You’ve got the Candy. You’ve got the stardust. You tap that evolve button on your favorite Galarian Farfetch'd, expecting a Sirfetch'd, and... nothing. The button is greyed out. Or maybe it says you need to win ten raids first. It's annoying. Pokemon Go buddy evolutions are one of those mechanics that Niantic added to make the game feel more "immersive," but honestly, it usually just feels like a chore if you don't know the shortcuts.
Gone are the days when every Pokemon just needed 25, 50, or 100 Candy to hit its final form. Now, we’re dealing with "Adventure Together" requirements. It's a system designed to make you actually bond with your Pokemon, but let's be real—most of us just want that Pokedex entry or a Master League powerhouse as fast as humanly possible.
The game doesn't always do a great job of explaining the nuances here. For instance, did you know that for some of these, the Pokemon doesn't even need to be your active buddy when you complete the task? For others, it absolutely does. If you mess that up, you’re just spinning your wheels.
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Why the Buddy System Changed Evolution Forever
Back in 2016, life was simple. You caught Pidgeys, you ground them into Candy, you evolved. Done. But as Niantic started rolling out Gen 4, Gen 6, and various Regional Forms, they realized they needed a way to mimic the complex evolution methods from the main series games (like the Nintendo Switch titles). In the main games, some Pokemon evolve via high friendship or by leveling up in specific locations. In a location-based mobile game, that translates to walking, catching, and battling while your target Pokemon is tethered to your profile.
It’s about effort.
Take Umbreon and Espeon. They were the pioneers of this. To get them, you have to walk 10km with Eevee. But there’s a catch that still trips people up: you have to actually earn two Candies during that walk. If you swap Eevee out at 9.9km, you’re resetting the vibe. And you must evolve it while it is still your buddy. If you swap it out and then hit evolve, you might end up with a random Flareon, and that’s a tragedy if you were aiming for a Great League Umbreon.
The "Adventure Together" Checklist
The most common hurdle players face is the specific "Adventure Together" task. This shows up right under the evolve button. If you don't see a task, the Pokemon evolves normally. If you do, you’ve got work to do.
Galarian Slowpoke is a prime example of how specific this gets. To get Galarian Slowbro, you need to catch 30 Poison-type Pokemon while Slowpoke is your buddy. Want Galarian Slowking instead? Switch that requirement to 30 Psychic-types. You don't have to keep the Slowpoke on the map with a Poffin or berries; it just has to be "equipped" as your buddy in the bottom left corner of your screen.
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Then you have the combat-heavy ones. Galarian Farfetch'd requires 10 Excellent Throws. This is actually one of the easier ones if you’re targeting legendary raid bosses or large Pokemon like Wailmer or Snorlax. But Galarian Yamask? That one forces you to win 10 raids. That is a massive time (and potentially money) sink if you aren't sitting on a pile of Premium Battle Passes.
The Weird Ones: Hisuian and Beyond
With the introduction of Hisuian forms, things got even weirder. Hisuian Qwilfish needs you to win 10 raids to become Overqwil. Hisuian Sliggoo is a weather-based nightmare; you need it to be raining in-game or be standing near a Rainy Lure Module to get that Hisuian Goodra.
Don't even get me started on Pawmo. To get Pawmot, you have to walk 25km with Pawmo as your buddy. No shortcuts. No battles. Just pure, unadulterated cardio. It’s a direct reference to the "Let's Go" mechanic in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, and it’s just as tedious in the real world.
Common Mistakes That Kill Your Progress
People fail at Pokemon Go buddy evolutions mostly because they assume the game is tracking everything in the background regardless of status. It isn't.
- The Swap-Out Trap: If a requirement says "Walk 20km," and you walk 19km, then swap to a different buddy to get some Mega Energy for your Charizard, that 19km is safe. But if you try to evolve the first Pokemon while it isn't your buddy, the button often won't work or the progress won't "register" for the evolution trigger.
- The "Earn 10 Candies" Myth: For Pokemon like Woobat, you need to walk 1km. That's it. But for others, the game specifically tracks "Candies earned." If you use Rare Candy, it does not count toward "walking" candy requirements. You have to put in the steps.
- The Day/Night Split: This is the Eevee/Rockruff special. Even if you’ve finished the buddy tasks, the game checks the local time. If the screen is dark, it’s Night. If it’s bright, it’s Day. If you evolve Rockruff into Lycanroc (Midday form) at 6:59 PM, and the game flips to Night at 7:00 PM, you missed your window.
How to Optimize the Grind
If you’re trying to knock out multiple buddy evolutions at once, you need a strategy. You can swap your buddy up to 20 times a day. Use that.
If you have a Galarian Farfetch'd and you’re about to do a Tier 5 Raid, make sure it’s your buddy before the catch screen. Legendary Pokemon have huge catch circles, making Excellent Throws much easier to land. You can knock out those 10 throws in a single encounter if you're good at "setting the circle."
For the "Win 10 Raids" requirement on Galarian Yamask or Qwilfish, don't waste your time on big bosses if you're in a rush. Solo those 1-star raids. A Magikarp raid counts just as much as a Mega Rayquaza raid for evolution purposes. It's faster, cheaper, and gets the job done.
Primeape and the Ghost-Type Grind
Annihilape is one of the most relevant meta Pokemon right now, and its evolution from Primeape is a classic buddy task. You have to defeat 30 Ghost or Psychic-type Pokemon while Primeape is your buddy.
Here’s the pro tip: You don't have to win the battle. You just have to defeat the specific Pokemon. If you have a friend willing to go into a Trainer Battle with a team of three low-CP Gastlys, you can burn through this in about five minutes. Just beat the three Gastlys, quit the match, and repeat ten times. It saves you hours of hunting for Ghost-types in the wild.
The Pancham and Inkay Anomalies
While not strictly "buddy" tasks in the traditional sense, they often get lumped in because they require extra steps. Pancham requires you to catch 32 Dark-type Pokemon while it’s your buddy. It's a grind, especially outside of specific events like the Halloween or Rocket-themed weeks.
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Inkay is the outlier. No buddy task. No walking. You just have to turn your phone upside down. Seriously. The gyroscope in your phone triggers the evolution. If your phone’s auto-rotate is locked, it might not work. It's a quirky nod to the 3DS hardware, but it catches people off guard every single time.
Is the "Buddy Ribbon" Required?
A huge misconception is that you need to reach "Best Buddy" status (the four hearts and the little ribbon) to evolve these Pokemon.
You do not.
The "Best Buddy" status gives you a CP boost and a cute ribbon, but it has zero impact on evolution. You only need to complete the specific text requirement shown on the Pokemon's individual page. If it says "Walk 10km," you just need 10km. You don't need to feed it berries, play with it, or take snapshots unless you're trying to level up the friendship for other reasons.
Actionable Steps for Success
To handle Pokemon Go buddy evolutions without losing your mind, follow this workflow:
- Audit your inventory: Look for any Galarian or Hisuian forms and check their "Adventure Together" requirement immediately.
- Prioritize the "Passive" tasks: If a Pokemon requires walking (like Pawmo or Eevee), set it as your buddy during your commute or daily exercise. Let the distance accumulate in the background.
- Batch the "Active" tasks: Save your "Win Raids" or "Defeat X types" tasks for Raid Hours or Spotlight Hours when those specific types are spawning in abundance.
- Use the "Friend Cheese": For any evolution requiring you to defeat certain types (like Annihilape), use the Trainer Battle method with a friend rather than relying on RNG wild spawns.
- Check the button color: Never press evolve until the silhouette of the evolution appears on the button. If it’s still a question mark or a greyed-out icon, you haven't met the criteria, and you'll likely waste your resources.
The buddy system is a bit of a grind, but it’s the only way to get some of the strongest attackers in the game. Keep an eye on the specific requirements, don't forget to actually set the buddy before you start the task, and you’ll have that Annihilape or Sirfetch'd in no time.