Linking Pokémon Go to Pokémon Home takes about five minutes and requires a Nintendo Account
To move Pokémon from Pokémon Go into Pokémon Home, you need to connect the two apps through your Nintendo Account. The process happens in Pokémon Go itself: you open the settings menu, select "Pokémon Home," sign in with your Nintendo Account credentials, and authorize the connection. Once linked, you can transfer Pokémon one at a time or in groups, though the transfer is one-way — Pokémon cannot go back from Home to Go.
You will need a Nintendo Account (free to create at accounts.nintendo.com), the Pokémon Go app on your phone, and either the free or paid version of Pokémon Home on a Nintendo Switch, phone, or computer. The free version of Pokémon Home holds up to 30 Pokémon; the paid subscription ($2.99 per month or $4.99 per three months) holds up to 6,000.
Key Takeaways
- You link Pokémon Go and Pokémon Home through your Nintendo Account, which you create for free at accounts.nintendo.com if you do not already have one.
- The link happens inside the Pokémon Go app under settings, and takes about two minutes once you have your Nintendo Account password ready.
- Transfers from Go to Home are permanent and one-way — you cannot send Pokémon back to Go once they arrive in Home.
- The free version of Pokémon Home holds 30 Pokémon; a paid subscription ($2.99 per month) holds up to 6,000 and unlocks other features like trading and battling online.
Step-by-step: Linking your accounts
Open Pokémon Go on your phone and tap your profile icon in the bottom right corner. Scroll down to the settings gear icon and tap it. Look for "Pokémon Home" in the settings menu — it appears near the bottom, below other account options like "Niantic" and "Google Play."
Tap "Pokémon Home." The app will ask you to sign in with your Nintendo Account. If you do not have one, you will see a link to create one; creating an account takes about two minutes and requires only an email address and password. Once you sign in, Pokémon Go will ask for permission to connect to Pokémon Home. Tap "Authorize" or "Allow" to complete the link. You will see a confirmation message, and the connection is active when ready.
How to transfer Pokémon from Go to Home
Once your accounts are linked, open Pokémon Go and tap your profile icon again. Scroll down and tap "Pokémon Home." You will see a list of Pokémon in your Go collection that can be transferred. Select the Pokémon you want to move — you can tap individual Pokémon or use a "Select Multiple" option if your version of the app includes it.
Tap "Send to Pokémon Home" or a similar button (the exact wording varies by app version). The app will ask you to confirm the transfer. Once you confirm, the Pokémon disappears from Pokémon Go and appears in your Pokémon Home box within a few seconds. The transfer is when ready and permanent; you cannot undo it or send the Pokémon back to Go.
Why you might want to transfer Pokémon
Pokémon Home is a storage system designed to hold Pokémon you catch across multiple games and apps. If you play Pokémon Sword, Shield, Scarlet, or Violet on a Nintendo Switch, you can move Pokémon from Home into those games. Pokémon Go has a 500-Pokémon storage limit (expandable to 3,500 with paid storage), so transferring older or duplicate Pokémon to Home frees up space in Go without losing them entirely.
Home also lets you trade Pokémon with other players online and battle in ranked competitions, features that Pokémon Go does not offer. If you are serious about competitive play or want to organize a large collection, Home becomes useful once you have caught enough Pokémon to fill your Go storage.
What happens to Pokémon after transfer
Once a Pokémon arrives in Pokémon Home, it stays there unless you move it to another game. If you have a Nintendo Switch and own Pokémon Sword, Shield, Scarlet, or Violet, you can move the Pokémon from Home into that game. Not every Pokémon can move into every game — some games have a limited Pokédex and will not accept certain species, even if they are in Home.
Pokémon Home does not delete Pokémon or cause them to expire. They remain in your Home storage indefinitely, taking up one of your 30 (free) or 6,000 (paid) slots. You can organize them into boxes, mark them as favorites, and search by type, level, or other traits.
Troubleshooting common connection problems
If Pokémon Go will not connect to Pokémon Home, first check that you are using the correct Nintendo Account password. If you have forgotten it, visit accounts.nintendo.com, click "Forgot Password," and follow the email link to reset it. Make sure you are signing in with the same Nintendo Account every time — using different accounts will create separate Home boxes that cannot see each other.
If the connection fails after you tap "Authorize," try closing both apps completely and reopening Pokémon Go. Sometimes the authorization does not register until you restart. If the problem persists, uninstall Pokémon Home (if you have it on your phone) and reinstall it, then try linking again from within Pokémon Go. Clearing the cache in your phone's app settings can also help, though this will not delete any data.
Free versus paid Pokémon Home
The free version of Pokémon Home lets you store 30 Pokémon, trade with other players once per day, and access basic features. The paid subscription ($2.99 per month, $4.99 per three months, or $14.99 per year) increases storage to 6,000 Pokémon, removes the daily trade limit, and unlocks online battle features. You do not need the paid version to transfer Pokémon from Go to Home — the free version works fine for that purpose alone.
If you are only using Home as a storage backup for Pokémon Go, the free tier is sufficient. If you also play Switch games and want to move large numbers of Pokémon between them, or if you want to trade and battle online, the paid subscription becomes more useful.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I transfer Pokémon back from Pokémon Home to Pokémon Go?
No. Transfers from Go to Home are permanent and one-way. Once a Pokémon leaves Go, it cannot return. You can move it from Home to a Switch game if you own one, but not back to Go.
Do I need a Nintendo Switch to use Pokémon Home?
No. Pokémon Home works on phones and computers as a standalone app. You only need a Switch if you want to move Pokémon from Home into Pokémon Sword, Shield, Scarlet, or Violet. For storage and trading alone, a phone or computer is enough.
What if I do not have a Nintendo Account?
Create one for free at accounts.nintendo.com. You need only an email address and a password. The account takes about two minutes to set up and does not require a credit card unless you buy something later.
Will transferring Pokémon delete them from my Pokémon Go account?
Yes. When you transfer a Pokémon to Home, it leaves your Go collection when ready. It does not disappear — it moves to Home — but it no longer appears in Pokémon Go.
Can I link multiple Pokémon Go accounts to one Pokémon Home account?
No. Each Pokémon Home account can link to only one Pokémon Go account. If you have multiple Go accounts, you will need separate Nintendo Accounts and separate Home accounts for each one.