In Pokémon Sword and Shield, players have two primary items at their disposal for leveling up Pokémon quickly: EXP Candy and Rare Candy. Understanding how these items work and the best strategies for their use can significantly enhance your gameplay experience.

How EXP Candy Works
EXP Candy is available in five different sizes: XS, S, M, L, and XL, each providing a varying amount of experience points (EXP) to a Pokémon:

– XS Candy offers the least amount of EXP, while XL Candy offers the most, providing approximately 30,000 EXP.
– These candies can be used on any Pokémon at any time, allowing for immediate addition of EXP, bypassing the need to battle for experience.
– A primary source of EXP Candy is through Max Raid Battles. Participating in these battles can yield various sizes of EXP Candy, which can be collected and used strategically to level up your team.

It’s important to note that while EXP Candy contributes a fixed amount of EXP, it does not necessarily guarantee that a Pokémon will gain a full level with every use, unlike Rare Candy. Therefore, it’s most beneficial to use larger candies on Pokémon that are close to a level-up to maximize efficiency.

How Rare Candy Works
Rare Candy functions differently than EXP Candy:

– Each Rare Candy guarantees an increase of one full level for the Pokémon, regardless of how much EXP they currently have.
– This characteristic makes Rare Candy particularly valuable for Pokémon at higher levels (90+) as it ensures a complete level gain without risking wasted EXP, which can occur when using regular EXP Candy on nearly-maxed Pokémon.

Recommended Strategy for Using EXP and Rare Candy
To optimize your candy usage, consider the following strategies based on your Pokémon’s level:

– For Lower-level Pokémon (Levels 0-30): Utilize smaller EXP Candies (XS, S) to cater to their lower EXP requirements.
– For Mid-level Pokémon (30-60): Transition to medium-sized EXP Candies (M, L) to efficiently assist in their growth.
– For Higher-level Pokémon (60-90): Apply larger EXP Candies (L, XL) to meet their increased experience needs for leveling up.
– For Pokémon at Level 90 and Above: Save Rare Candies for these high-level Pokémon to ensure that every candy used results in a full level gain, avoiding the wastage of excess EXP from larger candies.

Additional Tips
– Remember that your entire party gains EXP when you win battles, even if they didn’t directly participate. Combining traditional battle experience with candy usage can maximize growth.
– Farming Max Raid Battles is an effective way to quickly gather a supply of EXP Candies. Additionally, you can purchase some candies using Dynite Ore in the game’s DLC content.
– Utilizing EXP Candy and Rare Candy does not alter your Pokémon’s stat growth patterns; they merely speed up leveling.

Conclusion
In summary, to efficiently level up your Pokémon in Sword and Shield, use EXP Candy strategically depending on your Pokémon’s current level range and reserve Rare Candy for the final stages to ensure maximum efficiency in level-ups. This method allows players to rapidly advance their Pokémon on their journey through the Galar region.