Can you trade Legendaries in Pokémon Go?

Trainers who want to be the very best will need to complete the Pokédex—including Legendary creatures—and in Pokémon Go, one way to do this is by trading.

Sometimes there are Pokémon that aren’t available to catch or were released as part of exclusive events. If you missed these opportunities then trading can be the easiest way to get those much-needed Pokédex entries, but when it comes to Legendaries things might get a little more confusing. To ease your mind, here is everything you need to know about trading Legendary Pokémon in Pokémon Go, and if it is possible.

Trading Legendary Pokémon in Pokémon Go

Yes, you can trade Legendary Pokémon in Pokémon Go, however, they aren’t classified as your standard trade. Trading these powerful beasts requires Special Trades, which are slightly more difficult to do.

Special Trades function similarly to regular trades but they require more Stardust to complete and are subject to limitations that the standard version doesn’t have. This means you can only perform a limited number of Special Trades each day.

If you’re attempting to complete your Pokédex with trading then you’ll probably need to spend multiple days using Special Trades. Not only are Legendary Pokémon considered Special Trades, but other rare catches also have a similar class.

Here is a list of all the Pokémon considered Special Trades:

• Legendary Pokémon 
• Pokémon not in your Pokédex
• Shiny Pokémon
• Ultra Beasts
• Pokémon with forms not in your Pokédex
• Unique Pokémon with special features

The good news is any Pokémon that don’t fall into any of these categories can be traded normally with the regular trade system. This is the only way you can trade Legendary Pokémon in Pokémon Go right now, so we suggest you start saving your Stardust right now; you’re going to need quite a lot to get this big job done.