Nintendo Animal Crossing Friend Code

Fruit, furniture, friends, the three Fs. What else could you possibly need?

Online play on the Nintendo Switch should be easy. Firing up a game of Mario Kart 8 or visiting a friend’s island in Animal Crossing: New Horizons should be as simple as selecting the online option. Read this Animal Crossing: New Horizons Switch (ACNH) guide to learn about the Dodo Code. Including how to check Friend Code, where to go, how to set code, and what it does!

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Update 12/12/2020: More than 95K codes can be found in our comments below, which is simply insane. Thank you to everyone that has jumped in to share and play with us.

Make sure to take a look at our guide covering everything you can do in Animal Crossing: New Horizons in October, and also bookmark our all-important Ultimate Guide to Animal Crossing: New Horizons!

Animal Crossing: New Horizons is finally here. As of the 20th of March 2020 we can finally dive into the wonderful world of escapism that only Nintendo's slice of life game can truly deliver. So, grab your Nintendo Switch and hop online... Actually, wait a minute. As with most Nintendo games - even its mobile offerings, like Mario Kart Tour - access to Ronnie Rando, Arbitrary Anne and friends is gated behind a friend code system.

So, we here at Pocket Gamer have a solution for you. Especially those who are truly embracing the spirit of adventure. We've built this post to give you a chance to gather a great list of new friends to play with.

Of course, there are other ways to have others play on your island. Animal Crossing: New Horizons has console-sharing mode when you have multiple users on the same device, however, everybody will - at present - have to bundle onto the same island... which certainly destroys the thrill of exploring a new land. Otherwise, there is a local play option where one person hosts and others can ping in.

So, how do you get your friend code in order to share it in this handy-dandy post?

Step one: Tap on your profile icon in the top left of the console.
Step two: Tap 'add friend'.
Step two-and-a-half: Voila! Your code will appear beneath your username.
Step three: Share your code with your Pocket Gamer friends below if you'd like to.

Are there any alternatives though?

As it turns out, there is. In Animal Crossing: New Horizons there are also Dodo Codes which are single-shot codes to create lobbies. Grabbing those is quite simple: just head down to the Dodo Airlines building, tell Orville that you want visitors from far-off islands, and read through the mass of warnings from Nintendo about being mischievous

At this point, you can grab the five-digit Dodo Codes by opting to not invite from your friends list. You can also share those below, but be aware that you're in a comment thread and so responses may not be immediate.

So, leave your friend codes and Dodo codes in the comments below -- as well as which native fruit you have on your island -- and why not tell us what you think of Animal Crossing: New Horizon too?

And, of course, while you're here. Feel free to check out our quick Q&A post for Animal Crossing: New Horizon tips & hints, and if there's anything you think we've missed or any questions you still have, pop them below and we'll share all of the info we have.

Want more?Check out our 48 otherAnimal Crossing: New Horizons articles!

What you need to invite friends to your island or visit an island?

Although Animal Crossing New Horizons can be played offline, you’re going to miss a big part of what makes the game really fun, and that is playing with your friends. If you’re content with thriving in your own island alone (which is really sad), then you can go ahead and do it.

However, if you plan on going online and enjoying the game with family members, friends, and even strangers, you’ll need to have an active Nintendo Online subscription. To get that, you’ll have to use the Nintendo Switch eShop. Depending on your choice, you can either use an individual subscription or a family subscription.

When can you invite friends to your Animal Crossing island?

Once you’ve signed up for a Nintendo Online subscription, you can then go ahead and start the game. At first, you won’t be able to add friends on Animal Crossing New Horizons right away and you’ll need to wait for one full day after you’ve created your island. This is because the airport won’t be operational within the first 24 hours.

If you want to hurry this up and you’re desperate to add friends, you can use a “cheat” to time travel. This is done by changing the Nintendo Switch time and date manually on your console. So, for example, if you started playing the game at 12 in the morning of August 1st, you simply have to move the date and time forward for at least 24 hours to trick the game into thinking that the 24-hour period had lapsed.

Once airport is up and running, you should be able to visit your friends’ islands or invite them over to yours.

How to add friends on Animal Crossing New Horizons?

There are two ways to add friends on Animal Crossing. One is by going through the usual way of adding friends in Nintendo Switch and the other is by using a Dodo Code. The latter is a way to invite other players and is specific to Animal Crossing New Horizons only.

What is a Dodo Code?

The Dodo Code is a more effective way of inviting players to one’s island. It offers you more control over invitees although it can also be abused. It’s not unheard of that many people who invite people over their island complaining that some of their items were stolen, flowers were crushed, among many other unsavory things.

If you are careful though, it’s a sure way of enjoying the game even more.

Nintendo Switch Friend Code Exchange Animal Crossing

How to use the Dodo Code?

To use a Dodo code, you simply have to visit the Dodo Airlines Airport on the second day and speak to Orville. Then, when asked whether to invite visitors locally or online, you want to select online play.

If you already have Nintendo Switch friends who played Animal Crossing New Horizons, you will then be given the option to open your gate for them. Once you’ve done that, they can be allowed to come over your island.

Should you wish to invite others who are not your Nintendo Switch friends, you can use the Dodo Code. Just click on Invite via Dodo Code option and when Orville asks you who to invite, just select The more the merrier.

Selecting this option won’t automatically mean that anyone can then discover your island and visit. You still need to share your Dodo Code to Animal Crossing New Horizons community via social media sites of your choosing to spread the word around.

If you want to open your island to strangers, make sure that you click on Yeah, invite anyone option. Once that’s finished, your island’s gate will be opened.

Difference between Best Friend and Friend in Animal Crossing New Horizons

If you are new to Animal Crossing New Horizons, you may discover that there are two types of friends that you can have — Friend and Best Friend. The difference between the two is important and must not be overlooked. Friends can visit your island and take a look around but they can basically do nothing much that will make you regret later on.

Best Friends have more freedom when visiting and they can potentially cause havoc if you’re not careful. They have access to a shovel or axe so they can basically destroy things. If you don’t trust a person, don’t make him or her your Best Friend.

To unlock Best Friend is easy as you only need to play online once to make the Best Friend app available in the NookPhone.