Can't open Pokemon TCG Pocket packs? This might be why

M Alzamora Published 20/01/2025

Some Pokemon TCG Pocket players are running into a specific issue that is keeping them from opening packs. Here’s what we know about it, and the easy steps you can take to fix it if you’re so affected.

For many Pokemon TCG Pocket players, the name of the game is card collecting. The popular new mobile game contains a number of new chase cards and art designs with low pull rates, keeping those who want them coming back for more every day. In addition to potentially receiving new cards, players also get shinedust for duplicates and pack points just for opening a pack.

Though generally unnoticed, pack points may be causing problems for players trying to open new packs. Here’s what is going on for these players, as well as how to use all those saved up points.

Players can’t open Pokemon TCG Pocket packs after hitting pack point limit

Users have reported hitting a wall after accumulating 2,500 pack points and became unable to open any more packs in Pokemon TCG Pocket given this apparent pack point limit.

Across social media, multiple users have shared that Pokemon TCG Pocket has stopped them from opening more packs after hitting the maximum stored amount of pack points. They then had to spend that currency before being able to pull any more cards. While not the biggest deal in the grand scheme, this can be annoying for players who were saving up and now have to decide what to spend those saved pack points on.

Pack points are one of the few currencies in the game that players can accumulate in-game just by playing regularly. Each pack opening awards five pack points that can later be used to collect any card from the booster set. Rare cards cost a lot of pack points in Pokemon TCG Pocket, but with two, three, or more pack pulls a day, the points slowly but surely start to add up.

Fortunately, only the most dedicated of players are likely to have to worry about hitting a pack point limit for now. Most operating on the game’s free model likely have under or around 1,000 points even if they’ve been saving them up, with premium members being closer to 1,500. Even when including pack hourglasses, most users aren’t yet reporting the game stopping them from opening packs. Hitting 2,500 pack points would require one to spend a meaningful amount of real-world currency for more pulls.

How to use pack points in Pokemon TCG Pocket

Players can exchange the in-game currency of pack points for desired Pokemon TCG Pocket cards in the Pack Point Exchange, and it can be difficult to decide which cards to pull.

As mentioned above, each booster pack opened grants players five points to save up and spend on any card within the set. This distinction is especially important after the release of Mythical Island and prior to set A2. Pack points don’t transfer between sets, so ripping Mythical Island  packs won’t help players get cards from Genetic Apex, and vice versa.

The rarity of the desired card determines its cost. Notably, the amount of pack points needed to unlock a card jumps massively between four diamond and two star. Though there are a few exceptions, here’s how much players can expect to spend based on card rarity:

• One diamond: 35
• Two diamond: 70
• Three diamond: 150
• One star: 400
• Four diamond: 500
• Two star: 1,250
• Three star: 1,500
• Crown: 2,500

To access the Pack Point Exchange, players need to first click on the desired booster pack. On the bottom right, there is an icon of a tearing pack with a number of points underneath it. Selecting that brings players to the Pack Point Exchange, where they can see all the available cards.

With trading coming to Pokemon TCG Pocket at the end of January, a limited number of cards should then be easier to obtain. But for players who only want to open packs, they’ll either eventually get that crown gold Pikachu through random chance, or be forced into spending their pack points savings on it.

M Alzamora

About M Alzamora

There are few things that writer M Alzamora loves more in life than Pokemon. And there are even fewer things that she loves more than her favorite Pokemon, Eevee. But M’s appreciation for gaming isn’t just limited to Nintendo’s famous pocket monsters. She’s interested in every type of game across every genre of gaming, and she has the credentials to prove it. M’s work has also been seen on Working Classicists and gaming sites.

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