Nintendo Switch 2 pre-order date is April 24 in the US – here's how to finally buy it
How to get Switch 2 pre-order alerts at EACH U.S. store before the console sells out
Update: Go straight to the next Nintendo Switch 2 restock in the US if you still need a console, and check out our in-depth Nintendo Switch 2 review for our full analysis.
📆 It’s official! The Nintendo Switch 2 pre-order is on Thursday, April 24
🇺🇸 US stores: Walmart, GameStop, Best Buy, and Target will sell the console
😢 Switch 2 pre-orders are expected to sell out in a matter of minutes
🍄 Nintendo’s official store won’t have Switch 2 pre-orders until May 8
⏰ The Shortcut subscribers will get the first pre-order links in our Chat
Update: As seen in our Substack Chat where you can get live updates, Target will start Switch 2 pre-orders online at April 24 at 12am ET (that’s April 23 9pm PT). GameStop will offer online and in-store pre-orders in the morning (11am ET for online and when your local store opens for in-store).
Finally, we have the Nintendo Switch 2 pre-order date you’ve been waiting for if you’re in the United States, and you’ll be able to reserve the new console starting next week.
Thursday, April 24, 2025, is the official Switch 2 pre-order date, according to an official Nintendo press release sent to The Shortcut. It’ll be two full weeks after Nintendo said tariffs delayed its plans for reservations in the US and Canada.
American stores are sticking with the $449.99 price for the hotly anticipated console, with Walmart, GameStop, Target, Sam’s Club and Best Buy (but not Amazon yet) expected to sell it on April 24 at various times. So, upgrade to get into our Substack Chat in order to know when each retailer goes live.
There will be price changes on items besides the console, according to Nintendo: “Switch 2 accessories will experience price adjustments from those announced on April 2 due to changes in market conditions.”
In our research while writing this breaking news, we can see that the Nintendo Switch 2 Pro controller price is now $84 instead of $79, according to a Google Search crawl, but Nintendo hasn’t confirmed this information yet. Have other questions? We’ll answer them in our Substack Chat for subscribers.
What time will Switch 2 pre-orders launch?
That’s the $450 question, isn’t it? The good news is The Shortcut specializes in tracking down pre-orders and restocks, and we’re going to be doing the same for our subscribers. We can already tell you that Target loves to launch pre-orders as early as possible, and Best Buy and Walmart favor later in the day if they don’t launch at midnight. Sam’s Club prefers 1am, judging from the PS5 and PS5 Pro pre-orders.
Nintendo Switch 2 pre-order links
🌟 Walmart Switch 2 console / Mario Kart World bundle (not in stock yet)
🏷️ Best Buy Switch 2 console / Mario Kart World bundle (not in stock yet)
🎯 Target Switch 2 console / Mario Kart World bundle (not in stock yet)
🛑 GameStop Switch 2 console / Mario Kart World bundle (not in stock yet)
🏬 Sam’s Club Switch 2 console / Mario Kart World bundle (not in stock yet)
📦 Amazon (not live; we’ll see if Amazon even sells it at launch)
Why Switch 2 pre-orders will sell out
The Nintendo Switch 2 is expected to sell out in a matter of minutes in the US, judging from how UK pre-orders went down over a week ago. The pre-order delay in North America has only raised awareness and demand.
🤼 There’s going to be a lot of competition. The biggest problem is that now so many US consumers are acutely aware of the US pre-order happening.
Switch 2 pre-orders were originally expected on April 2, straight after the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct presentation concluded. American retailer sources told The Shortcut that they were on standby for that date since January. But something happened between January and April, and the date was pushed back – and that something may have been the looming US tariffs.
Nintendo officially announced that Switch 2 pre-orders would launch on April 9, but even that date got pushed back “indefinitely,” and not just in the US. Reservations in Canada were also postponed to align with the US.
How to get my Switch 2 pre-order alerts for each store
📧 I can’t send you FIVE emails if the pre-orders are staggered among stores (they will be) because your email would consider me SPAM, and the Switch 2 will sell out.
💬 So here’s the deal. I launched our Substack Chat tailored to paid subscribers as a way to get real-time information and pre-order links beyond the initial wave.
I’ll be online for 24 hours on April 24 (along with Adam, Kevin, and Max), sending you Switch 2 pre-order links and answering your burning questions. That’s the type of dedication we have at The Shortcut! Good luck! 🫡