Pokémon GO will feature 4 Spotlight Hours in October 2021, which take place every Tuesday from 6pm to 7pm local time. During Spotlight Hours, a specific Pokémon species is featured and will spawn constantly throughout the hour, along with a special bonus that changes every week. Spotlight Hours are a fantastic way to hunt shiny Pokémon, stock up on candy and gain extra XP or stardust. The Pokémon featured change every month, and Pokémon Go‘s October Spotlight Hours are ones you won’t want to miss!
Spotlight Hour: October 5, 2021 – Drifloon
Drifloon is the featured Pokémon for October 5, 2021’s Spotlight Hour in Pokémon GO. Drifloon is a Ghost/Flying-type Pokémon from Generation 4 that evolves into Drifblim at the cost of 50 candies, which retains the same type.
The bonus for Drifloon’s Spotlight Hour is double XP for evolving Pokémon during the hour. This is a great chance to activate a mass-evolve Pokémon with low candy requirements, such as Caterpie and Pidgey, saved up from the previous month. Combining a Lucky Egg with this Spotlight Hour will result in a 4x total XP boost and is an easy way to gain a huge chunk of XP all at once. Drifloon can be shiny, however, the odds are not boosted.
Spotlight Hour: October 12, 2021 – Gastly
Gastly is the featured Pokémon for October 12, 2021’s Spotlight Hour in Pokémon Go. Gastly is a Ghost/Poison-type Pokémon from Generation 1 that evolves into Haunter, and then Gengar, who all share the same type. Haunter costs 25 candy to evolve into, while Gengar costs 100; alternatively, Gengar can evolve for free if it has been traded.
The bonus for Gastly’s Spotlight hour is a 2x bonus to the amount of Stardust earned for catching Pokémon. This Spotlight Hour is a great way to earn extra Stardust needed for powering up Pokémon, learning new moves and changing forms. Gengar is a solid Ghost and Poison-type attacker, especially when Mega Evolved, so, we highly recommend catching as many Gastly as you can and using a Pinap each time. Gastly can be shiny, however, the odds are not boosted.
Spotlight Hour: October 19, 2021 – Gothita
Gothita is the featured Pokémon for October 19, 2021’s Spotlight Hour in Pokémon Go. Gothita is a pure Psychic-type Pokémon from Generation 5 that evolves into Gothorita, and then Gothitelle, who are both pure-Psychic types. Gothorita costs 25 candy to evolve into, while Gothitelle costs 100.
The bonus for Gothita’s Spotlight Hour is double XP for catching Pokémon. Combine an incense with a Lucky Egg and you can earn a good chunk of XP during this hour! Make sure to check out our guide on how to throw Nice Throws and make earning XP during this spotlight hour a breeze. Gothita cannot be shiny.
Spotlight Hour: October 26, 2021 – Murkrow
Murkrow is the featured Pokémon for October 26, 2021’s Spotlight Hour in Pokémon Go. Murkrow is a Dark/Flying-type Pokémon from Generation 2 that evolves into Honchkrow from Generation 4. Honchkrow costs 100 candy and the use of a Sinnoh Stone. 4 Sinnoh Stones will be awarded to players during Duskull Community Day on the 9th October 2021, so no need to fret if you’re running low at the beginning of the month.
The bonus for Murkrow’s Spotlight Hour is double XP for evolving Pokémon, which is the same bonus as Drifloon’s first week. Saving up Gastly from October 12’s Spotlight Hour would be ideal for taking advantage of this bonus. Gastly can be evolved into Haunter for 25 candy, you can then trade that haunter with a friend using the same method and evolve it into Gengar for free. That’s two evolutions for only 25 candy! Combine this with a Lucky Egg and this method will earn you 4,000 XP per Gastly and 25 candy. Murkrow can be shiny, however, the odds are not boosted.
Check out our full list of currently working Pokémon GO promo codes to stock up on items and prepare for October’s Spotlight Hours.
Pokémon GO is available for free on Android and iOS devices.
