Nintendo is raising the price of the Switch 2 by $50 starting in September — Console will soon cost $499, but you can avoid the price hike if you buy now
Source: Tom’s Hardware
Image credit: Jeffrey Kampman/Tom’s Hardware
Nintendo Switch 2 price increase
Nintendo announced that the price of the Switch 2 handheld will rise by $50 starting September 1 2026. In North America the console will go from $449 to $499. The same increase applies to other regions, with the following details:
- Canada: $629.99 CAD → $679.99 CAD
- Europe: €469.99 → €499.99 (≈ $700 USD)
Japanese pricing
- Switch 2 (Japanese‑only model): ¥49,980 (≈ $320) → ¥59,980 (≈ $383) on May 26 2026
- Switch OLED: ¥37,980 (≈ $242) → ¥47,980 (≈ $306)
- Switch Lite: ¥21,978 (≈ $140) → ¥29,980 (≈ $191)
- Switch V2: ¥32,978 (≈ $210) → ¥43,980 (≈ $280)
Nintendo Switch Online subscription hikes
In Japan and South Korea, every tier of Nintendo Switch Online will become more expensive starting July 1 2026, as part of a regional price alignment.
Image credit: Future
Reason for the price hikes
Nintendo cites global market conditions driven by the AI boom and geopolitical uncertainty, which have made component sourcing more costly. Memory, storage, and silicon prices have risen sharply.
Industry context
Other companies have announced similar price adjustments:
- Meta: Raised Quest 3 headset prices due to AI‑driven RAM shortages.
- Sony: Increased prices for refurbished PS5 Slim consoles by $100 and raised all PS5 model prices in March 2026. A $50 hike was applied to PS5 consoles in 2025.
- Laptop market: Prices are up to 40% higher, reflecting higher memory, storage, and CPU costs.
- AI spending: Major tech firms are allocating billions to AI, further straining component supply chains.
These trends illustrate a broader industry-wide pressure on hardware pricing.