Last updated: September 30, 2026
Pokémon GO Spotlight Hour runs every Thursday from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. local time. For that hour, one featured Pokémon appears much more often in the wild, and one bonus is active, such as 2× Catch XP or 2× Transfer Candy.
October has five Spotlight Hours: Seedot, Elgyem, Stufful, Morelull, and Gastly. This page lists each one, explains what each bonus actually covers, and links to a dedicated guide for every week.
This page is updated each month.
October 2026 Pokémon GO Spotlight Hour Schedule
| Date | Featured Pokémon | Bonus | Guide |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday, October 1 | Seedot | 2× Catch XP | Seedot Spotlight Hour |
| Thursday, October 8 | Elgyem | 2× Catch Candy | Elgyem Spotlight Hour |
| Thursday, October 15 | Stufful | 2× Transfer Candy | Stufful Spotlight Hour |
| Thursday, October 22 | Morelull | 2× Catch Stardust | Morelull Spotlight Hour |
| Thursday, October 29 | Gastly | 2× Evolution XP | Gastly Spotlight Hour |
All five run from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. local time, and all five featured Pokémon can be Shiny.
Check the official events calendar or the in-game Today View before each Thursday. Upcoming events are subject to change.
How Spotlight Hour Works: Confirmed Details
These points come from the official Daily Discoveries update that brought Spotlight Hour back.
- When: Thursdays, 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. local time, as part of “GO Battle Thursdays and Spotlight Hour.”
- Local time: the hour starts at 6:00 p.m. wherever you are, so it reaches each time zone at a different moment.
- The bonus applies to every Pokémon, not just the featured one. Official listings word bonuses as “2× XP for catching Pokémon” or “2× Candy for transferring Pokémon.” During a 2× Catch XP hour, catching a Pidgey counts just as much as catching the featured Pokémon.
- The schedule can change. The update says Daily Discoveries “may change” as the format is adjusted.
The five bonus types
Spotlight Hours rotate between a small set of bonuses. Each one rewards a different activity:
| Bonus | What it doubles | What to do during the hour |
|---|---|---|
| 2× Catch XP | XP from every catch | Catch everything, aim for Excellent throws, use a Lucky Egg |
| 2× Catch Candy | Candy from every catch | Catch the featured Pokémon, use Pinap Berries |
| 2× Transfer Candy | Candy from transferring | Clear out your storage in bulk |
| 2× Catch Stardust | Stardust from every catch | Catch everything, use a Star Piece |
| 2× Evolution XP | XP from evolving | Mass evolve with a Lucky Egg active |
What the official listings don’t say
- How much more often the featured Pokémon spawns.
- Whether Shiny odds are boosted. Listings only say the featured Pokémon can be Shiny.
- Whether Spotlight Hour runs during big global event weeks. The official June and July list skipped Thursday, July 9.
What the Community Has Documented
- Spotlight Hour’s history: the community wiki on Fandom notes that weekly Spotlight Hours ran on Tuesdays for years, were retired in March 2026, and returned on Thursdays starting June 18, 2026. Older guides that say “every Tuesday” are out of date.
- Event-week gaps: Leek Duck reports that Daily Discoveries aren’t available during global GO Fest, GO Wild Area, and GO Tour weeks, which would explain the missing July 9 Spotlight Hour.
- Spawn density: players widely report that the featured Pokémon makes up most wild spawns during the hour, but the exact rate isn’t published.
Practical Application: Preparing for Any Spotlight Hour
The bonus matters more than the featured Pokémon. Plan the hour around what the bonus doubles.
Example: on October 15 (2× Transfer Candy), you spend the week before keeping everything you catch instead of transferring as you go. At 6:00 p.m., you filter your storage, transfer a few hundred duplicates, and earn twice the Candy for each one. Then you spend the rest of the hour catching Stufful. Without the bonus, those same transfers would have earned half as much Candy.
A few rules follow from this:
- Save the right items for the right week. Lucky Eggs for Catch XP and Evolution XP, Star Pieces for Catch Stardust, Pinap Berries for Catch Candy.
- Stock up on Poké Balls before 6:00 p.m. An hour of dense spawns can use 100 or more.
- Pick a spot with several spawn points. Parks and busy streets usually beat a single PokéStop.
- Don’t stop at the featured Pokémon. For catch bonuses, every catch counts.
- Check the time zone if you’re traveling. The hour follows your local time.
Past Spotlight Hours
July 2026 (official)
| Date | Pokémon | Bonus |
|---|---|---|
| Thursday, July 30 | Bidoof | 2× Transfer Candy |
| Thursday, July 23 | Eevee | 2× Catch Candy |
| Thursday, July 16 | Zubat | 2× Catch XP |
| Thursday, July 2 | Pidgey | 2× Evolution XP |
June 2026 (official)
| Date | Pokémon | Bonus |
|---|---|---|
| Thursday, June 25 | Wingull | 2× Catch Stardust |
| Thursday, June 18 | Swinub | 2× Transfer Candy |
Tracking Your Spotlight Hour Catches
One Spotlight Hour can add 50 or more of the same species to your storage. After that, it’s hard to tell which one had the best IVs, which was the Shiny, and which ones are safe to transfer next week.
A tracker like GoDex helps sort that out. Scan a catch screenshot to read CP and IVs, tag Shinies and keepers, and note which Pokémon you’re saving for an evolution or a trade.
Frequently Asked Questions
What day is Spotlight Hour in Pokémon GO? Thursday, from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. local time. It moved from Tuesday when it returned in June 2026.
Does the Spotlight Hour bonus only apply to the featured Pokémon? No. Official listings word the bonus as applying to catching, transferring, or evolving any Pokémon.
Can the featured Pokémon be Shiny? Yes, all five October Spotlight Pokémon can be Shiny. The listings don’t say whether Shiny odds are boosted.
Is there a Spotlight Hour every week? Most weeks. The official summer list skipped one Thursday, so check the schedule each month.
Key Takeaways
- Spotlight Hour is Thursdays, 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. local time.
- The bonus applies to every Pokémon, not only the featured one.
- Plan around the bonus: Lucky Egg for XP weeks, Star Piece for Stardust, a full storage for Transfer Candy.
- Check the official calendar each week, since the schedule can change.
We do our best to keep these guides accurate, but Pokémon GO mechanics change often. If you spot a mistake or something that's out of date, please send us feedback — we'll fix it.
About GoDex
A free companion app for tracking your collection, scanning IVs from screenshots, and checking PVP rankings. Available on iOS and Android.
