Pokémon Go celebrates 10th anniversary with over $9bn in revenue

• Pokémon Go has earned more than $9 billion in 10 years.
• A pioneer of the location-based genre, it is the fifth highest-grossing mobile game of the past decade.

Geolocation giant Pokémon Go has generated over $9 billion in gross player spending in 10 years.

Scopely’s walking-based AR game celebrated its 10th anniversary on July 6th, marking a full decade since Pokémon trainers first took to the streets capturing Pikachu, Charmander and other fan-favourite species in the real world.

A decade on since Pokémon Go's release, and following Scopely's $3.5bn acquisition of Niantic's games team in 2025, the Niantic name is being rebranded to Scopely Explore.

According to AppMagic estimates, those 10 years have seen almost $9.1bn generated globally between Google Play and the App Store. This revenue total doesn’t include any additional earnings from partnerships, deals, alternative app stores or the Pokémon Go web shop, where players can find better offers on their in-game purchases.

Spending between Google Play and App Store users has been almost equal over the decade, at $4.4bn versus $4.6bn respectively. Apple owners have therefore accounted for 51% of spending between the major stores.

During those 10 years, Pokémon Go has ranked as the fifth most-lucrative game on the App Store and Google Play, beating the likes of Clash of Clans, Genshin Impact, Coin Master and Monopoly Go. Since 2016, the only titles to outearn it are Honor of Kings, PUBG Mobile, Candy Crush Saga and Roblox.

10 years of Pokémon Go

Over 10 years, lifetime player spending in Pokémon Go has been led by the US. Players in the country have contributed $3.5bn between the major stores, equivalent to 39% of global revenue. Japan ranks second at $2.7bn or 30%, far ahead of third-place Germany’s $451.2 million, just 5%.

These rankings have held firm even in year 10, with the US continuing to lead fresh spending since July 6th, 2025. The country contributed a further $261.7m to the lifetime total, ahead of Japan’s $184.1m and Germany’s $31.6m.

It’s a notable departure from the overarching standard for Pokémon games on mobile, with Japan leading spending across TCG Pocket, Pokémon Masters, Pokémon Unite and Pokémon Sleep.

Pokémon Go ambassador Jupiter Hadley told PocketGamer.biz that in her experience, Go players are most active when it comes to the game’s own systems and meta, as opposed to nostalgia for the broader brand.

After surpassing $1bn in its first 365 days, Pokémon Go’s revenue fell in year two but sharply turned around in year three. It climbed year-over-year into the pandemic, monetising through Pokémon Go Coins and especially Remote Raid Tickets during the lockdowns, enabling players to team up against Legendary opponents from home.

This helped revenue climb to a record $1.4bn in year five, spanning July 6th, 2020 to July 5th, 2021. The period marked a surge of 51% year-over-year. It also represented a 36% increase over the game’s prior record in year one.

After its unprecedented success in year five, Pokemon Go has spent the second half of its current lifespan in annual decline. Estimates suggest spending has fallen year-over-year for five consecutive years, down to $6.8bn in year 10.

However, while spending appears to have fallen post-pandemic according to estimates, Niantic claimed the title had actually grown year-over-year for three consecutive years as of Pokémon Go’s acquisition by Scopely in 2025. While year five may still remain the game’s overall peak, this would indicate the fall in spending between major stores represents a shift to the web shop rather than an ongoing decrease in interest and monetisation.

As of March 2025, Niantic claimed Pokémon Go continued to reach 20m weekly active players with approximately 10m logging in every single day.

Now, the title enters its second decade on mobile. Shortly after the anniversary, on July 11th and 12th, Pokémon Go Fest 2026 will invite millions of players to participate in a worldwide event featuring Mewtwo and Zeraora - reaching fans new and old. It marks the first free Go Fest: Global, marking the special occasion that is 10 years of Pokémon Go.