Exclusive: Nintendo Switch 2 sales – the top 20 pre-orders in the US
According to the The Shortcut's pre-order data, the $499 Switch 2 Mario Kart World bundle was seven times more popular than Nintendo's $449 standalone console
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💯 10,000 Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders were placed through The Shortcut’s links
2️⃣0️⃣ Our top 20 list (below) ranks what US consumers bought, based on our data
🎮 The Walmart Switch 2 bundle outsold the standalone console at a rate of 7:1
📈 dbrand’s Killswitch case & Samsung’s microSD Express card made the top 5
😡 Crushing demand for Switch 2 pre-orders crashed retail US sites last week
🚨 Priority Alerts: The Shortcut subscribers get 1:1 help in our Substack Chat
🔔 Turn on notifications for Matt Swider on X to get restock alerts
Our Nintendo Switch 2 pre-order sales data reveals some interesting news, one week after reservations went live. According to The Shortcut’s exclusive Switch 2 pre-order sales figures, the Switch 2 bundled with Mario Kart World sold seven times more units than the standalone console in the United States.
Check if the Walmart Switch 2 + Mario Kart World bundle is in stock
This statistic comes from people like you who purchased a Switch 2 using our links. We pushed 10,000 Switch 2 pre-orders through our links, meaning The Shortcut’s alerts did work. Well, it worked for most of you. The crushing demand means we’re going to keep tracking pre-orders in our Substack Chat for everyone who still wants one by June 5.
Switch 2’s price didn’t deter US shoppers
The fact that the Nintendo Switch 2 bundle costs $499 when the standalone Switch 2 costs $449 didn’t deter shoppers in the US. It’s $50 more with the game included, but Mario Kart World costs $80 when bought without the console, so Nintendo may have encouraged people to spend a bit more to save money in the long run.
Microsoft just raised Xbox prices today, up to $730 for its top-tier Xbox Series X, so suddenly, the Switch 2 starting at $449 doesn’t seem so bad.
How to get Switch 2 pre-order alerts
Get our instant alerts: Your best chance to find a Nintendo Switch 2 pre-order is to follow Matt Swider on X – and turn on notifications. It’ll look like:
Mario Kart World sold well, even at $80
Surprisingly, the $80 version of Mario Kart World still sold well (it’s #6 on our top 20 list below). This is likely because my followers mentioned that they “settled” for the standalone Switch 2 console in the end, or purposely bought that $449 version and the $80 game separately due to it being easier to purchase.
“I assume that most people want the bundle,” said subscriber Rolo in The Shortcut’s Substack Chat. “I'm kinda anxious about this pre-order. I'm considering going for the console only and paying the $30 tax to hopefully increase my chances.”
I reached out to Rolo in our Substack Chat before the pre-order to tell him to go for the Mario Kart version anyway. I had knowledge that there was more inventory of the bundle (see below), so his chances were pretty even. “Save the $30,” I said.
Here’s what he just told me:
I had multiple browsers for both bundle and non-bundle, and the bundle let me add to cart on check out Best Buy first. Target was my original plan but we all know how that worked out for everyone lol. Thank you for the help!
Using multiple browsers (not multiple tabs on the same browser) was a tip straight from The Shortcut’s Switch 2 pre-order strategy guide. Success!
Nintendo Switch 2 pre-order sales explained
There’s another reason Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders likely favored the bundle 7:1. According to The Shortcut’s retail sources, US stores were getting more bundles in almost every case we checked. So the inventory may have played a role in how many console bundles Nintendo sold since the April 24 pre-order date.
Walmart: Switch 2 console / Mario Kart World bundle (last in stock Saturday)
Target: Switch 2 console / Mario Kart World bundle
GameStop: Switch 2 console / Mario Kart World bundle
Best Buy: Switch 2 console / Mario Kart World bundle
Sam’s Club: Switch 2 console / Mario Kart World bundle (still not live)
Only four stores in the US have had Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders, and only one store, Walmart, has restocked the pre-orders after April 24.
Top 20 Nintendo Switch products
In addition to the console, many consumers bought the best Nintendo Switch 2 accessories and launch games, according to our data.
Here are the most popular orders:
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Switch 2 Edition)
Super Mario Party Jamboree – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Jamboree TV
The only items in the top 5 (and the top 10) not made by Nintendo are Samsung’s microSD Express memory card (#4) and dbrand’s Killswitch case (#5).
Hori’s Pirnaha Plant camera, which we cautioned people about buying due to its low resolution, landed at #16. The only third-party game that sold in high numbers was Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition at #17.
When will Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders restock?
We’re constantly tracking the next wave of Switch 2 console pre-orders, especially during Walmart+ Week (I’m on heightened alert, but nothing is guaranteed) and the confirmed My Nintendo Store pre-order on May 8. The fact that Walmart restocked Switch 2 pre-orders last Saturday shows that US retailers are willing to put out fresh inventory if they get cancellations.
I’m still tracking Switch 2 pre-orders in our Substack Chat (for real-time updates, as I can’t fire off five email alerts to you in a single day without being considered SPAM), and on the Matt Swider on X account, until Nintendo’s June 5 release date.
Matt Swider is the Editor-in-Chief of The Shortcut, the #1 consumer tech publication on Substack. Matt, a trusted technology expert with over 25 years of journalism experience and the former US Editor-in-Chief of TechRadar, can be found on social media through X (Twitter), Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok.
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