Switch 2 price increase to $500 coming in September

Japanese Nintendo fans are the unlucky ones. The country is seeing steeper price increases across a wider range of products, and much sooner. From May 25, the cost of all models of Switch as well as Switch 2 will increase, as well as the price of Nintendo Switch Online subscriptions. The Japan-only model of Switch 2 will go up by ¥10,000 to ¥59,980. The various models of Switch are seeing price hikes of between ¥8,000 and ¥11,000. A one-year subscription to Nintendo Switch Online is going up by ¥1,000.

Nintendo said it was making the changes “in light of changes in market conditions, and after considering the global business outlook.” The move was expected as a result of the global shortage of computer memory, which has driven up prices for RAM and storage.

“We sincerely apologize for the impact these price revisions may have on our customers and other stakeholders, and we deeply appreciate your understanding,” Nintendo said.

Nintendo has held out a little longer than its competitors and been relatively restrained in its price increases due to the RAM crisis. In March, Sony raised the price of PlayStation 5 by between $100 and $150, with almost immediate effect. Microsoft increased the cost of Xbox Series consoles by between $100 and $200 over the course of two price hikes in 2025.

Partly as a result of the price increases, Nintendo told investors Friday that it expects sales of the Switch 2 to slow down over the next year, rather than speed up, as is more common for a console in its second year on sale. But thanks to its incredibly strong start, the console is still faring well. Nintendo has sold 19.86 million Switch 2s to date, and even with a lower projection of 16.5 million units in its second year on sale, Switch 2 would remain ahead of sales of the original Switch at that time in its lifespan.