Pikmin 4: all Onion locations
If you to build a strong and sustainable Pikmin population for your conquest in Pikmin 4, then you’re going to need Onions. Onions are like the Pikmin’s home base: you can collect Pikmin from here, and having your creatures return to the Onion with deceased monsters will allow the Pikmin to turn their corpses into new Pikmin. The circle of life.
But you can only sprout types of Pikmin that you have an Onion for. That means that it’ll be very difficult to grow a population of White or Purple Pikmin without finding the Onion. In this guide we’re breaking down all Onion locations in Pikmin 4, and yes, there is an Onion for each type of Pikmin, excluding the night-exclusive Glow Pikmin.
Make sure to check our full list of Pikmin 4 cave locations, as several of these Onions are inside caves.
Number of Onions/Flarlic in each area – Pikmin 4
Flarlic is a type of Onion that increases the number of Pikmin you can have out at once.
Nintendo
On top of the Onions, you’ll also be collecting Flarlic in Pikmin 4, which increases the number of Pikmin you can have in the field. There are 21 Onions or Flarlic in the game total: there are duplicates of some Onions, but the second instances just get turned into 20 Pikmin of the corresponding type.
This is how many Onions or Flarlic you can find in each area:
- Rescue Command Post: 3 (Red, White, Purple)
- Sun-Speckled Terrace: 4 (Yellow, Blue)
- Blossoming Arcadia: 3 (Yellow)
- Serene Shores: 3 (Blue)
- Hero’s Hideaway: 3 (Ice)
- Giant’s Hearth: 3 (Rock)
- Primordial Thicket: 3 (Winged)
Red Onion location – Pikmin 4
The Red Onion is impossible to miss.
Nintendo
Like most Pikmin games, the Red Onion is the first that you’ll find in Pikmin 4. You’ll encounter the Red Onion in the Rescue Command Post just after you encounter Captain Shepherd for the first time and emerge from the Burrow of Beginnings.
Yellow Onion location – Pikmin 4
There are at least two Yellow Onions that we've found.
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The Yellow Onion can be found in the Blossoming Arcadia overworld.
This one is to the South of Blossoming Arcadia.
Nintendo
It’s to the South of your first base landing point, just behind the bag ramp you can drop down. You’ll need to move to the East side of the area to get around to it.
Another Yellow Onion is in Sun-Speckled Terrace.
Nintendo
You can also find a Yellow Onion in the Sun-Speckled Terrace in the Southwest corner, near the Dandori Challenge cave.
Check the West side of the stage for this Yellow Onion.
Nintendo
It might be easier for you to collect this Onion before the one mentioned above.
Blue Onion location – Pikmin 4
This Blue Onion is tricky to get.
Nintendo
Just over the water in Sun-Speckled Terrace there’s a Blue Onion atop the mound. This is the body of water closest to the central base location. You can use 30 Ice Pikmin to freeze the water, and then build a climbing wall to the left side to get up.
You'll need 30 Ice Pikmin and 20 other Pikmin to get this Onion easily.
Nintendo
You’ll need 50 Pikmin total – 30 to freeze the water, and 20 to carry the Blue Onion – so make sure to collect some Flarlic in advance.
There's another Blue Onion in Serene Shores.
Nintendo
You can also get a Blue Onion from Serene Shores, in the Southeast corner, at the highest point of the sandcastle.
It's in the Southeast corner, atop the sandcastle.
Nintendo
This might be easier to grab, as you can move your base close to this Onion location.
Ice (Light Blue) Onion location – Pikmin 4
This one is frozen in Hero's Hideaway.
Nintendo
You can find this Onion in Hero’s Hideaway. It’s located on the freezer drawer on the North wall.
Check the freezer to the North!
Nintendo
You’ll need to get through the Frozen Inferno cave in order to get this Onion, so you should take a look at our cave locations guide.
Rock (Black) Onion location – Pikmin 4
The Rock (Black) Onion is buried in Giant's Hearth.
Nintendo
You can find this Onion in Giant’s Hearth. It’s to the South of the stage, behind the barbecue, in a small section that can only be accessed by using Bomb Rocks on a wall on the East side, near the Dandori Battle with Louie.
Check the South side, behind the Bomb Rock wall.
Nintendo
Inside you’ll need to defeat a Bulblax to clear the route to get the Rock Onion, and Bomb Rocks will make that fight a lot easier.
Winged (Pink) Onion location – Pikmin 4
The Winged (Pink) Onion is in Primordial Thicket.
Nintendo
You can find this Onion in Primordial Thicket. It’s to the East side of the area, near the muddy pool with the Lucky Cat treasure and the Oasis of Order Dandori Challenge.
Check the East side of the area, near the muddy pool. You'll need White Pikmin to help reach it.
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You’ll need White Pikmin to clear the geysers spewing poison and push the box that requires ten Pikmin, then you’ll be able to cross and reach the Pink Onion.
White Onion location – Pikmin 4
Found exclusively in the Trial of the Sage Leaf.
Nintendo
The White Onion is the first of two that you can’t actually find in any of the usual areas or caves.
The White Onion is a reward for completion of 5th Story: The White Key.
Nintendo
Instead, you must undertake the Trial of the Sage Leaf, which can be accessed from a cave at the Rescue Command Post – that’s the hub where all your rescues are. You need to complete 5th Story: The White Key in order to earn the White Onion.
Purple Onion location – Pikmin 4
Also a Sage Leaf exclusive!
Nintendo
The Purple Onion is also located in the Trial of the Sage Leaf.
You must complete FInal Story: The Purple Key for the Purple Onion reward.
Nintendo
To earn this Onion you must complete Final Story: The Purple Key, which is the tenth challenge in the Trial of the Sage Leaf cave. Hint: make Oatchi carry it, and take out the Waterwraith ASAP. Getting this Onion will make it much easier to follow our Gold Bar guide.
