Niantic has announced details for the January 4, 2026, Pokémon GO community Day, offering players a chance to bolster their collections with the water-type Pokémon Piplup. The event arrives as Niantic navigates recent changes to the game’s monetization strategy and workforce following a sale of key assets. This classic Community Day will feature increased Piplup spawns alongside event-exclusive bonuses and research opportunities for players of all levels.
Pokémon GO players will soon have the opportunity to reclaim previously unavailable Pokémon as Niantic details its upcoming “Roads of Valor” season. The announcement comes amid recent news of monetization changes and layoffs at Niantic following the sale of the popular augmented reality game and other titles.
The classic Community Day event, scheduled for Sunday, January 4, 2026, from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM local time, will feature Piplup, the Penguin Pokémon. This event offers a chance for players to encounter and capture increased numbers of Piplup in the wild.
¡Piplup, the Pokémon Pingüino, será el destacado durante el Día de la Comunidad clásico de enero!
More Piplup will appear in the wild.*
Featured Attack
Table of Contents
Evolve Prinplup (the evolution of Piplup) before January 4, 2026, at 9:00 PM local time to obtain an Empoleon that knows the Charged Attack Hydro Cannon.
Hydro Cannon
- Trainer Battles: 80 damage
- Gyms and Raids: 90 damage
Community Day Special Research
For $1.99 (or the equivalent in your local currency), players can access the exclusive Piplup Community Day Special Research. Completing this research will unlock additional rewards, including:
- Three encounters with Piplup featuring special backgrounds
- Additional encounters with Piplup
- 1 Premium Battle Pass
- 1 Rare Candy XL
¡Y muchas cosas más!
- Keep an eye out for when tickets for the Special Research become available for purchase.
- Remember that you can now buy and gift tickets to friends who have reached Great Friendship level or higher.
- To gift a ticket, tap on the Special Research ticket in the in-game shop and then select the “Gift” button instead of “Buy.”**
Event Bonuses
- Egg hatching distance will be reduced to one-quarter when Eggs are placed in Incubators during the event.
- Incense (excluding Daily Adventure Incense) activated during the event will last for three hours.
- Take a few snapshots during Community Day for a surprise!
- Lure Modules will last for one hour and may attract the featured Pokémon.*
Lure Module Bonus
On January 4, 2026, from 2:00 PM to 9:00 PM local time, Piplup is likely to appear more frequently at PokéStops with active Normal Lure Modules. Piplup attracted by Normal Lure Modules will also have an increased chance of being Shiny and featuring a special background. Players may also encounter the featured Pokémon even after the event concludes!
Field Research
January’s Community Day-themed Field Research will be available. Catching Piplup will reward players with Stardust, Super Balls, additional Piplup encounters, and more. With a little luck, you might even find Field Research culminating in encounters with Piplup featuring a special background!
Pokémon GO Online Store: Ultra Special Community Day Box
The Ultra Special Community Day Box will be available for $1.99 (or the equivalent in your local currency) and includes an event ticket and five Ultra Balls!
This online store offer will be available starting January 1, 2026, at 10:00 AM local time.
Check it out at the Pokémon GO online store!
Don’t forget, you can find all currently working promotional codes here. If you’re interested, you can check out our complete coverage of GO here. Finally, here’s our complete and updated guide to Pokémon GO.
