How to Add & Play With Friends in Pokemon Champions

TL;DR

• Pokemon Champions has its own in-game friend list — it does not use your Nintendo Switch friend list.
• To add a friend, go to the sub-menu → press X to find your User ID, then share it or enter theirs.
• Friend battles happen through Private Battles — one player creates a room, others join with the Room ID.
• Private Battle rooms support up to 12 players at once.
• Local wireless play is supported but requires an internet connection — it is not fully offline.
• You cannot queue into Ranked or Casual Doubles with a friend as a pre-made pair at launch.
• Private Battles currently use the standard Ranked ruleset — deep custom rules are not yet available.

One of the first things players want to do in Pokemon Champions is settle the score with a friend. Whether it is proving who has the better team or practicing before hitting ranked, private matches with friends are a core part of the experience.

The good news is that setting it up is straightforward. The tricky part is that the game does not make it obvious from the main menu, and the friend system works differently than most Switch games. This guide walks you through everything — adding friends, creating rooms, joining battles, and what the current limits are.

You can download Pokemon Champions for free from the Nintendo eShop and find all gameplay details on the official Pokemon Champions website.

Important: Pokemon Champions Has Its Own Friend List

This is the first thing to understand. Pokemon Champions does not use your Nintendo Switch friend list or your Nintendo Account friends.

The game has its own separate in-game friend system. You need to add friends directly inside Pokemon Champions using the game’s User ID system. Your Switch friends will not automatically appear in the game.

This means even if someone is already your Switch friend, you both still need to add each other in-game before you can send a Private Battle invitation through the friends list. You can also skip this entirely and just share a Room ID directly — more on that below.

How to Add Friends in Pokemon Champions

Adding a friend takes less than a minute once you know where to look.

Step 1: Find your User ID

From the main home screen, open the sub-menu. On Nintendo Switch, press the X button. Your User ID will be displayed here. It is a unique code that identifies your account in the game.

Step 2: Share your ID or enter theirs

Copy your User ID and send it to your friend through Discord, a group chat, or any messaging app you use. Ask them to send you theirs as well if you both want to add each other.

Step 3: Send the friend request

Once you have the other player’s User ID, enter it in the friends section of the sub-menu and send the request. They will need to accept it on their end.

Step 4: Confirm the connection

Once accepted, that player appears in your in-game friends list. You are now ready to set up a Private Battle.

Quick tip: Share your User ID before you both launch the game. Switching between the game and a messaging app once you are in sessions is slightly awkward, so sorting the ID exchange ahead of time saves hassle.

How to Set Up a Private Battle With Friends

Private Battles are the dedicated mode for playing with friends. Here is the full step-by-step process from the Nintendo support page.

To create a room:

1. From the main menu, select Battle
2. Select Private Battles
3. If it is your first time, read the overview and press A to continue
4. Select Make a Room
5. Your room is now created

To invite friends to your room:

Once inside the lobby, you have two ways to get people in:

• Press the − button and select Invite Friends, then select each in-game friend you want to invite directly
• Press the X button to display the Room ID, then share that code with anyone you want to join — they do not need to be on your friends list

To join someone else’s room:

1. Select Battle
2. Select Private Battles
3. Select Join a Room
4. Enter the Room ID that was shared with you

Once everyone is in the lobby, matches are created and played according to the room’s rules.

Room size: Private Battle rooms support up to 12 players at once. This makes them useful for small group tournaments, community events, or squad sessions beyond just 1v1.

Do You Need to Be Friends In-Game to Join a Private Battle?

No. You do not need to be on someone’s in-game friends list to join their Private Battle room.

Anyone who has the Room ID can join. This is useful for playing with people outside your friends list — for example, members of a Discord server, a competitive group, or a content creator’s community event.

The in-game friends list is mainly useful for sending direct invitations from within the lobby without needing to paste a Room ID separately.

Local Wireless Play in Pokemon Champions

Pokemon Champions does support local wireless play — but with an important catch.

The Nintendo eShop listing confirms that local wireless Private Battles are available, but the game requires an active internet connection at all times. This means you cannot play in a completely offline environment, even if both consoles are physically in the same room.

In practice, local wireless play means two Switch consoles on the same network, connecting through the game’s online system rather than a true peer-to-peer local link. Each player needs their own Switch console and their own copy of the game. If your venue has internet access, this works fine. If you are somewhere with no connection at all, you cannot play.

This is also relevant for VGC events: the official Play! Pokemon handbook has confirmed that online communication will be the only connectivity method for Pokemon Champions at in-person Championship-level tournaments. Local-level events like League Challenges and League Cups will continue using Pokemon Scarlet and Violet until September 2026.

What Battle Rules Apply in Private Battles?

This is where the current limitations of Private Battles are worth knowing upfront.

At launch, Private Battles do not have deep custom rule options. Matches use the standard Ranked Battles ruleset. You can choose which Regulation Set applies to the match, but you cannot freely change format rules the way you could in Scarlet and Violet’s private room system — where players could set up 6v6 matches, specific item bans, or level caps.

The three available Battle Modes in Pokemon Champions are:

Ranked Battles — Official matches that affect your ranking. You earn VP from these. Rules are strict and set by the game.

Casual Battles — Unranked matches against random players. Lower pressure, no rank changes. No VP earned.

Private Battles — Friend matches using the Room ID system. Up to 12 players. Currently uses the Ranked ruleset. No VP earned from Private Battles.

The lack of custom rule flexibility is one of the more common criticisms at launch. The Pokemon Company has suggested that more regulation set options may become available in Private Battles through future updates, so this may improve over time.

For competitive practice, Private Battles are still useful for running the current regulation format against teammates. They are just not the sandbox experience that some veterans of past games were expecting.

Can You Queue Into Ranked or Casual Battles With a Friend?

Not at launch. This is a notable limitation.

In Doubles Casual and Ranked modes, you are matched with and against random players. There is currently no way to queue into matchmaking as a pre-made pair with a friend and take on other players together. The Doubles queue treats all players as individuals.

If you want to play alongside a specific friend in the same battle, Private Battles are your only option at this stage. The Pokemon Company may address co-op queue options in a future update, but nothing has been confirmed.

Tips for Playing With Friends Smoothly

A few things that make friend sessions much easier.

Sort User IDs before you both open the game. Exchanging IDs while one of you is in a match or loading screen is frustrating. Share codes over Discord or text first.

Use the Room ID system for groups. If you are playing with more than two people, it is faster to post a Room ID in a group chat than to send individual in-game invitations one by one.

Agree on rules before creating the room. Since Private Battles use the Ranked ruleset at launch, make sure everyone in your group knows what format you are playing — Singles or Doubles, which regulation set — before anyone clicks into a lobby.

Private Battles do not earn VP. If you need to grind VP for recruiting or training Pokemon, you need to play Ranked Battles. Casual Battles also do not award VP. Keep this in mind if you are planning a long friend session. Check our guide on how to get Victory Points in Pokemon Champions to understand the best earning methods.

Trial Pokemon cannot be used in battles. If you are in your free 7-day trial period with a recruited Pokemon, you can battle with it in all modes. However, remember that trial Pokemon cannot be trained — so builds may feel incomplete until permanently recruited.

All Battle Modes at a Glance

What to Do Before Your First Friend Battle

If this is your first time setting up a match, run through this checklist first.

• Find your User ID (sub-menu → X button on Switch)
• Share it with friends and get theirs
• Add each other in-game and confirm the request is accepted
• Make sure your team is built and saved to a Battle Team slot
• Agree on which format you are playing — Singles or Doubles
• Decide who creates the room
• Share the Room ID once the lobby is open

Having a team ready matters. If you have not built yours yet, start with our guide on which Pokemon to recruit first in Pokemon Champions and then read up on how to train EVs and change Nature to get your team competitive before you step in against a friend.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Pokemon Champions use Nintendo Switch Online for friend battles? No. Pokemon Champions does not require a Nintendo Switch Online membership for online play. You only need a Nintendo Account and an internet connection.

Can I see my Switch friends inside Pokemon Champions? No. The game has its own friend list. Your Nintendo Switch friends do not carry over. You need to add people separately using User IDs inside the game.

Can I watch my friends battle each other? There is no spectator mode confirmed at launch. Private Battles are limited to active participants in the room.

Is there a way to do 6v6 battles with friends? Not currently. Pokemon Champions uses a pick-4-from-6 format in battles. There is no 6v6 option in Private Battles at launch.

What happens if someone drops from a Private Battle room? The remaining players in the lobby can continue with new matches. Disconnections during a battle follow the standard forfeit rules.

Final Thoughts

Adding friends and battling them in Pokemon Champions is simple once you know the User ID system exists. The key step most players miss is that the game has its own friend list — completely separate from Nintendo Switch. Once you exchange IDs and add each other, Private Battle rooms take less than a minute to set up.

The current limits — no co-op ranked queue, no deep custom rules, no offline play — are real. But for 1v1 or group sessions to test teams and settle friendly rivalries, Private Battles work well right now.

Also check out our full breakdown of what’s included in the Pokemon Champions paid Membership if you are wondering whether any of the paid options improve the multiplayer experience, and see the full Pokemon list to plan which Pokemon you want on your team before your next friend match.