PokéSurvivor Permanent Upgrades and Costs
Rules checked · By PokéSurvivor Picks
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Check which Pokémon you are upgrading
The upgrade menu reads the selected Pokémon's own levels. Switching from Litten to Sobble means looking at Sobble's upgrade track, even if you have already spent coins on Litten.
Before buying, check the selected partner and its existing ranks. Keep those current ranks when planning another purchase: you do not pay for them again.
There are also different kinds of improvements:
- Permanent upgrades are menu purchases for that Pokémon.
- In-run stat cards are choices made during a run. These satisfy move-evolution requirements.
- Shop items and TMs have their own rules. Their prices are outside this upgrade budget.
For example, permanent Cooldown and an in-run Reflexes card both concern cooldown, but the permanent purchase does not satisfy a move recipe. See the move evolution guide.
Permanent upgrade costs and limits
Each purchase has its own price. Below are the labels used by our calculator, their effects and the first price in the reviewed source snapshot. All prices are in-game coins.
| Calculator label | Effect per purchased level | Maximum | First cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| HP | +8 HP | 10 | 60 |
| Attack | +4% damage | 10 | 80 |
| Speed | +3% movement speed | 8 | 70 |
| Cooldown | -3% interval | 8 | 90 |
| Defense | +2 percentage points damage reduction | 8 | 80 |
| Regeneration | +0.2 HP/s | 5 | 120 |
| Magnet | +12% pickup radius | 6 | 50 |
| Experience | +5% XP | 8 | 100 |
| Coins | +8% settlement coins | 8 | 120 |
| Repertoire | Start with a second move | 1 | 1,500 |
| Critical | +3 percentage points critical chance | 10 | 90 |
| Rerolls | +1 reroll per run | 5 | 150 |
| Bans | +1 move ban | 3 | 300 |
| Choose first move | Choose a legal first starting move | 1 | 400 |
| Choose second move | Choose a legal second starting move; requires Repertoire | 1 | 400 |
Repertoire adds a second starting move. Choose first move and Choose second move unlock selection of those starting moves. These are separate purchases.
For a multi-level upgrade, the price grows with the current rank. The game rounds each level's price to the nearest 10 coins before adding the purchases together:
next price = round(base price × growth^current rank ÷ 10) × 10
The calculator's complete price list shows all 15 upgrade types and each level's price. Sources and calculation method explains the formula and version scope.
Example: Attack level 2 to level 5
Suppose this Pokémon already has Attack level 2. You want level 5 and have 700 coins.
| Purchase | Cost |
|---|---|
| Level 2 → 3 | 150 |
| Level 3 → 4 | 210 |
| Level 4 → 5 | 290 |
| Additional cost | 650 |
| Coins left from 700 | 50 |
Attack 0 → 5 costs 840 coins in this snapshot. Your first two ranks already account for 190 of those coins, so buying the remaining three costs 650.
In the calculator, set Attack current level to 2 and Attack target level to 5. Leave unrelated targets equal to their current levels.
Example: combine several purchases
A second plan starts with no upgrades on the chosen Pokémon and a budget of 600 coins:
| Target | Purchases | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| HP level 3 | 60 + 80 + 110 | 250 |
| Attack level 2 | 80 + 110 | 190 |
| Cooldown level 1 | 90 | 90 |
| Total | 530 |
That leaves 70 coins. This is an arithmetic example, not a tested upgrade order or a claim about surviving a particular boss.
Compare a different plan by changing one target at a time. The cost result tells you what fits your balance; the modeled setup explains the stat changes.
Repertoire and the second starting move
There are two separate questions: whether you start with two moves, and whether you can choose the second one.
| Purchase from an unupgraded setup | Cost |
|---|---|
| Repertoire | 1,500 |
| Choose second move | 400 |
| Both purchases | 1,900 |
Choose second move requires Repertoire. You do not also need Choose first move to meet that prerequisite. If you want to choose the first starting move as well, that is another 400 coins.
If Repertoire is already owned, record its current and target levels as 1. Adding only Choose second move then costs 400.
An extra starting move gives you another option from the start. Ordinary move switching and Bonds control which attacks fire; the extra slot alone does not make every equipped move attack together.
What should you upgrade first?
Start with the Pokémon you actually intend to play and the change you want to inspect:
- More maximum health: compare HP ranks and their cost.
- A higher damage multiplier: compare Attack ranks under the same move and target assumptions.
- A shorter attack interval: compare Cooldown ranks, keeping the rest of the setup fixed.
- A second starting move: check the Repertoire prerequisite and the separate choice upgrade.
These are different goals. A cheaper purchase is not automatically a better choice, and a larger modeled direct hit does not establish a better whole run. Positioning, move behavior, abilities and other effects can change the outcome.
Our calculations explain supported inputs. They do not establish a universal best purchase order.
Calculate your own upgrade budget
- Open the upgrade budget calculator.
- Enter Current and Target levels for the same Pokémon.
- Enter your available in-game coins.
- Read the total additional cost, coins remaining or still needed, and each upgrade's next price.
The budget covers all 15 upgrade types. The setup and direct-hit sections use the four supported starter baselines and their three default moves. Inputs are manual: the tool does not read your save, buy upgrades or model refunds.
The three budgets above are original worked examples, calculated from the reviewed source data rather than recorded gameplay.
Sources
- Official game and upgrade menu: explains that upgrades belong to the selected Pokémon.
- Our sources and calculation method: source snapshot
6b6bde6e28, per-level rounding and model limits. The live game's complete version has not been matched to this snapshot. - Move evolution requirements: how permanent upgrades differ from the stat cards used during a run.