Okay, Pokémon people: there may finally be a date to put on the calendar.
PokéBeach reports that a new Pokémon Trading Card Game Happy Meal promotion is planned for McDonald’s in the U.S. from November 5 through December 9, 2026. Those dates are preliminary, and McDonald’s has not announced the U.S. schedule publicly yet.
A video is going around saying November 6 through December 5. That is a different window from PokéBeach’s reporting, so I would not plan a drive-thru trip around the video dates just yet.
What comes in the 2026 Pokémon Happy Meal?
PokéBeach says the promotion is expected to include 15 Pokémon cards and a choice between a Pokémon toy or a Pokémon Essential Handbook. The specific cards have not been revealed. The site says the toy might be a card display, but that detail is unconfirmed.
Previous McDonald’s Pokémon promotions have used four-card booster packs with one holographic card, but we have not seen the final 2026 pack details or packaging from McDonald’s. The Charizard and other boxes circulating in older images should not be taken as a preview of this year’s box.
When should you check McDonald’s?
If the reported schedule holds, November 5 is the first U.S. date to watch. Promotions can vary by country, and individual restaurants may run out. We’ll update this story when McDonald’s or Pokémon releases the official details.
While we wait, here is a throwback to the earlier Pokémon Happy Meal run.
