Remote trading has finally made its debut in Pokémon Go, letting you trade Pokémon with friends no matter the distance. So if your Lucky Friend has moved away, fear not! You can still connect—but don’t expect to trade at will; there’s a catch.
As of now, this feature is rolling out exclusively in New Zealand, but it’s on the way to the rest of the globe. Below, you’ll find a quick guide on how to get into remote trading in Pokémon Go, along with steps to achieve that elusive Forever Friends status with your buddies.
How to remote trade in Pokémon Go
First things first, to start remote trading, you need to be at the Forever Friends level with the player you’re planning to trade with. This is a new tier introduced above Best Friends, and you’ll need to level up your friendship before diving into remote trades.
According to a blog from Niantic, here’s how remote trading works:
- Achieve Forever Friends status with the friend you want to trade.
- Tag up to three Pokémon you wish to offer in your trade with the “Remote Trade” tag. Your Forever Friends will then see the Pokémon you have marked.
- Choose the Pokémon from your Forever Friend’s list that you’d like to receive, and await their selection.
- If both parties are satisfied with the trade, you can confirm it.
- After a trade is done, you’ll need to earn 90 friendship points in order to initiate another remote trade with that same Forever Friend.
Yes, if you plan to trade multiple times with one friend, you’ll have to recharge the remote trading gauge by accumulating friendship points—introducing a bit of a cooldown on trades with individual players.
If you’re Lucky Friends with someone, the remote trade will still retain its lucky status, so that’s a plus! Plus, regardless of the Pokémon you’re trading, remote trades won’t count as a Special Trade for the day. That means you can easily swap legendaries, shinies, and add new Pokédex entries without worrying.
However, there are some restrictions on what you can’t trade:
- Pokémon caught in the last 30 days
- Previously traded Pokémon
- Shadow Pokémon
- Mythical Pokémon
- Pokémon currently defending Gyms or Power Spots
- Pokémon set as your buddy
- Actively Mega-Evolved Pokémon
- Fused Pokémon
- Crowned Sword Zacian and Crowned Shield Zamazenta
- Pokémon placed at Pokémon Playgrounds
It’s worth noting that, as of now, we haven’t had a chance to test this feature ourselves, given that it’s not available in our region yet and there’s some waiting involved in leveling up friendship. We’ll keep you posted with more details once we can try out this new system.
How to become Forever Friends in Pokémon Go
Raising your friendship to the Forever Friends tier can be done just like before:
- Participate in Weekly Challenges with your friend
- Trade Pokémon with your friend
- Open a gift from your friend or have them open one of yours
- Go raiding together
You can snag a single friendship point per day using any of these methods. However, completing Weekly Challenges will net you additional friendship points, and many events often double your friendship gains. Be sure to capitalize on those opportunities when they pop up!