Forever Friends takes center stage in Pokémon GO, bringing a major friendship update that extends how players connect and trade. Trainers can look forward to a brand-new Friendship tier that sits above Best Friends, unlocking Remote Trading with your Forever Friends.
Launch is rolling out in stages worldwide, beginning in New Zealand today.
Forever Friends and Remote Trading: what changes
A new Friendship level, Forever Friends, will appear above Best Friends. To reach it, you must accumulate 90 interactions with another Trainer after they’ve become Best Friends.
Gaining Forever Friends brings worthwhile rewards and experience, plus two key perks:
- When you become Forever Friends with someone, both players gain access to a Remote Trade with each other.
- Reaching Forever Friends unlocks a one-time attack boost, similar to bonuses granted at other Friendship levels. This bonus is awarded the first time Forever Friends is achieved with a given Trainer.
This change isn’t retroactive. All players start at zero Friendship Points when Forever Friends goes live, so your current Best Friends will remain the fastest route to reach Forever Friends first.
How to earn Forever Friends
To achieve Forever Friends, Trainers must earn 90 Friendship Points with each Friend after becoming Best Friends.
Friendship Points form a new progression system that replaces the old daily interaction mechanic as the main way to measure friendship growth between Trainers.
You can earn up to 1 Friendship Point per day per friend by doing various activities together:
- Trading
- Sending Gifts
- Completing other friendship interactions
Progress can also be sped up by completing Weekly Challenges with your Friends, which can grant up to 7 extra points per week. Any event bonuses that boost friendship gain (such as double points during special events) apply to Forever Friends progression.
Remote Trades and re-earning Forever Friends
Each time you reach 90 Friendship Points, a Remote Trade with that Friend becomes available. Forever Friends is repeatable: you can keep earning more points and unlock additional Remote Trades each time you hit 90 with that Friend.
However, Remote Trades do not stack. If an unused Remote Trade already exists, it must be used before earning another one.
Each Remote Trade is tied to the specific Friend it was earned with and cannot be transferred to or used with another friend. A Trainer can complete one Remote Trade per day across all Forever Friends, regardless of how many Forever Friends exist.
Lucky Friends and Lucky Trinkets notes
- If you become Lucky Friends, your next trade—whether local or remote—will yield a Lucky Pokémon. After the trade, you will no longer be Lucky Friends, just like with in-person trades.
- If a Remote Trade is unlocked and a Lucky Trinket is used on that Friend, the trade will also be Lucky. Using a Lucky Trinket does not grant a new Remote Trade; it only affects the outcome.
Remote Trading process
Before your first Remote Trade, you’ll be prompted to use a special Remote Trade tag to mark the Pokémon you’re willing to trade with Forever Friends.
Once Forever Friends is established, you’ll be able to see each other’s Pokémon tagged for Remote Trading. Only those Pokémon will be eligible for trades.
To initiate a Remote Trade:
1) Trade partners take turns selecting up to three Pokémon from their Friend’s tagged list they’d like to receive.
2) These selections are sent to the other Trainer as a trade “wish list.”
3) Each Trainer then picks one Pokémon from the other’s wish list to offer in return.
4) Both Trainers review, then confirm or cancel the trade as needed.
The process isn’t binding. Either Trainer can decline or restart the trade at any point before final confirmation.
If you’re Lucky Friends, the next trade—even a remote one—will yield a Lucky Pokémon. After the trade, you’ll no longer be Lucky Friends, mirroring the result of in-person trades.
One Remote Trade per day applies, and Remote Trades don’t count as Special Trades, regardless of the Pokémon traded.
Pokémon banned from Remote Trades
- Pokémon caught in the last 30 days
- Previously traded Pokémon
- Shadow Pokémon
- Mythical Pokémon
- Pokémon defending Gyms or Power Spots
- Pokémon currently set as your buddy
- Actively Mega-Evolved Pokémon
- Fused Pokémon
- Crowned Sword Zacian and Crowned Shield Zamazenta
- Pokémon placed at Pokémon Playgrounds
Friends List Update
Alongside Forever Friends and Remote Trading, the maximum number of friends will increase from 450 to 650 over several weeks, in increments of 50.
Weekly Challenges Update
Weekly challenges let you team up with up to three other Trainers from your Friends List, no matter where they are, to tackle a group challenge each week. Rewards include XP and additional friendship points.
Timed Research
A free Timed Research opportunity runs from Monday, December 15, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. to Monday, December 29, 2025, at 8:00 p.m. local time. Completing the Timed Research yields:
- An encounter with Scatterbug
- XP
- Stardust
- and more
Timed Research expiry
All tasks and rewards must be claimed by Sunday, January 4, 2026, at 8:00 p.m. local time.
