It’s been more than a month since Switch 2 came out. As Nintendo’s most expensive console, at $450, it has yet to see a price jump because of President Donald Trump’s new tariffs, but that can still change.
Trump first announced his plans for tariffs on April 2, the same day that the Switch 2 was revealed. The tariffs targeted two countries important to Nintendo: Japan, where the company is based, and Vietnam, where some of its products are manufactured. He did declare soon after the announcement that the tariffs are on pause for Japan and Vietnam for 90 days. Time appears to have run out as the tariffs are set to officially start on Aug. 1.
As for how much Nintendo would need to jack up prices to compensate for the tariffs, that’s a complicated answer.
How much is the Switch 2 after tariffs?
Wedbush Securities Analyst Michael Pachter believes that after the pause happens and tariffs are applied to products made in Vietnam and sold by Japan, like the Switch 2, he expects Nintendo of Japan to ship the consoles to Nintendo of America at the bare minimum cost of the console to pay the lowest tariffs possible.
“I think it will be $75 to $100 additional on price, maybe a tad more,” Pachter said. This would put the price of Switch 2 after tariffs in the $525 to $550 range.
Piers Harding-Rolls, Ampere Analysis research director, gave a similar price range in his opinion about the Switch 2.
“This is a pretty fluid situation, after all. Nintendo will not want to change the price but I think everything is on the table now and an increase of at least $50 to $100 for the base console is realistic to offset some of the additional costs,” Harding-Rolls said. “Alternatively, Nintendo might conclude that the US market is too important to the company and that it will swallow the additional cost and make up the margin on digital games sales instead.”
DFC Intelligence CEO David Cole has a similar take on the price. He told Forbes in April that he expects the price to increase but not that much, as he believes the starting price of $450 already has baked into it a percentage to cover possible tariffs.
“It is not likely Nintendo will raise the price, and if they do, we don’t expect it to be 20%,” Cole told Forbes. A 20% increase would put the price of the console after tariffs at about $540.
The Switch 2 is already expensive
When Nintendo revealed the Switch 2 on April 2, the stream for the show ended without revealing the price. Instead, everyone interested had to visit the site and see the starting price of $450 and the bundle with Mario Kart World for $500.
This price would make the Switch 2 the most expensive Nintendo console at launch when not factoring in inflation. Like Cole, some assumed the higher price tag included a premium for a possible tariff but that doesn’t appear to be the case, according to Nintendo of America President Doug Bowser.
“Put [the April 2 announcement] aside. Any previous tariffs were not factored into the price itself,” Bowser told The Verge after the reveal.
Read more: Rising Cost of Nintendo Switch 2 Games: Are Trump’s Tariffs to Blame?
In an interview with CBC in April, Bowser defended the $450 price tag, saying it was appropriate for the machine’s value.
“We recognize there are some people that may not be able to afford [the Switch 2’s] price point,” he told CBC. “That’s why we wanted to make the other Switch platforms available, so [people] still have an opportunity to come into our gaming universe, be a part of these characters in these worlds, and see the value, if you will, in whatever rung of the platform they come in.”
Nintendo cleared a major hurdle by releasing its latest console at the announced launch price, although some accessories did go up in cost. The company may still need to raise the price of the Switch 2 in the future, like Microsoft did, and what many speculate Sony will have to do soon on its PS5.
