How to Turn Adventure Sync On or Off in Pokémon GO

To turn Adventure Sync on or off in Pokémon GO, tap the Poké Ball to open the main menu, tap Settings, tap General, and then tap Adventure Sync. A check mark means it is on. The first time you turn it on, the game asks for permission to read your Apple Health (iPhone) or Google Fit or Health Connect (Android) data. You need to be Trainer Level 5 or higher to use it.

The steps are the same on iPhone and Android. What differs is the set of phone permissions the feature needs afterward, and those are covered below. The in-game steps follow Niantic’s own Adventure Sync help article. Menu names can shift a little between game updates.

What Adventure Sync does

Adventure Sync is an optional mode that records the distance you travel even when Pokémon GO is closed. Instead of keeping the game open, it reads the activity data your phone already collects in Apple Health or Google Fit. Here is what you get from it:

• Distance while the app is closed. Kilometers you walk with the phone in your pocket still count.
• Egg hatching and Buddy Candy. That distance goes toward Eggs in incubators and toward Candy from your Buddy Pokémon. For a refresher, read about putting an Egg in an incubator.
• A weekly fitness report. Each week the game shows your activity statistics and gives bonus items when you reach weekly goals. You can check your current stats on your Trainer Profile.
• Optional push notifications when your Buddy finds Candy or an Egg is about to hatch. Gift alerts are a separate setting, and you can turn off gift notifications in Pokémon GO too.
• A home screen widget that shows your Egg and Buddy progress.

Before you start

• Trainer Level 5 or higher. Niantic says Adventure Sync is only available from Level 5. Below that, you will not be able to use it.
• A phone that can track steps. The phone needs the sensors that record distance and steps. Niantic notes that an Android phone that is not compatible with Google Fit cannot use the fitness tracking part of Adventure Sync.
• Apple Health, Google Fit, or Health Connect. Adventure Sync reads from Apple Health on iPhone. On Android, Niantic names Google Fit, and newer phones use Health Connect. That app has to be set up and recording your activity.
• Willingness to share location in the background. The feature needs location access even when the game is closed. If you are not comfortable with that, leave Adventure Sync off.

If you wear a Fitbit and want its activity in Apple Health, you can sync a Fitbit with an iPhone through the optional Apple Health connection in Google Health.

How to turn Adventure Sync on

Turning this on gives Pokémon GO access to your fitness data and to your location while the app is closed. Decide whether you are happy with that before you accept the prompts in step 5.

1. Open Pokémon GO and tap the Poké Ball at the bottom of the map. This is the Main Menu button.
2. Tap Settings (the gear at the top right).
3. Tap General.
4. Tap Adventure Sync so it is checked.
5. When asked, allow Pokémon GO to read your Apple Health or Google Fit data, and allow location access. On Android you may also be asked which Google account to use.

After step 5 the option stays checked, and distance you cover with the game closed starts to count. It will not show up right away. Niantic says syncing with Apple Health or Google Fit can be delayed by up to several hours.

Set the phone permissions Adventure Sync needs

The in-game switch is only half of the setup. If the phone-level permissions are missing, the option can be checked while little or no distance is recorded.

On iPhone

1. Open the iPhone Settings app and tap Privacy & Security, then Location Services. Apple describes this screen in its guide to turning Location Services on or off for specific apps.
2. Tap Pokémon GO and choose Always. This lets the app use your location when it is in the background.
3. Open the Health app, tap Sources, and check that Pokémon GO is listed under Apps as a connected source.

On some iPhones, the first prompt only offers Allow While Using App. Niantic says to pick that, and then choose Change to Always Allow when iOS asks again later. iOS may repeat this reminder from time to time. Niantic warns that Adventure Sync is turned off unless you keep choosing the always-allow option on those prompts.

On Android

1. Open the phone’s Settings app, tap Apps, and tap Pokémon GO.
2. Tap Permissions, then Location, and make sure it is allowed. Niantic asks for location access even when the app is closed. Google’s guide to changing app permissions on Android calls that option All the time.
3. Check the health connection. In the Google Fit app, go to its settings and look under Manage connected applications. If your phone uses Health Connect, check its App permissions screen instead, as described below.

Google is phasing out the Google Fit APIs and moving Android health data to Health Connect. Niantic’s help page still names Google Fit, but if Pokémon GO asks for Health Connect access, allow it. On Android 14 and later, open Settings > Security and privacy > Privacy controls > Health Connect, tap App permissions, and make sure Pokémon GO is allowed. Google covers this on its Health Connect help page. Samsung and other phone makers may use different menu names.

How to turn Adventure Sync off

1. Tap the Poké Ball, then Settings, then General.
2. Tap Adventure Sync so the check mark disappears.

The game stops counting distance while it is closed. Distance you walk with the app open still counts, so Eggs and Buddy Candy keep working the way they did before.

Turn it off inside the game, not only in your phone settings. Niantic notes that on Android 10, switching off the phone’s Activity Recognition permission does not fully disable Adventure Sync. The in-game check box is the control that does.

Unchecking the option does not remove the permissions you granted earlier. If you also want to take those back, set Pokémon GO’s location permission to something other than Always on the same Location Services or Permissions screen described above. To undo all of this later, check Adventure Sync again and accept the prompts.

For more location privacy inside the game, you can also stop sharing recently caught Pokémon with friends.

The General screen also holds the setting that lets you allow or block battle challenges from friends.

How to confirm Adventure Sync is working

• Look at the setting. Niantic’s test is simple. Open Settings > General and see whether Adventure Sync is checked.
• Check your health app first. Take a short walk and confirm Apple Health or Google Fit recorded it. If the health app has nothing, Pokémon GO has nothing to import.
• Give it time. Because syncing can lag by several hours, compare your Egg or Buddy distance later in the day, not right after a walk.
• Watch for the weekly report. A weekly fitness summary in the game means distance is arriving.

If Adventure Sync isn’t counting your steps

Niantic’s Adventure Sync troubleshooting page lists the usual causes. Work through them in this order.

• Location isn’t set to Always. On iPhone, open Settings > Privacy & Security > Location Services > Pokémon GO and choose Always. On Android, check the Location permission for the app.
• The game isn’t connected to your health app. In Apple Health, check that Pokémon GO is listed under Sources. In Google Fit, check Manage connected applications. In Health Connect, check App permissions.
• Battery saving mode is on. Niantic says your phone’s battery saving mode can disable the sensors Adventure Sync needs, and asks you to turn it off while you use the feature. On iPhone that mode is called Low Power Mode. Niantic adds that any battery-saving option inside Apple Health or Google Fit can interfere as well. The game’s own Battery Saver setting is a separate thing.
• Only part of your walk shows up. This is usually the sync delay. Wait a few hours, then close and reopen the game. Niantic says restarting the app may help.
• The setting switched itself off. Re-check it after an app reinstall, after moving to a new phone, and after refreshing game data in Pokémon GO, since any of these can leave Adventure Sync unchecked.
• The steps were typed in by hand. Fitness data you enter manually in Apple Health or Google Fit does not count toward Adventure Sync.
• You keep getting location prompts on iPhone. That is expected until you choose the always-allow option. Pick it each time iOS asks.

If none of that helps, Niantic asks players to contact its team through in-app support so it can look at the specific account and device.

Add the Adventure Sync widget

A widget is a small panel on your home screen that shows information without opening the app. Once Adventure Sync is on, the Pokémon GO widget shows progress toward hatching the Eggs you are incubating and earning Buddy Candy. Niantic notes that recorded distance can take up to an hour to reach the widget.

• iPhone: Touch and hold an empty area of the Home Screen until the apps jiggle, tap Edit in the upper-left corner, tap Add Widget, pick the Pokémon GO widget, tap Add Widget, and then tap Done. Older iOS versions show an Add button in that corner instead. Apple keeps the current steps in its guide on how to add and edit widgets on your iPhone.
• Android: Touch and hold an empty space on a Home screen, tap Widgets, touch and hold the Pokémon GO widget, slide it where you want it, and lift your finger. Google covers this in Add apps, shortcuts & widgets to your Home screens.

Frequently asked questions

Does Adventure Sync drain my battery?

Niantic says Adventure Sync lets you earn Buddy Candy and hatch Eggs without significantly affecting battery life. It reads fitness data your phone already collects instead of keeping the game open. If battery life is the concern, you can also turn off AR in Pokémon GO, since AR keeps the camera running.

Why can’t I find Adventure Sync in Settings?

Adventure Sync is only available to players at Trainer Level 5 or higher. Keep playing until you reach Level 5, then check Settings > General again. If you are already past Level 5, update the game from the App Store or Google Play and look again, because the Settings menu has been rearranged over the years.

Does Adventure Sync use a lot of data?

Niantic does not publish a data figure for Adventure Sync. The feature passes distance totals to the game instead of loading the live map, so it should be a small part of the game’s overall use. For the bigger picture, read about how much data Pokémon GO uses.

Will distance count twice if I play on two phones?

No. Niantic says that even if you play on multiple devices, your distance will not be double-counted or overwritten.

Does Adventure Sync work with other Niantic games?

Yes. Niantic says that as long as your accounts share a login method, your distance traveled matches across its games. If two games report different distances, you get credit for the higher one. Its example is Pikmin Bloom crediting you with the distance Pokémon GO tracked.

Does Adventure Sync track my location all the time?

It requires the always-allow location permission so it can work while the app is closed, and it reads distance from Apple Health or Google Fit. If you would rather not grant that, leave Adventure Sync unchecked. The game still counts distance while it is open on screen.

Do steps I add manually count?

No. Niantic states that fitness data entered by hand in Apple Health or Google Fit does not count toward Adventure Sync progress. Only activity your phone records is used.

Next step

With Adventure Sync on, the distance only helps if something is there to receive it. Make sure an Egg is sitting in an incubator and a Buddy Pokémon is set, then check your Trainer Profile at the end of the week to see what your walking earned.