How to Get HM Cut in Pokémon Red: 6 Easy Steps

If you have made it to Vermilion City in Pokémon Red and found a smug little tree blocking your progress, welcome to one of Gen 1’s most memorable rites of passage. That tiny shrub is not just decoration. It is the game’s way of saying, “Nice try, kid. Go earn HM Cut first.”

The good news is that getting HM Cut in Pokémon Red is not difficult once you know the exact route. The less-good news is that the game explains this in that charming 1998 style where everybody is helpful in theory and cryptic in practice. One NPC sneezes, another mentions a ship, and suddenly you are wandering around Kanto wondering whether a bush has personally insulted you.

This guide breaks the process into six easy steps, with clear directions, useful tips, and a few classic Gen 1 warnings so you do not accidentally waste time. By the end, you will know where HM01 is, how to use Cut outside battle, which Pokémon are smart choices for learning it, and what to do next after you chop down that first annoying tree.

Why HM Cut Matters in Pokémon Red

Cut is one of the most important early-game Hidden Machines in Pokémon Red. It lets you remove small trees blocking paths, including the tree that stands between you and Lt. Surge’s Gym in Vermilion City. In Generation 1, Cut can also clear certain patches of tall grass, which is a fun little mechanic that many players completely forget until years later.

In battle, Cut is serviceable but not amazing. It is useful early on, but it is rarely the move you brag about at the Pokémon League. Its real value is field utility. In other words, Cut is the move you teach because the game demands it, not because you want your team’s final strategy to revolve around landscaping.

The Fast Answer

To get HM Cut in Pokémon Red, you need to defeat Misty for the Cascade Badge, help Bill and receive the S.S. Ticket, travel to Vermilion City, board the S.S. Anne, and speak to the seasick captain on the ship. He gives you HM01 Cut. After that, teach Cut to a compatible Pokémon and use it from the Pokémon menu while standing in front of a small tree.

Step 1: Beat Misty and Earn the Cascade Badge

Your first real checkpoint is Cerulean City. Before Cut becomes useful in the overworld, you need the Cascade Badge from Misty. Without that badge, even if you somehow already have HM01, you will not be able to use Cut outside of battle.

This is why so many players get confused. They remember getting Cut from the S.S. Anne, but they forget the badge requirement. In Pokémon Red, progression loves teamwork. The HM and the badge are a package deal.

If Misty is still standing between you and progress, build a quick plan around Electric- or Grass-type attacks. Bulbasaur and its evolutions have a smooth time here. Pikachu from Viridian Forest can also do solid work. Once you win, you get the Cascade Badge, and that unlocks the field use of Cut later on.

Step 2: Help Bill and Grab the S.S. Ticket

Next, head north of Cerulean City through Nugget Bridge and Route 25 until you reach Bill’s Sea Cottage. Bill, in one of the stranger side plots in classic RPG history, needs help after a teleportation experiment goes sideways. Assist him, and he rewards you with the S.S. Ticket.

This ticket is essential. No ticket, no S.S. Anne. No S.S. Anne, no HM Cut. No HM Cut, no chopped tree. No chopped tree, no Vermilion Gym. At that point, you are basically being bullied by shrubbery.

Make sure you actually pick up the ticket and keep it in your inventory. Once you have it, you are ready for the trip south.

Step 3: Travel to Vermilion City

After dealing with Cerulean’s events, head through the house that leads toward Route 5, then continue along the Underground Path and Route 6 until you reach Vermilion City. This is your next major stop.

Vermilion is packed with things to do, but your main goal is the large ship docked at the port: the S.S. Anne. Before boarding, heal your team, buy supplies, and make a little room in your schedule for battles. The ship is not just a quick handoff point. It is a mini-adventure full of trainers, items, and useful experience.

This is also a great time to think ahead about which Pokémon you want to teach Cut to. Do not wait until you are standing in front of the captain, staring at the HM and realizing your whole party suddenly has commitment issues.

Step 4: Board the S.S. Anne and Explore It Properly

Once you have the S.S. Ticket, head to the southern dock in Vermilion City and board the S.S. Anne. Explore the ship, battle trainers, and pick up anything useful before rushing to the captain.

This matters more than it sounds. In Pokémon Red, once you receive HM01 Cut from the captain and then leave the ship, the S.S. Anne sails away permanently. That means if you want the extra experience, optional battles, or items from the ship, now is the time to handle them.

In other words, do not sprint straight to the captain unless you enjoy the special kind of regret only old-school Pokémon games can provide.

You will move through several cabins and levels of the ship, and many players use this section to level up before taking on Lt. Surge. It is efficient, it is fun, and it saves you from backtracking later.

Step 5: Visit the Captain and Receive HM01 Cut

After exploring, find the captain of the S.S. Anne. He is seasick, which is unfortunate for a ship captain but very convenient for your story progress. Interact with him, help him feel better, and he rewards you with HM01 Cut.

That is the item you came for. Congratulations: you now officially own one of the most famous utility moves in the original game.

This moment is peak Gen 1 energy. You board a luxury ship, battle sailors and gentlemen, comfort a miserable captain, and your reward is a move that lets you commit light vandalism against decorative trees. Video games are beautiful.

Step 6: Teach Cut to a Compatible Pokémon and Use It

Now that you have HM01, open your Bag, select the HM, and teach it to a compatible Pokémon. In the original Pokémon Red, using Cut outside battle is not automatic the way newer games handle field moves. You must stand in front of the small tree, open the menu, choose Pokémon, select the Pokémon that knows Cut, and then choose Cut.

This is where remake memory can trip players up. If you are used to later games, you might expect the tree to prompt you automatically. Original Kanto is more hands-on. It makes you do the paperwork yourself.

Once you use Cut on the tree near Vermilion Gym, the path to Lt. Surge opens. You have done it. The bush has lost.

Best Pokémon to Teach Cut in Pokémon Red

Not every Pokémon can learn Cut in the original game, so choose carefully. A few practical options in Pokémon Red include Bulbasaur and its evolutions, Charmander and its evolutions, Oddish and its evolutions, Paras and Parasect, Tentacool, Krabby, and Farfetch’d.

If you want convenience, Farfetch’d is a clever utility choice because it can handle both Cut and Fly later on. If you want to keep your main battle movesets cleaner, teaching Cut to a support Pokémon is usually the smarter play. Paras and Oddish are common examples because many players do not rely on them as permanent stars.

A big warning here: some players coming from FireRed remember using Pokémon like Diglett or Rattata for Cut. In the original Pokémon Red, that does not work. If you try it, the game will politely refuse and you will spend five minutes wondering whether your cartridge is haunted.

Common Mistakes Players Make

Getting the HM but forgetting the badge

You need both HM01 and the Cascade Badge. Missing either one means no field use.

Rushing off the S.S. Anne too soon

Once you get Cut and leave the ship, it sails away. Explore first, reward yourself second.

Trying to teach Cut to the wrong Pokémon

Gen 1 compatibility is stricter than many players remember. Always check before planning your whole route around one team member.

Expecting an automatic tree prompt

In Pokémon Red, you use Cut from the Pokémon menu while standing by the tree. The game does not hold your hand. It barely holds a flashlight.

What Cut Unlocks After You Get It

The most immediate reward is access to Lt. Surge’s Gym, but Cut does more than that. Throughout Kanto, it opens shortcuts, blocked item locations, and small side paths that make exploration easier. It is one of those moves that quietly improves the whole adventure.

That is part of why Cut feels so memorable. It is not flashy like Surf, and it is not dramatic like Fly, but it is your first real taste of the classic Pokémon formula where a field move changes how you understand the map. Suddenly, old routes are not just old routes anymore. They are suspiciously tree-shaped opportunities.

Player Experiences and Lessons From Getting HM Cut in Pokémon Red

One reason this part of Pokémon Red sticks in players’ memories is that it captures everything weird and wonderful about the original games. The path to Cut is simple once you know it, but on a first playthrough it feels like a miniature detective story. You beat Misty, wander around Cerulean, help a guy who accidentally turned himself into a Pokémon, get a ship ticket, cross half the map, board a cruise liner, then comfort a seasick captain so you can learn how to chop down a tree. That sentence still sounds ridiculous, and yet every longtime player immediately nods and says, “Yep, that tracks.”

For many players, the first Cut experience also marks the moment when Pokémon Red starts to feel bigger than a straight line from one Gym to the next. Before Cut, Kanto can seem like a sequence of roads and towns. After Cut, the world begins to feel layered. You start noticing trees you ignored before. You remember odd corners of earlier routes. You realize the game has been teasing future access all along. That sense of opening up the map is a huge part of what made the original adventure so satisfying.

There is also the unforgettable confusion factor. Plenty of people get the Cascade Badge and still cannot figure out why the tree will not move. Others get the HM and then discover none of their current team members can learn it. Some leave the S.S. Anne too quickly and later realize they missed extra battles and items. And nearly everyone who grew up on remakes eventually has a moment where old Gen 1 controls make them say, “Wait, I have to open the menu and tell my Pokémon to use Cut manually?” Yes. Yes, you do.

That little bit of friction is part of the charm. Pokémon Red does not streamline everything. It expects you to experiment, make mistakes, talk to NPCs, and slowly piece the world together. In a modern game, a giant glowing icon might point you toward the exact cabin on the S.S. Anne. In Gen 1, you get vibes, rumors, and a tree that refuses to cooperate. Somehow, that made success feel better.

Another common player memory is deciding who deserves the burden of Cut. Do you teach it to a starter and accept the imperfect move slot? Do you give it to a temporary helper like Oddish or Paras? Do you get clever with Farfetch’d and turn it into your utility specialist? This tiny decision feels strangely personal, and it is one of the earliest moments where team-building becomes practical rather than emotional. Sure, you love your main attacker. But do you love it enough to waste a slot on landscaping? Tough question.

In the end, getting HM Cut is not just about opening Vermilion Gym. It is about learning how Pokémon Red thinks. The game rewards curiosity, memory, and patience. It nudges you into backtracking, planning ahead, and paying attention to item use outside battle. That is why this moment remains such a classic. You are not merely getting a move. You are graduating into the real rhythm of Kanto.

Final Thoughts

If you want HM Cut in Pokémon Red, the route is straightforward once you strip away the old-school mystery: beat Misty, help Bill, get the S.S. Ticket, go to Vermilion City, board the S.S. Anne, talk to the captain, and teach Cut to the right Pokémon. Six easy steps, one defeated shrub, and a much clearer path through Kanto.

For veteran players, this sequence is pure nostalgia. For new players, it is a great lesson in how classic Pokémon used exploration and progression to make every upgrade feel earned. Either way, Cut is more than an HM. It is one of the first moments where the world opens up and the adventure really starts to click.