Pokémon GO Halloween Sinistea 2026 appears wearing a bow for the first time during Halloween 2026. The bow-wearing costume makes its debut in one-star raids on October 27 at 10am local time. It also remains a featured one-star raid boss during Halloween Part II, and Niantic has confirmed Shiny encounters are possible.
If you want the bow-wearing version for your collection, start by checking raids rather than assuming ordinary Sinistea in your storage will change costume. There are also two Sinistea forms to consider if you hope to evolve one into Polteageist. Here is what the official announcement establishes before the event and which details still need in-game confirmation.
How to get Pokémon GO Halloween Sinistea 2026 wearing a bow
To find Pokémon GO Halloween Sinistea 2026, look for one-star raids at Gyms during the Halloween event. Sinistea wearing a bow is named in Niantic’s raid list alongside Pikachu wearing a hat and capelet. Defeat the raid boss to reach the Pokémon encounter and try to catch it. The announcement doesn’t guarantee that Sinistea will appear at every Gym or that its costume will be rewarded by any particular Field Research task.
You can start searching from October 27 at 10am local time, when Halloween Part I begins. Both halves of the event list bow-wearing Sinistea as a one-star raid encounter. The opportunity therefore continues through Halloween Part II, ending November 5 at 8pm local time.
Halloween Sinistea raid dates and UK times
There is no separate ticket needed to access the listed Pokémon GO Halloween Sinistea 2026 raids. In the UK, both phases take place after the clocks go back on October 25, so the following times are in GMT.
How to claim the Part II Sinistea research reward
Halloween Part II brings a free, automatically completed Timed Research page for all Trainers. Open the Research menu and claim six Rare Candies plus the encounter with Sinistea wearing a bow. That encounter can be Shiny.
The research is separate from the Part I Pikachu reward and expires on Thursday, 5 November at 8pm local time. Be sure to collect the prizes before that deadline. The costume also remains available in one-star raids during Part II, so the research offers another encounter without spending a raid pass.
| Event phase | Dates in the UK | Sinistea encounter |
|---|---|---|
| Halloween Part I | October 27, 10am – November 1, 10am GMT | One-star raids |
| Halloween Part II | November 1, 10am – November 5, 8pm GMT | One-star raids |
Our Halloween Part I guide covers the opening phase, while the Part II guide details the later encounters. Pokémon GO Halloween Sinistea 2026 is unusual among the new costumes because its bow costume is listed for raids in both phases, unlike costumed Zubat, which is highlighted in wild encounters.
Can Pokémon GO Halloween Sinistea 2026 be Shiny?
Yes. Pokémon GO Halloween Sinistea 2026 is marked as Shiny eligible in the official event announcement. No exact Shiny chance has been given. Each completed raid offers a chance, but an increased rate for this particular raid has not been confirmed, and catching several ordinary versions does not guarantee a Shiny.
If your main interest is the Shiny bow costume, focus on the one-star raid boss rather than collecting ordinary Sinistea outside the event. A regular Shiny Sinistea and a Shiny wearing the 2026 bow are different collection goals. You can see all the named returning and new costumes in our Halloween costume Pokémon overview.
Sinistea Antique Form and Phony Form during Halloween
Sinistea has two forms in Pokémon GO: Phony and Antique. For regular Sinistea, the two forms have different evolution requirements: 50 Sinistea Candy for Phony and 400 for Antique. That makes checking the exact Pokémon you catch worthwhile, especially if you’re hoping to fill the corresponding Polteageist entries.
Pokémon GO Halloween Sinistea 2026 has been announced as a new costume, but Niantic’s Halloween event post doesn’t spell out the Antique Form distribution or whether every bow-wearing individual can evolve. The form and evolution button should be checked on the caught Pokémon’s own detail screen once the event begins. Our existing Polteageist Pokémon GO guide covers the species and evolution background.
Can costumed Sinistea evolve into Polteageist?
Ordinary Sinistea can evolve into Polteageist, but the new bow costume needs a separate in-game check before claiming it evolves or keeps the outfit. Costume evolution rules vary between event Pokémon. Do not spend 400 Candy expecting a costumed Antique Polteageist until the evolution preview confirms what will happen with your specific Sinistea.
It is worth keeping at least one Pokémon GO Halloween Sinistea 2026 in its original form if you collect costumes. You can decide whether to evolve duplicates once the evolution option and the final appearance are visible. The Halloween wild spawns guide covers the separate wild Pokémon pool, not guaranteed ways to obtain the bow version.
Does Trick or Treat give Sinistea encounters or Candy?
The Halloween Part I Trick or Treat mechanic can reward Sinistea Candy when you interact with spooky surprises left behind in the wild. It can also give Pikachu or Zubat Candy, encounters with event-themed Pokémon and, occasionally, Rare Candy. The wording does not confirm a bow-wearing Sinistea encounter from this mechanic, so the raid remains the verified route.
Our Trick or Treat guide goes through that interaction. For anyone planning to evolve an Antique specimen, additional Sinistea Candy could still help with the larger requirement. Meanwhile, the Halloween GO Pass unlocks improved catch Candy at Rank 10, though the announced catch bonus is not an extra guarantee of encountering this particular raid boss.
Can you get Pokémon GO Halloween Sinistea 2026 from research or the GO Pass?
Both Halloween phases feature Field Research encounters, and the GO Pass rewards include event-themed Pokémon, but Niantic has not published the full reward tables before launch. There is no confirmed research task or rank that awards Pokémon GO Halloween Sinistea 2026 in the announcements. Check the live tasks after October 27 before investing time in a purported research farming method.
For now, one-star raids remain the direct way to hunt the bow costume. Check nearby Gyms, bring a suitable team, and keep enough space for catches. Pokémon GO Halloween Sinistea 2026 is available across both event phases, giving costume collectors several days to find their preferred form and Shiny, provided the advertised raid rotation remains in place.
All Halloween 2026 Costume Pokémon
Halloween Part I: Raids and Bonuses
Official source: Pokémon GO Halloween Part I announcement.
