- Not to be confused with Transfer, the act of moving a Pokémon to another game without exchanging.
A Pikipek and a Togedemaru being traded in Pokémon Sun and Pokémon Moon
Trading is a key mechanic of the core series introduced in Generation I.
Description[]
Trading is the process of a trainer exchanging one of their Pokémon for another with another trainer. It is essential for players to do, mostly between different games of the core series in the same generation, since it allows them to obtain every Pokémon necessary to complete the Pokédex. A certain animation is shown on each player's screen while the trading process takes place. Trading is done arbitrarily, so there are generally no restrictions, meaning that unfair trades like a level 1 Pokémon for a level 100 Pokémon can occur.
Trading is required by design mainly because of version-exclusive Pokémon, since most games have the choice of one of three first partner Pokémon, and some Pokémon evolve only from being traded. Some species of Pokémon evolve after the trading sequence is complete, but some have to hold a specific evolution item in order to evolve. A few Pokémon can evolve only if they are traded for a specific Pokémon, such as Karrablast for Shelmet, and vice versa. Unlike other Pokémon, evolutions that result from being traded cannot be cancelled by pressing the B button, and the only way to prevent it from occurring is if the Pokémon holds an Everstone.
Trading Pokémon one of the main reasons why each Pokémon has an OT and corresponding number, so that others can determine who was the original owner of the Pokémon. If a traded Pokémon has a nickname, the Name Rater refuses to change it out of courtesy toward the Pokémon's original owner.
Traded Pokémon receive a 50 percent boost in experience points while battling than it would if the player is its OT. A higher level Pokémon that is traded over can disobey the player if they do not have the necessary Gym Badges, and the reason for this is to prevent a player from using high-level Pokémon earlier in their journey, something that would give them a major advantage over other opponents.
Trading usually occurs at a Pokémon Center. With the advancement between generations, more methods for trading have been introduced. In the first two generations and Pokémon Ruby Version and Pokémon Sapphire Version, both players needed to have a Link Cable connected between both systems in order to trade. While Pokémon FireRed Version and Pokémon LeafGreen Version and Pokémon Emerald Version retain the Link Cable as an option, both players can use the Wireless Adapter instead, allowing Pokémon to be traded wirelessly. From Generation IV onward, a major breakthrough was introduced in which players with Wi-Fi can trade Pokémon from around the world.
Some trades occur between the player and certain characters, who ask for a certain Pokémon in exchange for their own Pokémon of a certain species, level, and moves.
There are some unorthodox methods of trading, such as exchanging chips in a casino for a Pokémon, but when the player receives a Pokémon through this method, its OT is always the player.
There is a similar mechanic known as transferring Pokémon, which involves receiving Pokémon over from a game in the previous generation. While trading is reversible, by trading Pokémon back to their original owners, transferring is not, because once a Pokémon has been transferred over, it cannot return to the original game; the reason why this is not possible is because certain Pokémon do not exist within earlier games. Transferring has sometimes been conflated with trading.
Appearances[]
Core series[]
Generation I[]
In Pokémon Red Version and Pokémon Blue Version and Pokémon Yellow Special Pikachu Edition, trading between players are done at the Pokémon Cable Club on the second floor of any Pokémon Center.
Since the Japanese versions have a different RAM structure from other regional releases, trading Pokémon between a Japanese version and a release from a different region corrupts each player's save. Besides the Japanese releases, trading is possible between any other regional release, including those in different languages.
The Virtual Console versions for the Nintendo 3DS were programmed to handle trading through infrared (local wireless), both as a modern amenity and because Nintendo 3DS systems are unable to utilize a Game Boy Link Cable. Unlike before, both players' language settings are required to be the same.
Generation II[]
In Pokémon Gold Version and Pokémon Silver Version and Pokémon Crystal Version, trading is done from the Pokémon Cable Club in a Pokémon Center. The process is the same as before, including the inability to trade between a Japanese version with a different regional release.
From these games onward, it is possible to trade Pokémon Eggs. However, trading an egg will not result in the Pokémon being considered traded when it hatches, as the original trainer is the one who owns the Pokémon at the time of hatching. This means that a traded egg does not count as an egg, and therefore the trading restrictions do not apply: its nickname can be changed, and it will receive the same experience points in battle as any other non-traded Pokémon.
Generation III[]
In Pokémon Ruby Version and Pokémon Sapphire Version, trading is done in the Pokémon Cable Club of a Pokémon Center, like in the previous two generations, and trading occurs from players utilizing a Game Boy Advance Game Link Cable. It is possible possible to trade over Pokémon from the Generation I or II games.
In Pokémon FireRed Version and Pokémon LeafGreen Version and Pokémon Emerald Version, the Pokémon Center retains the Pokémon Cable Club while also having an alternative, the Pokémon Wireless Club, since the games are also compatible with the Wireless Adapter. In the Pokémon Wireless Club, trading takes place within the Union Room.
In Pokémon FireRed Version and Pokémon LeafGreen Version, a player cannot trade between the Hoenn games until they help Celio fix the Network Machine on One Island, after defeating the Elite Four.
In the Hoenn games, the player cannot trade Pokémon Eggs of species not listed in the Hoenn Pokédex until they have obtained the National Pokédex. Similarly, in Pokémon FireRed Version and Pokémon LeafGreen Version, the player cannot receive Pokémon Eggs before obtaining the National Pokédex.
Generation IV[]
In Pokémon Diamond Version and Pokémon Pearl Version, Pokémon Platinum Version, and Pokémon HeartGold Version and Pokémon SoulSilver Version, Pokémon can be traded between any of the aforementioned games via the Wireless Club on the second floor of any Pokémon Center. From the Generation IV games onward, it is no longer possible to possible through the use of a Link Cable, since the Nintendo DS and its successors made it entirely obsolete due to built-in wireless capabilities.
There is also the Wi-Fi Club, where players with each other's Friend Codes could trade via Wi-Fi. At the Global Trading Station in Jublife City in the Sinnoh games and Goldenrod City in Pokémon HeartGold Version and Pokémon SoulSilver Version, players could trade Pokémon from around the world, even if they do not have each other's Friend Code. Neither the GTS nor Wi-Fi Club would become usable as of May 20, 2014, when the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection service has been discontinued.
If a Pokémon is traded from one game to another game and was originally encountered in a location that does not exist in the traded game, the Trainer Memo screen of the Summary displays the location where they met as "Faraway place." While Pokémon Platinum Version does take place in Sinnoh like Pokémon Diamond Version and Pokémon Pearl Version, it does introduce a few locations, so trading a Pokémon that was first met in a Pokémon Platinum Version-exclusive location to either Pokémon Diamond Version or Pokémon Pearl Version similarly displays the location name as "Faraway place." An example would be a newborn Pokémon hatching from a Pokémon Egg at the Battle Factory in Pokémon Platinum Version and later being traded to Pokémon Diamond Version or Pokémon Pearl Version, since neither game has the Battle Factory.
Generation V[]
In Pokémon Black Version and Pokémon White Version and Pokémon Black Version 2 and Pokémon White Version 2, it is now possible to trade via the C-Gear from almost anywhere in the Unova region, so trading no longer has to occur in only Pokémon Centers like before. The only restriction is that Pokémon holding an HM cannot be traded. It is not possible to trade between a Generation IV and a Generation V game, even though the games have the benefit of all being Nintendo DS releases.
In Pokémon Black Version and Pokémon White Version, if a Pokémon caught in Cold Storage is traded to Pokémon Black Version 2 and Pokémon White Version 2, their met location erroneously becomes Pokémon World Tournament, because it has the same internal ID as Cold Storage from the first paired games.
Generation VI[]
A Pikachu and an Eevee being traded in Pokémon X and Pokémon Y
In Pokémon X and Pokémon Y and Pokémon Omega Ruby and Pokémon Alpha Sapphire, players can receive Pokémon from a trade even if it is not in their regional Pokédex, which means that the player can receive Pokémon from trades at any point during their journey.
Before Nintendo Network had been discontinued on April 8, 2024, trading was doable via Wi-Fi, but it had been handled differently than in Generations IV and V. The Player Search System replaces the C-Gear, and players could it to trade with just the tap of a button. The GTS had been enhanced so that players could enter the name of the Pokémon they are looking for or wish to request in exchange. There was a gimmick for trading titled Wonder Trade, in which the player would offer a Pokémon just like in GTS, or even a Pokémon Egg, but the difference is that they would always receive a random Pokémon offered by a random player.
Generation VII[]
In Pokémon Sun and Pokémon Moon and Pokémon Ultra Sun and Pokémon Ultra Moon, the Festival Plaza was for trading via Wi-Fi at either the local GTS or the option of doing a Wonder Trade, but like the Generation VI games, neither has been possible since the discontinuation of Nintendo Network. The Quick Link feature was added specifically to trade with people nearby.
In Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Pokémon: Let's Go, Eevee!, trading is handled differently, partly because the games are on the Nintendo Switch instead of a Nintendo 3DS like Pokémon Sun and Pokémon Moon and Pokémon Ultra Sun and Pokémon Ultra Moon.
Generation VIII[]
In Generation VIII, there is a feature called Surprise Trade that is accessed from the Y-Comm and can match the player with a trading partner in the background.
In Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield, it is possible to nickname a traded Pokémon if the OT has not given a nickname already.
Spinoffs[]
Pokémon Stadium / Pokémon Stadium 2[]
In Pokémon Stadium and Pokémon Stadium 2, trading is handled from the Pokémon Trade Service. Both games can trade Pokémon between Generation I games in the core series, but only Pokémon Stadium 2 supports this for the Generation II games as well.
Pokémon Colosseum / Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness[]
In Pokémon Colosseum and Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness, it is possible to trade by connecting a Nintendo GameCube Game Boy Advance link cable from the Nintendo GameCube to a Game Boy Advance with a game cartridge of a Generation III game inserted. In the Nintendo GameCube games, the only location where trades can occur is the basement of the Pokémon Center in Phenac City. Due to their unique properties, Shadow Pokémon cannot be traded over from Pokémon Colosseum or Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness, but it is possible to after they have undergone purification.
In Pokémon Colosseum, trading becomes possible only after defeating Evice.
In Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness, in order for the player to be able to trade to a Generation III game in the core series, they must have Hall of Fame data.
Anime[]
In Pokémon the Series, trading is more complex, since a majority of them involve the use of a trade machine instead of two characters simply exchanging Poké Balls. Trading is nowhere nearly as common as in the core series, and very few have had a major role in the plot.
A trade first occurred in "Battle Aboard the St. Anne", when Ash traded his Butterfree for a Raticate. Later on, Ash regretted the trade, so he received his Butterfree back.
Trading has a major role in "Tricks of the Trade", when Jessie accidentally traded her Lickitung for a Wobbuffet belonging to Benny. The Wobbuffet would become one of Jessie's main Pokémon nonetheless.
In "Here's Lookin' at You, Elekid", James encounters the same Magikarp Salesman who had scammed him with a Magikarp in "Battle Aboard the St. Anne". James demands a refund, but the Magikarp Salesman makes an offer to instead trade a Weepinbell that can use Sweet Scent for one of James' Pokémon. The Team Rocket trio agree that James exchange his Victreebel for the Weepinbell, but to no practical effect.
In "Judgment Day!", Jimmy mentions that he had traded a Shiny Magikarp that he discovered inadvertently for a Charmeleon, which a Pokémon Trainer offered to trade to Jimmy for the Shiny Magikarp.
In "The Evolutionary War", the children of Islands B and C developed a major rivalry since the Clamperls on Island B evolve into a Gorebyss while those on Island C evolve into a Huntail. Later on, in a Pokémon Center, Nurse Joy was entrusted with two Clamperls: one had a Deep Sea Tooth and was owned by Hoenn, while another had a Deep Sea Scale and was owned by Nancy. When Keith and Nancy return later, they find that their Clamperls have evolved into a Huntail and a Gorebyss respectively, and the conflict between the two islands end when it is discovered that trading a Clamperl with a certain item gets them the desired evolution.
In "Throwing the Track Switch", Ash trades his Aipom to Dawn for her Buizel, something that Zoey had suggested since Aipom prefers Pokémon Contests like Dawn while Buizel prefers Pokémon battles like Ash.
In "Evolution Exchange Excitement!", Professor Juniper trades a Karrablast to Bianca for her Shelmet. After the trade, when the two characters take their newly received Pokémon out of their Poké Balls, both Pokémon evolve, just as they would if traded in the core series: Karrablast becomes an Escavalier and Shelmet becomes an Accelgor.
In "A Festival Trade! A Festival Farewell?", Prince Pumpkaboo, who is owned by Count Pumpka, fell in love with Jessie's Pumpkaboo, so Count Pumpka offers to trade his Mawile for Jessie's Pumpkaboo. Jessie is unwilling at first, but she changes her mind when Count Pumpka said that a Mawile can Mega Evolve. After the trade, Count Pumpka lets out his newly received Pumpkaboo, which evolves into Gourgeist, causing Prince Pumpkaboo to lose interest in her. As a result, Pumpka and Jessie each trade back the other's Pokémon.
In "Trade, Borrow, and Steal!", some time after Kricketina Kylie loses to Ash and Goh in a World Coronation Series battle, Goh trades her a Pinsir he had recently caught for Kylie's Heracross.
In "Searching for Chivalry!", Goh trades a Scyther holding a Metal Coat to Wikstrom to evolve it into Scizor.
Manga[]
Trading occurs in Pokémon Adventures when each trainer exchanges a Poké Ball with a Pokémon inside, but unlike other media, it can be done alternatively from each trainer's Pokédex. Trading usually occurs when one or both participants want to evolve a Pokémon.
In "A Tale of Ninetales", Red and Blue bump into each other by mistake, dropping their Poké Balls, and both Red and Blue accidentally swap Pokémon as they each try to retrieve their own Pokémon. Red and Blue receive their original Pokémon back in the end.
In "You Know… Articuno!", Red trades his Krabby to Misty for her Gyarados so that Red can have a Pokémon on his team capable of using Surf.
In the final chapter of the Yellow Chapter, "The Legend", Blaine remarks that Yellow has amazing powers since she had been able to evolve Gravvy from a Graveler to a Golem without trading.
In "Ampharos Amore", Silver trades a Seadra to Gold for his Poliwhirl so that each one's Pokémon can evolve. In the next chapter, "Piloswine Whine", they trade their original Pokémon back to one another.
In "Raising the Stakes with Rhyperior", it is revealed that Blue traded his Rhydon to Silver so that it could evolve into a Rhyperior. By the X & Y Chapter, it is shown that Blue got his Rhyhornior back.
In "Abyssal Ruins", Blake and Whitley trade their recently obtained Karrablast and Shelmet so that they can evolve into an Escavalier and Accelgor, respectively.