Pokémon HOME
The storage service that every current Pokémon game connects to. What it links up with, which transfers only run one way, what the Premium Plan actually buys you, and what has changed in the app.
What It Is
Pokémon HOME is the cloud storage service that sits between the Pokémon games. Pokémon deposited into it from one game can be withdrawn into another, provided that species exists in the destination game. It also keeps a Pokédex that spans every connected game, and carries the trade features — the GTS, the Wonder Box and Room Trade — that no longer live inside the main-series games themselves.
It runs on Nintendo Switch and on phones, and the two share one set of boxes through a single Nintendo Account. The service is free to use up to a point; a paid Premium Plan raises the limits. It launched in February 2020 and has been the only supported route between generations since Pokémon Bank was retired from active duty.
| Released | February 2020 |
| Platforms | Nintendo Switch, iOS, Android |
| Operator | The Pokémon Company |
| Cost | Free, with an optional Premium Plan |
| Current version | 4.0.3, released 16 July 2026 |
Compatible Games
Every game and service HOME connects to, and which way Pokémon can travel. Both ways means Pokémon can be deposited and withdrawn freely. One way means the trip cannot be reversed.
| Game or service | Direction | Where |
|---|---|---|
|
Pokémon Champions
Pokémon are sent as visitors rather than moved: the original stays in HOME, and only species that appear in Champions can visit. Pokémon obtained in Champions cannot be sent to HOME. Training done in Champions does not carry over to HOME, but is kept for the next visit.
|
Visits | Switch version |
|
Pokémon Legends: Z-A
Added on 2 April 2026. Only Pokémon that appear in Z-A can be brought in, and once a Pokémon has been in Z-A it can no longer be moved into any earlier game in the series.
|
Both ways | Switch version |
|
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet
The Tera Type of a Pokémon moved in from another game is set by its original type or types.
|
Both ways | Switch version |
Pokémon Legends: Arceus |
Both ways | Switch version |
Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl |
Both ways | Switch version |
Pokémon Sword and Shield |
Both ways | Switch version |
|
Pokémon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! and Let’s Go, Eevee!
Pokémon can move both ways, but once one is moved on to any game other than these two it cannot be returned to them.
|
Both ways | Switch version |
|
Pokémon GO
Transfers are started in the Pokémon GO app and cannot be reversed. Certain rare Pokémon brought over from GO cannot be moved on into another game until that species has been registered in that game’s Pokédex.
|
One way in | Pokémon GO app |
|
Pokémon Bank
Requires a Premium Plan. Once a Pokémon is moved from Bank into HOME it cannot go back. Bank itself is a Nintendo 3DS application and is no longer available to download.
|
One way in | Either version |
Transfer Rules
The rules below are the ones people get caught by. None of them can be undone once a Pokémon has made the trip, so it is worth reading them before moving anything you care about.
A Pokémon can only enter a game it belongs in
HOME will not withdraw a Pokémon into a game that does not include that species. This is the single rule that decides most of what is and is not possible: a Pokémon sitting in HOME is not universally portable, it is only portable into the games that happen to contain it. Anything that has no home in the current generation simply stays in storage.
Some doors only open one way
- Pokémon moved from Pokémon Bank into HOME cannot be moved back to Bank.
- Pokémon transferred from Pokémon GO into HOME cannot be returned to GO.
- Pokémon that have been in Pokémon Legends: Z-A cannot be moved into any earlier game.
- Pokémon from Let’s Go, Pikachu! or Let’s Go, Eevee! cannot go back to those games once they have been moved on to anything else.
The Pokédex gate on Pokémon GO transfers
Certain rare Pokémon brought over from Pokémon GO sit in HOME until you have registered that species in the destination game’s Pokédex by other means. The transfer into HOME still works; it is the onward move into a game that is blocked.
Switch Version vs Mobile Version
The two versions of HOME share one set of boxes but do different jobs. Neither is a superset of the other, which is why most people end up with both installed.
Nintendo Switch version
- The only place Pokémon can be moved between HOME and the Switch games.
- Handles Pokémon Bank transfers, with a Premium Plan.
- Box management and the Pokédex.
Mobile version
- Receives Pokémon sent from the Pokémon GO app.
- The GTS, the Wonder Box and Room Trade.
- The Judge function, on a Premium Plan.
- Also handles Pokémon Bank transfers, with a Premium Plan.
Basic vs Premium
HOME is free to use on the Basic plan. Premium is a subscription bought through the Nintendo eShop or the app, and it is what most collectors are paying for when they use HOME as long-term storage rather than as a shuttle between two games.
| Basic | Premium | |
|---|---|---|
| Pokémon stored | 30 | 6,000 |
| Wonder Box | 3 at a time | 10 at a time |
| GTS | 1 Pokémon deposited | 3 Pokémon deposited |
| Room Trade | Join only | Join and host |
| Judge function | Not available | Available |
| Medals | 30 | 1,000 |
| Pokémon Bank transfers | Not available | Available |
Premium is sold in three lengths. US prices, before tax:
| 1 month | $2.99 |
| 3 months | $4.99 |
| 12 months | $15.99 |
Features
Boxes and the Pokédex
Boxes are shared between the Switch and mobile versions under one Nintendo Account. The Pokédex counts everything you have deposited across every connected game, which makes HOME the closest thing to a running total of a collection spread over several titles.
GTS
The Global Trade System. Deposit a Pokémon, name the species you want in return, and wait for someone to fill the order. It is mobile-only in HOME, and the Basic plan allows one Pokémon deposited at a time against Premium’s three.
Wonder Box
Put Pokémon in and they are traded away at random to other players, whose own deposits come back the other way. Trades resolve over time rather than instantly, so the box is meant to be filled and left alone.
Room Trade
A room of up to twenty players who each deposit one Pokémon and receive one back at random when the room fills. The Basic plan can join a room; hosting one requires Premium.
Judge function
Displays a Pokémon’s individual strengths, the stat spread usually called IVs, without needing an in-game judge. Premium only.
Mystery Gifts and Medals
HOME distributes its own Mystery Gifts, and version 3.4.0 added Wonder Cards to that system. Medals are awarded for milestones in the app, and the number you can hold is one of the things the Premium Plan raises.
Update History
The versions that changed something worth noting, newest first.
Fixes for issues on Android 17.
General bug fixes.
Fixed incorrect icons in the GTS search function, plus stability improvements.
The big one. Added compatibility with Pokémon Legends: Z-A and Pokémon Champions, added Latin American Spanish, and added new Research Tasks.
General improvements.
Bug fixes. Support for iOS 14 was dropped.
Stability improvements.
Wonder Cards added to Mystery Gifts.
Medals introduced.
Compatibility with Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet.