Ethan Crossfield 
Players who brought Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen to Nintendo Switch will have a new reason to revisit Kanto in October. The games are scheduled to receive Pokemon Home compatibility, allowing Pokemon caught in the remakes to move into supported modern titles. The transfer system is one-way, so players should plan carefully before sending valuable Pokemon out of the games.
What changes in October
The Pokemon Company has announced that Pokemon Home support for FireRed and LeafGreen will begin in October. Once connected, players can move Pokemon caught in the games into the subscription service and then use them in compatible games, including Pokemon Legends: Z-A and Pokemon Champions. Pokemon Home functions as a bridge between supported Pokemon titles, making this update particularly useful for players building a collection across multiple games.
FireRed and LeafGreen originally launched on Game Boy Advance in 2004. Their Nintendo Switch versions arrived in early 2026 as part of the franchise's 30th-anniversary celebration, returning players to the Kanto region first introduced in the 1996 Game Boy releases.
Who should prepare for the transfer
The update will matter most to players who raised specific Pokemon in FireRed or LeafGreen and want to continue using them elsewhere. It also gives collectors another route toward the National Pokedex, which currently contains 1,025 Pokemon. Players who skipped Pokemon Let's Go, Pikachu!, Pokemon Let's Go, Eevee!, or do not rely on Pokemon GO may find the added path especially useful.
There is an important limitation: Pokemon moved from FireRed and LeafGreen into Pokemon Home cannot be returned to those games. Anyone planning a transfer should therefore finish any in-game activities that require a particular Pokemon before using the service.
What else is coming to Pokemon Home
Players who complete the FireRed and LeafGreen Pokedex will receive Celebi after connecting the games to Pokemon Home. The reward does not require them to transfer the Pokemon they caught. Instead, Home will scan the completed Pokedex and grant the gift automatically. Celebi's rarity during the Game Boy Advance era makes the reward a notable incentive for completionists.
The same update is also set to expand Pokemon Home's wider functionality. Pokemon GO transfers involving Pokemon caught in Safari Balls will be recognized by Home as Strange Balls. In addition, paid subscribers will see their storage capacity increase from 6,000 to 9,000 Pokemon. The source also notes that this extra space could become useful with Pokemon Winds and Waves planned for 2027.
What players should know
- FireRed and LeafGreen Pokemon Home compatibility is scheduled to start in October.
- Transfers from the games are one-way and cannot be reversed.
- A completed Pokedex automatically qualifies for a Celebi gift after the games are connected.
- Transferred Pokemon can be used in compatible games such as Pokemon Legends: Z-A and Pokemon Champions.
- Paid Pokemon Home storage will increase to 9,000 slots, up from 6,000.
Expert View
This is a meaningful quality-of-life update for collectors, especially because the Celebi reward is tied to Pokedex completion rather than requiring players to give up their captured Pokemon. The one-way transfer rule is the main point of caution, but the broader compatibility should make FireRed and LeafGreen collections more useful over time. Players who are not interested in cross-game collecting can safely treat the update as optional.
