Pokémon Bank Service Ends February 2027, Transfer to Pokémon HOME Required
This closure ends a transfer pipeline that has connected Pokémon games from the Game Boy Advance era to modern Switch titles, making the February 2027 deadline the final window for players to preserve decades-old Pokémon collections.
Key Facts
- Pokémon Bank ends service on February 25, 2027, at 10:00 p.m. EST (February 26, 2027, at 12:00 p.m. JST).
- Pokémon from generations 3 through 7 will no longer be transferable to Pokémon HOME after the closure.
- The Switch versions of Pokémon FireRed Version and LeafGreen Version get Pokémon HOME compatibility in October 2026.
- Players who complete the Pokédex in FireRed or LeafGreen on Switch will receive the mythical Pokémon Celebi upon linking to Pokémon HOME.
- The Pokémon HOME Premium Plan storage cap increases from 6,000 to 9,000 Pokémon, with no change to the subscription price.
Reporting from 3 sources: Anime News Network, Game Spark, Inside.
The Pokémon Company International announced on Thursday that the Pokémon Bank app for Nintendo 3DS will end service on February 25, 2027, at 10:00 p.m. EST, which is February 26, 2027, at 12:00 p.m. JST. The closure comes two days before the franchise's annual Pokémon Day. Players have until that date to transfer their Pokémon from Pokémon Bank to Pokémon HOME, the cloud storage service for Switch, iOS, and Android. After the app closes, Pokémon from generations 3 through 7, including Pokémon Ruby/Sapphire and Pokémon Sun/Moon, will no longer be transferable to Pokémon HOME or Nintendo Switch titles. The announcement also revealed that the Nintendo Switch versions of Pokémon FireRed Version and Pokémon LeafGreen Version will gain Pokémon HOME compatibility in October, allowing players to transfer Pokémon from those games to the service, though not back. Players who complete the Pokédex in either game will receive the mythical Pokémon Celebi upon linking to Pokémon HOME. The Pokémon HOME Premium Plan will also increase its storage cap from 6,000 to 9,000 Pokémon, with no change to the subscription price.
Pokémon Bank launched in Japan in December 2013, but was temporarily removed from the eShop due to high traffic that strained Nintendo's servers. It relaunched in January 2014 in Japan and arrived in North America and Europe the following month. The service allowed players to store up to 3,000 Pokémon across 100 boxes, with an annual fee of US$4.99. It supported transfers from Pokémon Black/White, Black 2/White 2, X/Y, Sun/Moon, and Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon via the Internet, and included search functions and the ability to move many Pokémon at once without two game systems.
Nintendo shut down the 3DS and Wii U eShop in March 2023, which ended new downloads of Pokémon Bank, though the service was made free for those who had already downloaded it. The upcoming closure also ends the transfer function from Pokémon Bank to Pokémon HOME. The Switch versions of Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen, originally released for Game Boy Advance in January 2004, launched digitally on February 27, 2026, and will get HOME compatibility in October. Pokémon HOME, which launched in February 2020, also accepts Pokémon from Pokémon GO, Let's Go, Pikachu!/Eevee!, Sword/Shield, Scarlet/Violet, Legends: Arceus, and Legends: Z-A.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 3 cited sources below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.