Berry Finding S Guide: How Strong Is BFS in Pokémon Sleep?

Berry Finding S, commonly shortened to BFS, is one of the strongest Gold Sub Skills in Pokémon Sleep.

However, I don’t think BFS should be valued equally on every Pokémon. Its value depends heavily on the Pokémon’s specialty and how you plan to use it.

For Berries specialists, I generally consider Berry Finding S essential. For Ingredient and Skill specialists, however, I often prefer not to have it at all.

In this guide, I’ll explain how I evaluate Berry Finding S when deciding which Pokémon to raise, using both calculations and Pokémon I’ve actually trained.

What Does Berry Finding S Do?

Berry Finding S increases the number of Berries a Pokémon finds through each regular helping by 1.

This means a Berries specialist that normally finds 2 Berries at a time will find 3 instead.

That is a 50% increase in the number of Berries gathered per Berry helping, which is an enormous effect for a Pokémon whose main job is generating Energy through Berries.

This is why I treat BFS differently from most other Sub Skills when evaluating Berries specialists.

I Consider Berry Finding S Essential for Berries Specialists

For a Berries specialist, my basic rule is simple: if I’m going to invest heavily in one, I want it to have Berry Finding S.

The reason is that a single BFS can provide an extremely large increase in Berry Energy without requiring multiple speed bonuses.

To see just how significant the difference can be, I compared several Lv.50 Raichu builds.

Comparing Berry Finding S With a Speed-Focused Raichu

I used Gold Old Power Plant, where Grepa Berries are one of Snorlax’s favorite Berries. The calculations used the same basic conditions, including a Lv.50 Raichu and a tap frequency of once every three hours.

I compared the following three builds:

The most interesting result is the comparison between the speed-focused build and the build with only Berry Finding S.

The speed-focused Raichu has Helping Speed M, Helping Speed S, and a Speed of Help-boosting Nature. The other Raichu has none of those speed bonuses and simply has Berry Finding S.

Despite that difference, their estimated daily Energy is almost identical: 40,019 vs. 40,160.

In this particular comparison, a single Berry Finding S produced roughly the same total Energy as stacking Helping Speed M, Helping Speed S, and a Speed of Help-boosting Nature.

This does not mean BFS will always be mathematically equivalent to those three bonuses. The exact difference changes depending on the Pokémon, level, favorite Berry, other bonuses, and calculation settings. However, the result demonstrates why I place so much value on BFS when evaluating Berries specialists.

Berry Finding S Becomes Even Better With Speed Bonuses

BFS and Helping Speed are not competing effects. They work extremely well together.

The first Raichu had Berry Finding S, Helping Speed M, and a Speed of Help-boosting Nature. Its estimated daily Energy reached 52,422, considerably higher than either of the other two builds.

So my ideal Berries specialist is not simply a Pokémon with BFS. I first look for Berry Finding S, then evaluate whether the rest of the build can further improve its performance through Helping Bonus, Helping Speed, or a beneficial Nature.

For a First Berries Specialist, I Prefer BFS by Lv.50

Another important factor is when Berry Finding S unlocks.

For the first Berries specialist of a particular type that I plan to raise, I generally want BFS to be available by Lv.50.

A Pokémon may eventually become excellent if BFS is at Lv.70, but reaching that point requires a significant amount of Candy, Dream Shards, and time. Until then, I would be using that Pokémon without one of the main reasons I chose to raise it.

This matters especially for Pokémon whose Candy is difficult to obtain. For a second or later Berries specialist of the same type, I can afford to wait longer, but for my first one I want it to become useful within a realistic training range.

There are exceptions. For Pokémon that are particularly difficult to encounter or catch, or for Legendary Pokémon where repeated catches are limited, I may accept Berry Finding S at Lv.70.

Lv.50 is therefore not an absolute requirement. I adjust the standard based on how realistic it is to find another candidate.

Berry Finding S Alone Doesn’t Automatically Make a Pokémon Worth Raising

Even for Berries specialists, I don’t automatically raise every Pokémon with BFS.

If Berry Finding S is the Pokémon’s only major strength and it has significant disadvantages elsewhere, I may continue searching. On the other hand, I am willing to accept an imperfect Nature when the overall Sub Skill combination is strong enough to compensate for it.

A Strong Overall Build Can Make Up for a Bad Nature

My Salamence is a good example.

My Salamence has Berry Finding S, Helping Bonus, Helping Speed S, and eventually Helping Speed M. Its Nature increases Ingredient Finding and reduces EXP Gains, but the overall build was strong enough that I decided to raise it. The screenshot is from the Japanese version of Pokémon Sleep.

An Ingredient Finding increase is not what I would normally want on a Berries specialist, and reduced EXP Gains makes an expensive Pokémon like Salamence even harder to train.

However, Berry Finding S and Helping Bonus already provide an excellent foundation, and this Salamence also has multiple Helping Speed bonuses. I judged that those strengths outweighed the disadvantages of its Nature.

I am also relatively willing to accept an Ingredient Finding-increasing Nature on a Berries specialist because of Sneaky Snacking.

Once a Berries specialist reaches full inventory, subsequent helpings generate Berry Energy through Sneaky Snacking instead of adding more Ingredients to its inventory. You give up additional Main Skill activation opportunities while leaving the inventory full, but if the Pokémon’s main purpose is Berry Energy, this can reduce the practical impact of increased Ingredient Finding.

Your Current Team Should Affect How Strict You Are

I also use a different standard depending on whether I am looking for my first useful Berries specialist of a type or trying to improve on one I already have.

My Banette is an example.

My Banette has Helping Bonus and Berry Finding S. Its Nature increases Ingredient Finding and reduces Energy Recovery, so it is not perfect, but I needed a strong Ghost-type Berries specialist and decided the overall build was worth raising. The screenshot is from the Japanese version of Pokémon Sleep.

At the time, I did not already have a Ghost-type Berries specialist that filled this role, and I did not encounter Shuppet often enough to feel that continuing to search indefinitely was worthwhile.

If I were now looking for a second Ghost-type Berries specialist, I could afford to set a much higher standard.

This is why I don’t recommend judging every BFS Pokémon with the exact same checklist. A Pokémon that is worth raising as your first option may not be good enough to justify the resources for your second or third.

Berry Finding S + Helping Bonus Is an Excellent Combination

For Berries specialists, I prioritize Berry Finding S over Helping Bonus, but having both is close to an ideal combination.

Berries specialists are Pokémon I often want to keep on the team for long periods when their Berry is favored. That makes Helping Bonus especially valuable because it also speeds up the other four team members.

For example, if I temporarily add an Ingredient specialist to gather something needed for a recipe, Helping Bonus helps that Pokémon finish its job faster. The sooner I gather the Ingredients I need, the sooner I can return to a team focused more heavily on Energy production.

For that reason, Berry Finding S + Helping Bonus is one of my favorite combinations for a Berries specialist.

Berry Finding S on Ingredient Specialists

For Ingredient specialists, my evaluation of Berry Finding S is almost the opposite of my evaluation for Berries specialists.

In most cases, I would rather not have BFS on an Ingredient specialist.

Finding 2 Berries instead of 1 does increase Berry Energy, especially when that Berry is one of Snorlax’s favorites. However, the main job of an Ingredient specialist is to gather the Ingredients I need for cooking.

Because of that, I generally prioritize the Ingredient list first, followed by useful bonuses such as Ingredient Finding, Helping Speed, Helping Bonus, and Inventory Up. Berry Finding S is not something I normally target for this specialty.

BFS Can Fill Inventory Faster

One of the main drawbacks of BFS on an Ingredient specialist is that Berries take up inventory space faster.

Without BFS, a Berry helping adds 1 Berry to the Pokémon’s inventory. With BFS, it adds 2.

Once the inventory becomes full, the Pokémon enters Sneaky Snacking and stops collecting Ingredients until you check it again.

That is useful for a Berries specialist whose main purpose is Berry Energy, but it works against what I want from an Ingredient specialist.

For that reason, I don’t consider BFS a desirable Sub Skill on most Ingredient specialists, even though the additional Berry Energy itself is obviously useful.

I Wouldn’t Reject an Excellent Ingredient Specialist Just Because It Has BFS

There is an important distinction between not wanting BFS and rejecting every Pokémon that has it.

For Ingredient specialists, the Ingredient list is one of the most important parts of the Pokémon. If I find the Ingredient combination I want and the rest of the build is strong, I won’t necessarily reject that Pokémon just because one Sub Skill slot is Berry Finding S.

My Clodsire is an example.

My Clodsire has Berry Finding S, Ingredient Finder M, and Helping Speed M. The screenshot is from the Japanese version of Pokémon Sleep.

Its Ingredient list is AAA, which was an important reason I decided to raise it.

Ideally, I would have preferred another useful Sub Skill instead of BFS. However, the Ingredient list and the rest of the build were good enough that I did not think it was worth spending more catching resources just to avoid BFS.

In cases like this, I try to check the Pokémon regularly during the day so its inventory does not remain full for too long.

Inventory Up Can Make BFS Easier to Manage

My Crustle is another example of an Ingredient specialist with BFS.

My Crustle has Inventory Up S and Berry Finding S. The additional inventory helps reduce one of the drawbacks of BFS on an Ingredient specialist. The screenshot is from the Japanese version of Pokémon Sleep.

I don’t consider BFS one of the strengths of this Crustle. If I could replace it with a Sub Skill that better supported its main role, I would.

However, Inventory Up gives it more room before its inventory fills, which makes BFS easier to manage in practice.

This does not mean I recommend specifically searching for Ingredient specialists with both BFS and Inventory Up. Rather, if an otherwise excellent Ingredient specialist happens to have BFS, additional inventory can make the combination easier to use.

Dragonite Is an Example Where BFS Can Work Very Well

There are Ingredient specialists that can make better use of BFS, and my Dragonite is a good example.

My Dragonite has Berry Finding S, Helping Bonus, and Helping Speed M. It can gather Ingredients while also contributing significant Berry Energy when Yache Berries are favored. The screenshot is from the Japanese version of Pokémon Sleep.

This Dragonite does not have an Ingredient Finding bonus among its first three Sub Skills. Instead, it has BFS, Helping Bonus, and Helping Speed M.

Because Dragonite is naturally fast, it still gathers a reasonable amount of Ingredients while also producing much more Berry Energy when its Berry is favored.

I’ve been very satisfied with this Dragonite, but I would not use it as a general recommendation for how to build an Ingredient specialist.

I raised it under specific circumstances. At the time, newly introduced high-level recipes made Dragonite’s Ingredients particularly useful to me, while my available Berries specialists for the relevant field were limited.

That allowed this Dragonite to cover two needs at once: gathering useful Ingredients while also contributing substantial Berry Energy.

The problem is that cooking priorities can change. New recipes can reduce how often I need a particular Ingredient, and players who already have a strong Dragon-type Berries specialist such as Salamence may have much less reason to ask Dragonite to fill both roles.

So BFS on an Ingredient specialist can work, but I view builds like this as situational rather than something most players should deliberately target.

There is also nothing wrong with choosing BFS for a favorite Pokémon that you simply want to keep on your team for long periods. In that case, additional Berry Energy can help that Pokémon contribute outside its primary role.

That is a different goal from optimizing Ingredient production, however, and I would keep those two approaches separate.

Berry Finding S on Skill Specialists

For most Skill specialists, I also do not prioritize Berry Finding S.

A Skill specialist is usually on my team because I want its Main Skill to activate. That makes Sub Skills such as Skill Trigger, Helping Speed, and Helping Bonus more directly relevant to its role.

BFS can also make the inventory fill faster. Once the Pokémon reaches full inventory and enters Sneaky Snacking, it no longer gets new Main Skill activation opportunities from subsequent helpings until the inventory is checked.

For a Pokémon whose main job is activating its skill, that can be a meaningful downside.

So my general rule for Skill specialists is simple: BFS is not necessarily bad, but there are usually other Sub Skills I would rather have.

Some Skill Specialists Are Exceptions

There are important exceptions. In particular, I value BFS much more highly on certain Pokémon with Berry Burst or Extra Helpful.

These Pokémon have reasons to value their own Berry production in addition to their Main Skill, so I don’t evaluate BFS on them in the same way as I would on a typical Skill specialist.

Berry Burst Users Can Benefit Greatly From BFS

Berry Burst users are often most attractive when their own Berry is favored. If I am using one under those conditions, I also want the Pokémon’s regular helpings to contribute as much Berry Energy as possible.

That makes Berry Finding S much more appealing.

For Pokémon such as Sceptile, I would personally be willing to include BFS as part of the target build rather than treating it as an unwanted Sub Skill.

The exact standard should still depend on how difficult the Pokémon is to catch. I can afford to be much stricter with a Pokémon that is relatively easy to encounter than with a Legendary Pokémon where repeated catches are much more limited.

The important difference is that these Pokémon have a clear reason to value both their Main Skill and their own Berry production.

Extra Helpful Users Can Also Make Good Use of BFS

Extra Helpful is another case where I think BFS deserves special consideration.

When Extra Helpful causes additional helpings from a Pokémon with BFS, those Berry helpings also benefit from the increased number of Berries. This includes cases where an Extra Helpful user causes its own helpings to advance.

My Gallade is an example where I have found this type of build particularly useful. It can contribute Berry Energy itself while also using Extra Helpful to advance the work of other team members.

I won’t go deeply into Extra Helpful team building here, because it deserves a separate explanation of its own.

The main point for this article is that Skill specialists should not all be judged by the same BFS rule. For a typical Skill specialist, I would rather improve its ability to activate its Main Skill. For a Pokémon whose design and intended field usage also make Berry production valuable, BFS can become a much more attractive option.

Berry Finding S vs. Helping Bonus: Which Should You Prioritize?

Berry Finding S and Helping Bonus are both excellent Gold Sub Skills, but I don’t value them the same way on every Pokémon.

For Berries specialists, I prioritize Berry Finding S. For Ingredient specialists and most Skill specialists, I generally prefer Helping Bonus.

Helping Bonus is extremely versatile because it improves the helping speed of the entire team. Its value does not depend on whether the Pokémon’s Berry is favored, and it can support Berries, Ingredient, and Skill specialists alike.

Berry Finding S is more specialized. It becomes particularly powerful when the Pokémon’s main job is producing Berry Energy and its Berry is favored by Snorlax.

So I think of the difference this way: Helping Bonus is more universally useful, while Berry Finding S has a higher value for Pokémon that can fully take advantage of the extra Berries.

For a Berries specialist, that is why I treat BFS as the priority rather than replacing it with Helping Bonus. Ideally, I want both.

How I Decide Whether a BFS Pokémon Is Worth Raising

When I find a Pokémon with Berry Finding S, I don’t make the decision based on BFS alone.

For a Berries specialist, I also consider its Nature, other Sub Skills, when BFS unlocks, how difficult the Pokémon is to catch, and whether I already have another strong Pokémon that fills the same role.

This means I am willing to compromise when the advantages clearly outweigh the disadvantages.

For example, a Berries specialist with only BFS but a major Speed of Help disadvantage may not be enough for me to stop searching. On the other hand, if it has BFS plus Helping Speed bonuses or Helping Bonus, I may accept an unfavorable Nature because the finished build is still strong.

The same principle applies to the position of BFS. I prefer it by Lv.50 for my first Berries specialist of a type, but I can accept Lv.70 when finding another candidate is unrealistic or when I already have another Pokémon covering that Berry type.

In other words, Berry Finding S is extremely important for Berries specialists, but the final decision should still be based on the entire Pokémon rather than one Sub Skill.

My Overall Evaluation of Berry Finding S

Berry Finding S is one of the strongest Sub Skills in Pokémon Sleep, but it is not universally desirable.

For Berries specialists, I consider BFS the starting point when deciding whether to make a major investment. The Lv.50 Raichu comparison earlier shows why a single BFS can have such a large impact on Energy production.

For Ingredient specialists, I usually prefer Sub Skills that directly support Ingredient gathering, and BFS can cause the inventory to fill faster. I can still accept it when the Ingredient list and overall build are strong enough, as with my Clodsire and Crustle.

For most Skill specialists, I would rather prioritize their Main Skill performance. However, Pokémon that can make particularly good use of their own Berry production, such as certain Berry Burst or Extra Helpful users, are exceptions where BFS can become much more attractive.

My Dragonite is another example of why BFS should not be judged with a simple good-or-bad rule. I am very satisfied with how it performs, but its build made sense because of the specific Ingredients and Berry coverage I needed at the time. I would not automatically recommend the same approach to every player.

The Most Important Question to Ask About Berry Finding S

Rather than asking whether Berry Finding S is simply a good Sub Skill, I think the more useful question is:

“Does Berry Finding S help this Pokémon do the job I want it to do?”

For Berries specialists, the answer is usually yes, which is why I consider BFS essential in most cases.

For Ingredient and Skill specialists, the answer depends much more on the individual Pokémon, its build, and how you plan to use it.

Berry Finding S is extremely powerful when its strengths match the Pokémon’s role. But unlike Helping Bonus, it is not a Sub Skill that I automatically want on every Pokémon.