Nintendo Switch 2 pre-order: GameStop and Best Buy confirm restock plans
As expected, pre-ordering the Switch 2 console will happen again on or just before the June 5 release date. Here's how to get notifications.
Update: See our in-depth Nintendo Switch 2 review, which is live after a week of thoroughly testing the new console. Check out our full Switch 2 news stories, too.
🎮 Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders will return in time for the release date
🛑 GameStop just dropped the news about its Switch 2 pre-order timing
🏷️ Best Buy will have Switch 2 consoles at some stores at midnight, too
🤔 But they’ve both indicated “limited quantities” at “select stores”
🌟 Walmart’s Switch 2 pre-orders are expected to be online on June 5
🚨 Priority Alerts: The Shortcut subscribers get 1:1 help in our Substack Chat
🔔 Turn on notifications for Matt Swider on X to get additional alerts
The next Nintendo Switch 2 pre-order in the US has been revealed – and it’ll happen in the lead up to the console’s June 5 release date, according to two American retailers. The Shortcut’s alerts have helped 10,000 get the sold-out console, and we’re ready to track the next Switch 2 restock for subscribers in our Substack Chat.
GameStop just announced that its Switch 2 pre-orders will return on June 5, with both in-store and online opportunities to buy the new console. Best Buy said it has “extra” consoles in stores, and Walmart is expected to mirror this approach online.
Walmart: Switch 2 console / Mario Kart World bundle
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: Unknown time Switch 2 console / Mario Kart World bundle
But there’s more to this Switch 2 pre-order news story than just that. Every retailer in the US is expected to have limited quantities online, and when it comes to making an in-store purchase, only “select stores” will offer the console, according to our restock experts.
GameStop’s Switch 2 launch day plans
Today’s big news comes from GameStop, which just posted on X. Its Switch 2 release plans reveal that the new console will be available to pre-order in-store on June 4 at 3pm local time, just ahead of the June 5 midnight pick-up time. (Thanks, Jake Randall)
You will also have a chance of purchasing the hard-to-find console online on June 5 at 12am ET / June 4 at 9pm PT, according to GameStop. Though that’s the official company, GameStop’s online store has been known to restock early.
Of course, GameStop’s fine print indicates that the Switch 2 console will be “available while supplies last.” We also know that some GameStop stores haven’t gotten “extra” consoles at midnight in the past during a nationwide restock. GameStop store locations inside malls, for example, are often not able to hold midnight launch events.
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:
Best Buy Switch 2 pre-order plans
Best Buy’s Switch 2 plans were previously confirmed to The Shortcut. The US retailer has promised it’ll have late-night store openings on Thursday, June 5 at 12:01am ET.
Again, notice the language of the Best Buy Switch 2 pre-order statement: “Most stores will have limited inventory of [Nintendo Switch 2] systems, games, and accessories.” Expect to see long lines at popular Best Buy stores in US cities hours in advance of the midnight release date, and some in the crowd may not be able to get the new console.
Walmart Switch 2 pre-order restock time
Walmart hasn’t announced when you’ll be able to pre-order the Switch 2 from its stores again, but we know three things even without having an official statement.
First, Walmart sold the most Switch 2 consoles of the five major US retailers, according to The Shortcut’s exclusive sales data. Since Amazon won’t have Switch 2 pre-orders, Walmart is by far the largest Switch 2 seller out there, and that means more inventory.
Second, we know that Walmart will favor online Switch 2 pre-orders as it ships the console instead of restocking its shelves. At the tail end of the PS5 restock drama, select Walmart stores did push consoles onto their shelves, but this was rare.
Third, and this is where we may have an approximate Switch 2 pre-order restock time, Walmart is promising to deliver pre-ordered consoles by 9am local time on June 5. The fine print here says that as long as you pre-order it by June 4 at 8am ET. It’s a lofty promise, so our analysis is that Walmart will wait to open up pre-orders until after this time.
We’re tracking Switch 2 pre-orders 24/7
The Shortcut has gained authority on tracking Switch 2 console pre-orders following our hands-on review of the console. This is how we helped over 10,000 people purchase the console and the best Switch 2 accessories and launch games.
Nintendo has recently given us hope that it’ll eventually meet demand for the console this holiday season, but Nintendo’s President has gone as far as to apologize for the lack of Switch 2 consoles in stock. If you want it on day one,
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.