What does Spotlight Hour do in Pokemon Go?

Pokémon Go, since its inception back in 2016, has received numerous updates that bring new content to the game. One such update added “Spotlight Hours,” which were hour-long events dedicated to a single Pokémon. Today, we’ll answer the question: What does Spotlight Hour do in Pokémon Go?

Pokémon Go’s Spotlight Hours Explained

During February 2020, right before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Niantic updated Pokémon Go with a brand-new patch that introduced Spotlight Hours, a new weekly event. Starting in February, on every Tuesday of the month, there would be a Spotlight Hour featuring a single Pokémon.

Spotlight Hours would literally run for an hour, usually from 6 to 7 PM in your local time zone. During the event, the featured Pokémon would show up in the wild at a significantly increased rate, so it was a great way to catch certain Pokémon.

That’s not all—every featured Pokémon you caught would award additional Stardust and double experience points, and if you traded in a featured Pokémon, you would receive more Candy than usual.

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Last but definitely not least, if the featured Pokémon has a shiny form, it is very likely that you’ll be able to encounter the shiny version during the Spotlight Hour. This is the main reason why Spotlight Hours are so significant to the hardcore players of Pokémon Go, as it’s one of the best times to go shiny hunting.

As we mentioned, Spotlight Hours occur every Tuesday, so make sure not to miss out. Very rarely, Niantic will cancel a Spotlight Hour due to unforeseen events, but they’re usually always happening. If a Spotlight Hour does get canceled, expect to hear about it from Niantic’s social media outlets.

If you’re ever curious about what the Spotlight Hour schedule is going to be like, check out the official Pokémon Go news website or the Pokémon Go wiki.

That concludes our guide on what the Spotlight Hour does in Pokémon Go. If you have any other questions about the Spotlight Hour, let us know in the comments below!