If you’ve been playing Pokémon GO for a while, you probably have a love-hate relationship with Tuesday evenings. It's 6:00 p.m. local time. Your phone vibrates. Suddenly, the map is a sea of the exact same Pokémon. For sixty minutes, it's a frantic dash to catch, evolve, or transfer as many as humanly possible before the clock strikes seven and the world goes back to normal.
Honestly, it’s easy to feel burnt out on these. Some weeks the featured Pokémon is basically a common weed you've seen a thousand times. But if you’re ignoring Pokémon GO Spotlight Hours entirely, you are leaving massive amounts of Stardust and XP on the table. In 2026, with the level caps and the grind for XL candy being what they are, these windows are less about the "rare" catches and more about the raw resources.
What’s Actually Happening in January 2026
Niantic hasn't reinvented the wheel this month, but the lineup for January is surprisingly focused on utility. We've got a mix of heavy-hitters for resources and a few niche PvP picks.
Take a look at what’s hitting your map this month:
- January 6: Barboach. This little mud-fish might seem underwhelming, but the bonus is 2x Catch XP. If you’re still grinding toward Level 50, this is your bread and butter. Drop two Lucky Eggs to cover the hour and hit those Excellent throws.
- January 13: Mareep. The sheep returns. This one carries 2x Evolution XP. It’s the perfect time to burn through that backlog of random Pidgeys or Caterpies you've been hoarding in your storage.
- January 20: Hatenna. This is the one most people are circling on their calendars. Not only is Hatenna a relatively newer face compared to the others, but the bonus is 2x Transfer Candy. If your storage is screaming for help after the holiday events, wait until this window to clear it out.
- January 27: Foongus. Save your Star Pieces for this. Foongus already gives a base Stardust bonus when caught, and with the 2x Catch Stardust event bonus, you’re looking at a gold mine.
The Stardust Strategy Nobody Talks About
Everyone knows Stardust is the most valuable currency in the game. You need it for everything—powering up Raid counters, double-moving your Great League team, or just purifying Shadows. But most players just catch whatever pops up and hope for the best.
The January 27 Foongus hour is different. Because Foongus is a "boosted stardust" Pokémon (it normally gives 500 per catch instead of the standard 100), the 2x bonus applies to that higher base. If you run a Star Piece, you're looking at a staggering amount of dust per catch. We are talking potentially 150,000 to 200,000 Stardust in a single hour if you're using the fast-catch trick and playing in a lure-heavy area.
Don't just walk around your neighborhood. Go to a park with at least four or five stops you can lure up. The goal isn't "catching a cool Pokémon"—it's vacuuming up resources.
The Hatenna Dilemma and Storage Management
Transfer Candy bonuses are kinda rare these days, or at least they feel like they are when you actually need them. On January 20, the Hatenna hour is your chance to dump those legendary Raid bosses you’ve been holding onto.
You’ve probably got twenty Thundurus or Genesect taking up space from the January Raid Hours. Don’t transfer them now. Wait for the 20th. Getting two candies instead of one for a Legendary might not sound like much, but when you multiply that by fifty or sixty transfers, it saves you weeks of walking your buddy.
Also, Hatenna itself is worth catching because Hatterene has some niche uses in PvE and just looks cool. Plus, it's a newer shiny hunt for many.
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Tips for the "Pro" Experience
If you want to maximize these sixty minutes, you have to be prepared. There is nothing worse than hitting "Storage Full" at 6:15 p.m. while you're in the middle of a lure cluster.
- Clear 200 slots. At minimum. You don't want to stop to appraise. Just catch.
- Stock up on Great Balls. Poké Balls often fail on higher-level spawns, wasting precious seconds. For Foongus especially, use Great or Ultra Balls to ensure one-hit catches.
- The Fast Catch Trick. If you aren't using the "skip animation" glitch, you're only catching half as many Pokémon as you could be. Hold the berry menu, swipe it slightly to the side, throw the ball, and then exit the encounter. It's a game-changer.
- Tagging system. Use the tagging feature before the 2x Transfer hour. Tag everything you want to delete with "Dump" so you can just select all and hit transfer the second 6:00 p.m. hits.
Is the Shiny Rate Boosted?
This is the biggest misconception in the community. Let's be clear: Spotlight Hour does NOT increase the shiny rate. The rate remains the standard 1 in 512 (unless the specific species has a permanently boosted rate, like Scyther or Pineco). The reason people seem to find more shinies during these hours is simply volume. If you see 300 Barboach in an hour, your odds of hitting that 1-in-512 roll are much higher than on a normal day where you might only see three.
So, if you’re hunting a pink Mareep or a blue-nosed Barboach, your best bet is to move fast and tap everything. Don't waste time catching the non-shinies if you only care about the color palette—though, honestly, you're wasting the XP bonus if you do that.
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Looking Ahead
Once January wraps up, the focus shifts toward the GO Tour: Kalos prep in February. The resources you gather during these Tuesday sessions are exactly what you'll need to power up your teams for the bigger global events.
Don't ignore the Foongus hour on the 27th. It is arguably the most important hour of the month for anyone looking to build a competitive roster. Clean your storage now, mark your calendar for 6:00 p.m. local time, and make sure your portable charger is actually charged this time.
Check your item bag today and make sure you have at least two Star Pieces and two Lucky Eggs ready. If you're low, start holding gyms now to farm the daily 50 coins so you can buy a box before the Barboach window. Those XP gains on the 6th are the easiest way to jumpstart your 2026 progress.