Trade Evolution Pokemon Go: How to Save Thousands of Candy

You've probably been there. You finally caught a high-IV Machoke or a decent Haunter, and you’re staring at that "100 Candy" requirement to evolve it into a heavy hitter. It feels like a massive grind. But honestly, if you're actually spending that candy, you might be playing harder, not smarter. Trade evolution Pokemon Go mechanics are one of those "hidden in plain sight" features that seasoned players use to bypass the grind entirely, yet casual players often ignore because the trading screen looks a bit intimidating.

Basically, for a specific list of species, trading the Pokemon to a friend reduces the evolution cost from 100 (or sometimes 200) candy all the way down to zero. Zero. It’s a literal gift from Niantic. But there’s a catch—and it’s a big one. Once you trade a Pokemon in this game, it’s stuck. You can’t trade it back. That means if you want a free Machamp, your friend has to send you their Machoke, and you have to send them yours. You’re trading for the species, not for the specific one you caught, unless you’re willing to gamble on IV rerolls.

Why Trade Evolution Pokemon Go Works This Way

The mechanic was introduced back in early 2020. Before that, everyone had to cough up the candy. Niantic wanted to pay homage to the original Game Boy games where certain Pokemon like Gengar or Alakazam only evolved when they were sent over a Link Cable. In Pokemon Go, they translated this by making the evolution "free" after a trade.

It’s a smart system. It encourages local community meetups. It makes those random catches of Kanto or Unova starters actually valuable even if they have terrible stats. Why? Because when you trade, the IVs (Individual Values) are completely randomized. That 0-star Geodude you caught at the park could potentially become a 100% IV (Hundo) Golem in your friend's inventory for the low price of 100 Stardust.

The "Must-Trade" List

Not every Pokemon qualifies for this. If you try to trade a Magikarp, you're still spending 400 candy to get that Gyarados. No shortcuts there. The trade evolution discount applies to a very specific set of creatures across different generations.

In the Kanto region, the big four are Kadabra, Machoke, Graveler, and Haunter. These are the classics. If you receive one of these in a trade, the button to evolve them into Alakazam, Machamp, Golem, or Gengar will change from 100 candy to a purple "0" icon.

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Moving into the Unova region, the list gets a bit more diverse. Boldore, Gurdurr, Karrablast, and Shelmet are the primary targets here. Gurdurr is especially important because Conkeldurr is a top-tier Fighting-type attacker, often rivaling or exceeding Machamp in total damage output. If you’re trying to build a raid team of six Conkeldurrs, you’d need 1,200 Timburr candy without trading. With trading? You just need the candy to get Timburr to Gurdurr (25 candy), and the rest is free.

More recently, Phantump and Pumpkaboo from the Kalos region joined the club. Trevenant is a monster in the Great League and Ultra League PVP circuits. If you’re a competitive player, you absolutely should be trading Phantumps to get those evolutions done without nuking your candy reserves.

The Strategy of the IV Reroll

Trading isn't just about the candy discount; it's about the gamble. In Pokemon Go, IVs change when a Pokemon is traded. This is why "Mirror Trading" is the gold standard for trade evolution Pokemon Go fans.

Let's say you and a friend both went to a Machop nest. You both have ten Machokes with bad stats. You trade them one-for-one.

1. You spend a tiny bit of Stardust.
2. The IVs shift.
3. You might get a Lucky Pokemon.

Lucky Pokemon are the holy grail of this process. They have a minimum IV floor of 12/12/12 and cost 50% less Stardust to power up. If you manage to get a Lucky trade on a Gurdurr, you’ve hit the jackpot. You get a free evolution into Conkeldurr and a massive discount on the Stardust needed to get it to Level 40 or 50.

It’s important to remember that the level of the Pokemon stays (mostly) the same. If you trade a Level 30 Machoke, it stays Level 30. This allows you to build a high-level raid team almost instantly. I’ve seen players go from having zero viable counters for a Tier 5 raid to having a full squad of Golems and Machamps in thirty minutes just by trading with a local veteran who had "trash" spawns sitting in their storage.

Misconceptions About Trade Costs

A common fear is that trading is expensive. People see the "1,000,000 Stardust" warnings in screenshots and get scared off.

Listen. Trading a regular, non-shiny, non-legendary Pokemon you both already have in your Pokedex costs 100 Stardust. That’s it. One catch. One berry. If you’re "Good Friends" (one day of interaction), it’s basically pocket change.

The price only spikes if you’re trading for something you haven’t caught yet or if it’s a Shiny/Legendary. For trade evolution Pokemon Go species, you should both catch the base form first. Get that Pokedex entry. Once it’s registered, the trade cost drops to the minimum.

Technical Limitations to Keep in Mind

You have to be close. Pokemon Go still enforces a 100-meter trade distance. Unless there is a special global event—which happens maybe twice a year—you can’t trade with your buddy across the country. This means you need a local "trading partner."

Also, the "One-Way Street" rule is absolute.

"Once a Pokemon is traded, it can never be traded again."

This is Niantic's way of preventing people from passing a single high-IV Pokemon around an entire neighborhood. It means you can't "borrow" a Gengar to evolve it and then give it back. If your friend gives you a Haunter, that Haunter is yours forever. Or, more likely, it’s yours until you turn it into candy after it evolves.

The Shelmet and Karrablast Dynamic

There’s a quirky lore-based detail with Shelmet and Karrablast. In the main series games, they only evolved if they were traded for each other. In Pokemon Go, that restriction isn't strictly enforced for the evolution to trigger, but it’s how most players do it for flavor. You can trade a Shelmet for a Pidgey, and the Shelmet will still be eligible for a free evolution.

However, since both Accelgor and Escavalier have niches in certain PVP cups, mirror trading them is still the best move to try and hunt for those specific PVP IV spreads (low attack, high defense/stamina).

Step-by-Step Optimization for Raids

If you are a solo player looking to break into the raiding scene, the trade evolution Pokemon Go list is your fastest ticket to relevance.

First, find a local Discord or Campfire group. Look for players who are "grinding" or "catching everything." Most high-level players have hundreds of Timburr or Machop candy and usually just delete their catches. Ask them to save their trade-evos for you.

Second, don’t evolve them before you trade. This is a common mistake. If you evolve your Machop into a Machoke and then trade it, the trade evolution discount still applies. But if you evolve it all the way to Machamp and then trade it... well, you can't. And the recipient doesn't get any benefit other than the Pokemon itself.

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Third, check the "Search" bar in your Pokemon storage. You can type evolve&trade to see which of your current Pokemon will benefit from being traded. It’s a quick way to filter your inventory before meeting up with a friend.

What About the "Special Trade" Cap?

The good news is that these aren't "Special Trades." You can do up to 100 regular trades per day. This means you can sit down at a coffee shop and swap 100 Haunters if you really want to. The only thing that stops you is your Stardust balance and your patience for the trade animation, which, let's be honest, is still a bit too long in 2026.

Actionable Next Steps

Stop wasting candy. Seriously.

1. Audit your storage: Use the search term tradeevolve or search for the specific families (Machop, Geodude, Gastly, Abra, Timburr, Roggenrola, Shelmet, Karrablast, Phantump, Pumpkaboo).
2. Tag them: Create a tag called "To Trade" and dump all these species into it.
3. Find a partner: Use the Niantic Campfire map to find a local "Flare" or meetup. Most players are happy to mirror trade because it gives them a chance at a Lucky Pokemon too.
4. Prioritize Gurdurr and Phantump: These are currently the most "meta" relevant. A free Conkeldurr is a massive asset for gyms and raids, and a free Trevenant is a staple for Great League.
5. Wait for 2x Transfer Candy events: If you evolve these for free and then don't need them, wait for a Spotlight Hour that offers double transfer candy. You'll get your free evolution XP, then get extra candy back when you clear them out.

By focusing on these specific species, you effectively double or triple the value of every Poke Ball you throw. You aren't just catching a Pokemon; you're catching a shortcut.