How to evolve Inkay into Malamar in Pokemon Go

Aakrit Sharma
Pokemon Go cover with Inkay and Malamar

Inkay is one of the most talked-about Pokemon in Pokemon Go thanks to its unique evolution process. Here’s a guide for you to evolve Inkay into Malamar with or without a gyroscope.

Evolution certainly makes Pokemon games interesting and worth the grind, and Pokemon Go is no exception. Over the years, the methods to evolve Pokemon have changed significantly. Evolution is no longer restricted to just collecting a set number of Candy.

While some Pokemon require special items like Sinnoh stones, others only evolve when their trainers make them buddies and complete some tasks together.

Inkay is one such Pokemon, and here’s how you can evolve it into Malamar in Pokemon Go if you’re looking for a good pick for the Psychic Cup.

Inkay has special evolution methods in other Pokemon games.

How to evolve Inkay in Pokemon Go

Thankfully, you only need 50 Candy to evolve Inkay in Pokemon Go if your device doesn’t have a gyroscope feature. As for devices with this feature, you still need 50 Candy, but you can trigger the evolution by flipping your phone upside down. Doing so should turn the red evolve button green.

Until September 2021, players with devices that didn’t have a gyroscope could not turn Inkay into a Malamar in Pokemon Go. Niantic then updated the game and it is no longer compulsory.

Having said that, with or without a Gyroscope, you’ll still require 50 Inkay Candy to evolve it into a Malamar.

How to get Inkay Candy in Pokemon Go

Here are some ways for you to obtain Inkay Candy in Pokemon Go so you can evolve it into Malamar:

  • Catch Inkay/Malamar in the wild. While catching Inkay will grant 3x Candy catching a Malamar will hand out 5x Inkay Candy.
  • Use Pinap berries before catching Inkay as they double the amount of Candy you get.
  • Transfer Inkay that aren’t powerful enough. Each transfer gives you one Candy.
  • Turn rare candies into Inkay Candy.
  • Set Inkay as your buddy. You’ll have to walk 3 Km to earn one Candy.
Malamar is very popular for the Psychic Cup in Pokemon Go.

Interestingly, the aforementioned evolution method for Inkay was originally introduced during the Nintendo 3DS era. Players had to flip their Nintendo 3DS upside down to get Malamar, and considering that the internet wasn’t full of guides back then, it was almost impossible for players to figure it out.


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Image Credits: Niantic / The Pokemon Company

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About The Author

Aakrit is a games writer with over 2000 published articles for EssentiallySports, Sportskeeda, FortniteINTEL, and CharlieINTEL. Currently, he writes guides on Minecraft, Roblox, Pokemon games, Genshin Impact, and Brawlhalla. Aakrit loves playing shooter games and in his free time, you can find him queued up in Valorant, Fortnite, Apex Legends, or Halo Infinite. You can contact Aakrit at [email protected].