How Will Trump Tariffs Impact Switch 2 Prices?

This morning, Nintendo announced that it’s pressing pause on Nintendo Switch 2 preorders for the United States, following President Trump’s sweeping tariff announcement. The decision is so that Nintendo can “assess the potential impact of tariffs and evolving market conditions.” Although nothing is official yet, that certainly sounds like it could mean an increase in the already steep price of the Nintendo Switch 2 console, at least for consumers in the U.S. But what, exactly, might this mean for the price of the next Nintendo console when it arrives on June 5th?

Since the tariffs were announced, the Stock Market has dropped significantly. But investors aren’t the only ones seeing the immediate aftermath of the announcement, as companies in and outside the U.S. brace for impact. Trading card grading company PSA has paused their services for customers outside the U.S. to help customers avoid paying massive tariff fees on graded cards. Then, Nintendo delayed Switch 2 preorders for the U.S. alone. While we don’t yet fully know the impacts of these tariffs, customers and companies alike are watching developments closely.

The first wave of baseline tariffs is set to go into effect on April 5th, with the steeper, targeted tariffs scheduled to follow on April 9th. Notably, the latter is also the day we were originally supposed to be able to preorder the Switch 2. One of the steeper custom tariffs is aimed at Vietnam, where Nintendo moved most of its Switch following President Trump’s tariffs on China in 2019. But now, if the April 9th tariffs proceed as proposed, that will mean a 46% tariff on imported goods coming from Vietnam, including the Nintendo Switch 2, Nintendo Switch consoles, and more. The tariff for Japan, where Nintendo is located, is slightly lower at 24%, so Nintendo could be considering making a change to how it distributes the Switch 2 in light of this news.

What Tariffs Could Do to Switch 2 Prices

What does this mean for gaming fans who want to purchase the Nintendo Switch 2? Until Nintendo makes an official statement regarding their pricing plans, we can only speculate. After all, not every tariff that President Trump’s administration has announced wound up going into effect exactly as planned thus far. That said, if the 46% tariff on Vietnam and 24% tax on Japanense imports do go into place on April 9th, we could see the Nintendo Switch 2 price go up accordingly.

The Nintendo Switch 2 is currently still listed for $449.99 MSRP on the Nintendo Store U.S. website. However, Nintendo could be reconsidering that price, at least for customers in the United States. Given the language in their official statement about delaying preorders, it seems likely they’re at least doing the math on how the import tax could shift their plans. Even if Nintendo itself does not raise prices to account for its own imports via Nintendo Store U.S. sales, it is quite possible that individual retailers stocking the Switch 2 might do so due to the economic uncertainty.

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For now, how the tariffs will impact the price is an open question. That said, if the Nintendo Switch 2 price is raised to cover roughly the tariff amount on goods from Vietnam, we could be looking at an increase of roughly 46-50%. In other words, the price could skyrocket from $450 to over $650. Keep in mind, that’s only if the price increase is set to cover the entire cost of tariffs for Nintendo Switch 2 consoles and if the Switch 2 is imported directly from Vietnam to the United States. Given that Nintendo may well have anticipated at least some increase in taxes from the Trump Administration, it’s possible that some amount of additional import cost was already figured into the Switch 2 price point.

Until Nintendo confirms their plans for selling the Nintendo Switch 2 in the U.S. amid the latest tariffs from the Trump Administration, nothing is certain. However, it does look likely that Nintendo is at least considering how its prices may need to change in the wake of tariffs, if the preorder delay is any indication.