Catching all of the Pokemon can be fairly difficult in Pokemon GO, so here’s how to trade and add some new ones to your Pokedex!
Filling up your Pokedex and earning all of the medals for each Region in the series can be quite the challenge. It’s even harder when you realize there are region-exclusive Pokemon in Pokemon GO too.
Fortunately, there are still ways to get these Pokemon, and many more, without traveling to a different location. Trading, a long-time mechanic in the franchise, is available in Pokemon GO!
Here’s everything you need to know about making trades in Pokemon GO, from how to trade all the way to what it costs to do it.
Trading in Pokemon GO
Trading Requirements
There are a few requirements you (and your trading partner) will need to meet before initiating a trade:
- Be Pokemon GO Friends with the person you are trading with
- Be within a 100m (roughly 325ft) radius of each other
- Have a Trainer Level of 10 or above
The distance requirement can sometimes increase during special events. However, this is rare, so you shouldn’t rely on this.
If you meet the requirements, you can now go ahead and trade.
How to Trade
- From the map, click on your Avatar
- Select the ‘Friends’ tab in the top right of the Trainer menu
- Find and tap on the friend you want to trade with
- Tap the ‘Trade’ button underneath your friends’ XP bar
- Once your friend has connected, tap the ‘Menu’ button at the bottom of the screen
- Choose a Pokemon you’d like to offer or one your friend wants
- Check out the Pokemon, and the possible CP & HP range, then press confirm on the left
- After both of you confirm, the trade will be complete
It is worth noting there are a few limitations to trading, which we’ll be going over in a moment.
The CP, HP, and IV of the Pokemon you receive will vary from the original stats. However, other stats like weight, as well as the Pokemon’s moves, won’t change.
If you want the stats to remain closer to the original ones, you’ll need to increase your Friendship Level with the other trainer. This way, the range for CP, HP, and IV will become smaller.
Find out how to raise your Friendship Level, as well as other bonuses, in our friends guide for Pokemon GO!
Once you’ve done the trade, you can also use the new IV filters in Pokemon GO to better tag your best Pokemon!
Trading Limitations
There are a few limitations to trading that you’ll need to know:
- You can only do 100 trades per day
- You can only do one Special Trade per day
- No Pokemon can be traded more than once
- This is to stop players ‘re-rolling’ the IV and CP of Pokemon due to the change of stats after a trade
There are some Pokemon that can’t be traded either, including:
- Mythical Pokemon
- However, you can trade Meltan and Melmetal
- ‘Slashed’ Pokemon
- These are Pokemon caught by players using cheats
- Current Buddy Pokemon
- Pokemon defending Gyms at the time of trade
- Pokemon fainted or not at full health
- Shadow Pokemon
What are Special Trades in Pokemon GO?
Special Trades are high-value and expensive trades of rare Pokemon in Pokemon GO, such as Legendary or shiny Pokemon.
These are all of the Pokemon that count as Special Trades:
- Legendary Pokemon
- Shiny Pokemon
- Pokemon with forms not already in your Pokedex (Castform forms, different Unowns)
- Pokemon not registered in your Pokedex
You can only do one Special Trade per day, and the costs change depending on the friendship level.
It may be cheaper to find out the odds of catching shiny Pokemon in Pokemon GO, rather than using a lot of Stardust in these trades.
Pokemon GO Trading Costs
Trades cost Stardust to perform, but the amount varies depending on the type of trade as well as the friendship levels. Here are all of the costs for trading:
| Type of Trade | Good Friend | Great Friend | Ultra Friend | Best Friend |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standard Trade | 100 | 80 | 8 | 4 |
| Special Trade (Registered) | 20000 | 16000 | 1600 | 800 |
| Special Trade (New Pokemon) | 1000000 | 800000 | 80000 | 40000 |
It’s clear that Special Trades can be fairly expensive if the friendship level is low.
If you or your friend are typically catching Legendary Pokemon, you may want to increase your friendship level in Pokemon GO.
Trading Evolutions in Pokemon GO
Some Pokemon can be evolved via trading instead of costing 100+ Candy to evolve. Here are all of the Pokemon you can evolve using trades:
- Kadabra -> Alakazam
- Machoke -> Machamp
- Graveler -> Golem
- Haunter -> Gengar
- Boldore -> Gigalith
- Gurdurr -> Conkeldurr
- Karrablast -> Escavalier
- Shelmet -> Accelgor
- Phantump -> Trevenant
- Pumpkaboo -> Gourgeist
Receiving one of these Pokemon through trade will let you evolve it for zero Candy. All you need to do is press the evolve button as usual, and there will be no Candy cost.
Of course, you can still evolve these Pokemon normally, but you’ll need a lot of Candy. Here’s how to get more Candy in Pokemon GO.
