Pokemon Sword and Shield - Pokemon Trading Guide

How to Trade Pokemon in Sword and Shield

Pokemon Sword and Shield allows players to trade pokemon with each other through a local or online connection. These trades can be in the form of a Link Trade or a Surprise Trade. To get started, one must at least be able to reach Professor Magnolia’s house and win their second battle with Hop.

Walkthrough Part 1: Postwick – Wedgehurst

Y-Comm

After obtaining a Letter of Endorsement and a Dynamax Band, the player’s Y-Comm will be enabled. The Y-Comm is similar to the player search system or PSS, which first appeared in Pokemon X and Y.

Y-Comm Stamps

If you leave the Y-Comm menu and keep your local connection turned on, you will be able to see stamps on the lower left side of your screen. These stamps highlight your recent achievements in-game such as capturing a new pokemon in the wild. When it comes to trading, there will be another player stamp shown on your screen, indicating he/she is open for a pokemon trade.

Link Trade

Link Trade involves trading pokemon with two Nintendo Switch handhelds near to each other.

Link Trade – Local Connection

1. Player A and Player B should place their respective main characters in the same area. For example, the Pokemon Center located at Wedgehurst.
2. Open their Y-Comm and enable local connection by pressing the Y button.
3. Choose Link Trade in their respective Y-Comm menus. Then select: “Start Trading” and the two handhelds will search.
4. After a period of searching, both parties will receive a pop up reading, “A trade partner has been found! Time for a Trade! Press the A button to continue”
5. Both parties select the pokemon that they will send from their respective pokemon box. Then, they choose “Trade It”.
6. Once the image of the pokemon they will receive is shown, choose “Trade It” again.
7. A trading animation will show. Players will then need to press A to confirm the acquisition of the new pokemon. Both parties can also send their league cards if they want to.
8. To quit trading, press B.

If there are other devices detected, you can trade locally through “Set Link Code”. Trading locally through link codes will connect trading partners faster. This is not needed, however, if there are only two handhelds detected.

Link Trade – Online Connection

To trade online, repeat the same procedure but choose the “Set Link Code” option since you will be trading to a specific user.

Surprise Trade (Local and Online)

Surprise Trades features a random trading partner both local and online. However, players still have the liberty to choose the pokemon that they will trade. To perform a surprise trade:

1. Setup a local or online connection again.
2. Pick the “Surprise Trade” option and select the pokemon you want to trade.
3. While the local or online surprise trading process is working in the background, the player can run around and play the game.
4. A prompt will then show up indicating a successful surprise trade.
5. Return to the Y-Comm. Press A and a trading animation will show up, indicating a successful trade.

Trading with NPCs (Offline)

Non-player pokemon traders found all across the Galar region can also be traded with to obtain certain types of pokemon. Some of these include region variants that are not native to the Galar region for players to complete their pokedex.

Pokemon Trader Locations

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