Anyone hoping to catch a Switch 2 you might want to jump on it sooner rather than later with rising RAM costs. Nintendo's latest console already drew criticism for its price when it was first revealed, with some questioning whether the system was worth the $450 asking price and even more critical of the games' prices. While this controversy has died down a bit over time, there is a chance that the Switch 2 could be more expensive.
Like its predecessor, the Switch 2 was difficult to obtain at launch. Some analysts even predicted that Switch 2 shortages could last until 2026 in some regions, even as the console became more affordable in others. Given these stock issues and some lingering questions about the price, some gamers may have held off on buying one until the initial hype dies down and sales become a more likely possibility. Normally, this might be a sensible strategy, but if the hardware market is going the way it's going now, waiting too long to buy could be costly.
Nintendo addresses concerns that the Switch 2 is too expensive for young gamers
Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa answers the question of whether the price of the Switch 2 is too high for younger fans.
The RAM supply crisis could prompt Nintendo to raise the price of the Switch 2
Concerns about the Switch 2 price increase stem from a worrying trend of skyrocketing RAM prices. In October, the world's two largest RAM manufacturers, Samsung and SK Hynix, entered into an agreement with OpenAI to reserve a significant portion of the global memory supply for AI data centers. In turn, the limited supply has sent RAM prices through the roof, with some DDR5 RAM kits tripling in price and older DDR4 memory seeing a smaller but still notable increase. Samsung and SK Hynix aren't the only vendors focusing on artificial intelligence. Micron has completely abandoned the consumer market, and as manufacturers continue to shift resources to AI, supply and demand could force console companies to make a tough decision: raise prices or hurt profits.
PC gamers have already felt the effects of the RAM shortage as rising prices have made the already expensive task of building a gaming rig noticeably less affordable. While console manufacturers have the advantage of economies of scale and usually subsidize the prices of their systems, the same costs affect them, especially if they grow to a certain level. The Switch 2 includes 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM, so as DDR5 becomes more and more expensive, the cost of making the console will increase as well. Nintendo may have safety stocks of memory purchased in advance, but if these run out, the company may have to pass the cost on to the end user to offset its own supply costs.
Just because component costs are rising doesn't necessarily mean Nintendo will adjust the Switch 2's prices accordingly. However, history shows that the company isn't immune to macroeconomic shifts. In August 2025, Nintendo raised the price of the original generation Switch, adding an additional $40 to the vanilla Switch and $50 to the OLED model. These adjustments came as a response to “market conditions,” likely referring to the effect that US electronics tariffs have had on the broader hardware industry. While the Switch 2 initially escaped the same fate and didn't receive a tariff-related price hike as some feared shortly after its announcement, it may not be so lucky this time around.
Nintendo is not alone in this precarious position. There are rumors that Xbox might raise console prices again in response to the recent RAM price hike. So far, neither company has said they'll be charging more for their systems, but as RAM costs continue to rise, it's hard to wonder if and how they might affect the console market.
- Mark
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Nintendo
- Original release date
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June 5, 2025
- Original MSRP (USD)
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$449.99
- Operating system
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Proprietary
- Resolution
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1080p (handheld) / 4K (docked)
- HDR support
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Yes
