Getting everything in Pokemon TCG Pocket for free will take almost 2 years

One Pokemon TCG Pocket user has calculated how long it will take for free to play players to unlock everything along with other stats.

From choosing the exact pack you want, sliding your hand on the screen to tear the seal open, to seeing the cards beautifully laid out in your collection, Pokemon TCG Pocket does its job of simulating the trading card experience virtually on the go.

There’s always a sense of anticipation when you know you’re close to opening the next pack – even more so if you’re subscribed to the Premium Pass, as there are extra benefits that let you obtain more cards.

But have you ever wondered how long it would take to collect them all as a F2P player? User TCGPCollector has done the math and shared their findings via a Reddit thread.

Pokemon TCG Pocket: How long would it take to unlock everything as a F2P player?

It would take 655 days of continuous playing to unlock every card as an F2P player. This applies to the current set, excluding the potential for new packs to be added along the way. So, that makes it about one year and nine months, close to two years.

Of course, those with access to Premium Pass don’t have to wait this long, as it’d only take 437 days for them. However, since the subscription costs $9.99 a month, this would mean that you’ll have to be willing to spend around $150 in total.

The numbers are different for those who aren’t total completionists, however. Excluding secret cards, it would only take 130 days for a free-to-play player to unlock everything and 87 days for Premium Pass subscribers.

Do keep in mind that these numbers take Wonder Pick or the Poke Points store into account. According to the user, if you’re not using these and solely relying on opening packs, it would take about 1843 days to finish the set.

It’s pretty brutal for Premium Pass subscribers as well, as this would mean it’d take 1229 days with a bill of $404 at the end. 

To get these estimations, the user explained that they had built a pack-opening, set-completing simulator to “churn through the numbers” and figure out “how long it will take to complete a set on average.”

Overall, this makes it clear that you should familiarize yourself with all the game’s features to earn more cards if you want to collect them within a shorter time.