Nintendo Switch 2 pre-order update: the April 2 date and time remain in play
The Shortcut's pre-order advice remains the same: you should be ready to reserve the Nintendo Switch 2 on Wednesday, April 2 at 10am ET, even if it could happen later
Updated: We finally know the Nintendo Switch 2 price and Nintendo Switch 2 release date, it will release on June 5 for $449.
I’m tracking the Nintendo Switch pre-order date and time, and reported last weekend on The Shortcut that it would be April 2 at 10am ET. Best Buy confirmed the date in a premature corporate blog post this week. However, a new report suggests at least one retailer in the US may hold off on taking Switch 2 reservations until April 9.
What is the real Nintendo Switch 2 date and time? I’ll send you that information if you subscribe to The Shortcut or follow me on X as soon as I get confirmation. But, right now, you should continue to prepare for April 2 for the many reasons I’ll outline.
How to get Switch 2 pre-order alerts on X/Twitter
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:
Nintendo Switch 2 pre-order: April 2 or April 9?
Getting a Nintendo Switch 2 pre-order date and time alert from The Shortcut will be crucial because US stores may sell out of the console due to demand outstripping supply. As much as Nintendo has prepared for this launch, gamers’ anticipation of this new console is through the roof. That’s why you’re reading this, after all, and so are thousands of others. But only a few hundred will get The Shortcut’s first notifications.
📹 Nintendo Switch 2 Direct is April 2. Nintendo answer all of your questions during a video on April 2 at 9am ET. We’ll discover the Nintendo Switch 2 release date, the all-important Switch 2 price, and the first Nintendo Switch 2 launch games. It’s a foregone conclusion we’ll also get the pre-order time, too – and it may be right away.
📜 Nintendo’s history offers a precedent. When the original Nintendo Switch had a similar presentation in January 2017, US stores immediately started taking pre-orders of the then-new Nintendo console. Within three hours, most US stores sold out.
🏷️ Best Buy Nintendo Switch 2 leak. Back to the present day: There’s evidence from Best Buy that reservations will begin on this date, even if the Best Buy Canada blog post leak was eventually pulled. It’s the strongest evidence we have for April 2.
🧪 Nintendo fans will be testing it out. The first Nintendo Switch 2 hands-on event is on April 4 in New York City, and in between, we could see members of the media get a chance to test and analyze the new console. Tech companies usually prefer to open up pre-orders before hands-on reviews come out.
🤷♂️ Maybe Nintendo needs more time? April 9 isn’t out of the question. It’s been eight years since Nintendo launched a brand new console (not counting the Switch Lite or Switch OLED). A lot has changed. Maybe some retailers or all retailers will have to wait. Maybe Nintendo will pull a Sony and sell the console exclusively on its website (it does sell consoles through its online store these days and didn’t eight years ago). Sony made retailers wait two weeks to sell PS5 Pro through Sony Direct. Nintendo may sell to paying Nintendo Switch Online members only (it did this with the Nintendo Alarmo clock last year).
Which stores have Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders?
I expect five major US retailer stores to offer Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders on April 2, or whenever Nintendo allows them to start accepting down payments. The American stores to check are:
Walmart
Amazon
Best Buy
GameStop
Target
I wouldn’t rely on wholesale clubs, even if they may have Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders on or (likely) after April 2. Costco, Sam’s Club and BJ’s are known to show up late when new consoles go on sale. Other stores like Antonline and Newegg love to bundle video game systems with software – in case you run out of luck elsewhere.
Walmart, Amazon and Best Buy always have the most inventory, but they’re also the most popular American retailers. They often get slammed with traffic, so it won’t hurt to try to check out at GameStop or Target, just in case you run into trouble.
As I mentioned, there’s a chance that Nintendo will sell the console through its online store and physical location in New York City. So don’t count out getting the Switch 2 directly from the manufacturer.
How much is the Nintendo Switch 2?
Expect to pay $399 in the US for the Nintendo Switch 2. That’s $50 more than the Nintendo Switch OLED and $100 more than the original Nintendo Switch at launch. Nintendo should confirm the price on April 2 during its Direct presentation.
US retailers will charge customers when their pre-order ships, not when the console is ordered. So you’ll have a little bit of time (the release date may be in June) before you owe the full $399 for the console.
Nintendo Switch 2 alerts from stores aren’t reliable
Just like we all experienced with the PS5 restock, stores in the US are a mess when it comes to getting notifications. In 2025, there’s little evidence to suggest that they’ve figured out a way to properly notify customers when Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders go live. Their notifications are usually hours late.
The Shortcut will send an email alert and a post on X/Twitter when Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders become available. Our team often finds links to retailer pages before the add-to-cart button becomes active.
Will Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders sell out?
The amount of interest in Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders has skyrocketed in the past week, enough to assume that we’ll see the console sell out, just like we did when the PS5 and Xbox pre-orders became available in 2020.
The good news is that Nintendo has done a better job ramping up the inventory of the Switch 2. The bad news is that video game scalpers are always a step ahead. If it sells out, we’ll likely see the Nintendo Switch 2 on eBay for over twice as much as it costs on April 2.
It’s all the more reason to sign up for Nintendo Switch 2 notifications – because the date and time will be crucial information to getting the console before it sells out.
