, by Andrew Scariati: With Scarlet & Violet's DLC releases complete, you may be looking for other Pokemon games to play while we await more. If you're looking for what Pokemon can learn Cut, your choices will vary depending on which generation you play, but these options are timeless. From quirky bugs in the later generations to some all-time greats, these are the best Pokemon that can learn Cut.

13 Kricketune

Kricketune is not a particularly good Pokemon. While its stats and move selection leave a lot to be desired, it more than makes up for it with a cool design and one of the best cries in the series.

Kricketune is the perfect example of the type of Pokemon you want to teach Cut. You encounter it early on, it evolves quickly, and it can deal some good damage; plus it can learn a decent amount of HM and status moves.

You probably won't keep it on your team for a long time, but it will be helpful while it's there.

12 Dragonite

Dragonite is the spiritual opposite of Kricketune since it evolves at a very high level and is good. The first Pseudo- Legendary, Dragonite has an incredibly high Attack stat and a movepool that utilizes it. But it's that movepool that makes Dragonite a great HM Pokemon overall.

Dragonite can learn a whopping seven HMs, making it perfect for exploring regions in the post-game.

Basically, give Dragonite every move that hasn’t been taught to your other team members. This is not the best way to utilize Dragonite, but it is still an interesting option.

11 Charizard & Empoleon

Your starter is almost certain to stick around on your team for the entire game, so why not make it your HM Pokemon? Both Charizard and Empoleon are two of the best options for the starters. Charizard can learn Cut, Fly, Strength, and Rock Smash with Dig added into the mix to top it all off. Empoleon is similar, except it learns every Water-based HM instead of Fly.

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While both of these Pokemon can be useful this way, this is not the best way to utilize Charizard or Empoleon. But if you want to focus on Pokemon other than your starter, you can look toward another useful duo: Nidoking and Nidoqueen.

10 Nidoking & Nidoqueen

Nidoking and Nidoqueen are great HM Pokemon in general. On top of Cut, they can learn Strength, Surf, and Rock Smash. On top of this, you are very likely to run into Nidoran Males and Females early on in your journey, and it’s fairly easy to obtain a Moon Stone to evolve them into their final forms.

Strangely, Nidoking and Nidoqueen aren’t able to use Cut in every generation. For some reason, they only began to learn Cut in the Third Generation, but if they learned it in the first two generations, they’d be much higher.

9 Kingler & Crawdaunt

When you think of Cut, claws, and blades usually come to mind. However, pincers are just as effective at cutting down trees as those previous items. Take, for example, Crawdaunt and Kingler. Crawdaunt and Kingler are both great options when it comes to using Cut and several other HMs.

However, these crustaceans separate themselves by focusing most of their utility on the water. Kingler can learn Cut, Surf, Strength, Whirlpool, and Rock Smash while Crawdaunt can learn the same moves as well as Waterfall. Your preference lies in the slightly different stat spreads, accessibility in the game you're playing, and which design you like more.

8 Farfetch'd

Until it got its regional form and evolution in Sword & Shield, Farfetch'd wasn't a good Pokemon. Its stats aren't particularly impressive, and there are a lot of Pokemon with the same typing that are just better. While that means it isn't competitively viable, it makes it perfect for a Cut user.

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Farfetch'd can learn Cut as well as another HM: Fly. These moves are great for Farfetch'd since it receives a STAB boost for both options. Instead of Cut only having 50 base power, it now has 75 base power.

While that still isn't necessarily great, it makes it the strongest Cut on this list so far. Also, it is one of the only Pokemon that learns Cut by level-up, the other being the Ultra Beast Kartana.

7 Parasect

Parasect is a better version of Kricketune. Yes, it does take longer to evolve Paras into Parasect, and it's still technically not a good Pokemon, but Parasect is perfect as a Cut user.

In addition to Cut, Parasect learns Rock Smash, another weak HM. Parasect can also learn Dig which is another useful move outside of combat that brings you back to the last PokeCenter you used. But the real kicker is Spore: a status move that puts the opponent to Sleep with 100 percent accuracy. Even though Parasect is incredibly slow, these moves make it a perfect fit for this position.

6 Sandslash

Of all the Pokemon on this list, Sandslash is the one that looks like it can use the move Cut with those massive claws at the end of its arms. And it uses those claws to great effect, making Sandslash one of the best Pokemon for traveling on land.

Sandslash can learn every single HM that is helpful on the land: Cut, Strength, Rock Smash, and Rock Climb (in the fourth Generation). It can also take full advantage of these moves with its solid 100 base Attack stat. The icing on the cake is that it can also learn Dig to transport you back to PokeCenters until you get the ability to use Fly.

Sandslash is a horribly underrated Pokemon when it comes to HM usage.

5 Venusaur

Venusaur may not be your first choice when you think of what Pokemon can use Cut, but this Grass-type starter could cut down the forest or rebuild it with its range of abilities. Venusaur's versatility is obvious to see, with access to HMs like Cut, Strength, and Rock Smash.

Aside from its utility moves, Venusaur has access to some of the best Grass-type attacks in the series and shines as one of the most competitively viable Grass Pokemon. Whether Venusaur is tossed into battle or staring down a tree, you can count on it to get the job done.

4 Scyther

If you were to judge what Pokemon can learn Cut purely based on their appearance, then Scyther would likely be the top choice. This bladed bug boasts long scythes for arms that can cut trees, tall grass, and anything else that gets in Scyther's way.

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Scyther isn't just one of the best Pokemon that can learn Cut because of its appropriate appearance; Scyther can also learn Defog and Rock Smash for a total of three learnable HMs. If you're playing an older generation and need a great Pokemon that can learn multiple HMs, Scyther is worthy of consideration.