What time do Switch 2 pre-orders go live?

Update 4/21: Confirmed Switch 2 pre-order start times as of today:

Best Buy April 24 at 12 a.m. ET online
Target April 24 at 12 a.m. ET online
Walmart April 24 at 12 a.m. ET online
GameStop April 24 at 11 a.m. ET online (and when local in-store opens)

Nintendo has officially announced the new April 24 pre-order date for its highly sought-after next-generation console, but what time will Switch 2 pre-orders begin that day? It’s hard to imagine there actually being enough consoles to go around next week, but only time will tell and being ready to pull the trigger in a timely fashion is likely going to be very important.

What time do Switch 2 pre-orders go live?

Well, after a disappointing delay from the initial April 9 date, Nintendo has officially confirmed that Nintendo Switch 2 will indeed go up for pre-orders in the U.S. on April 24 – exactly 7 days from today. As mentioned above this isn’t some false start or orders exclusively on the My Nintendo Store either, it specifically stated in today’s official press release that this is indeed the retailer start date – that means pre-orders for Switch 2 will go live at Best Buy, Walmart, Target, GameStop, and elsewhere (there are no official listings at Amazon just yet, but I doubt it’s going to let the others have all of the fun here).

Best Buy – Nintendo Switch 2 preorder (12 a.m ET)

Target – Nintendo Switch 2 preorder (12 a.m ET)

Walmart – Nintendo Switch 2 preorder (12 a.m ET)

GameStop – Nintendo Switch 2 preorder (11 a.m ET)

Amazon – Nintendo Switch 2 preorder (TBD)

Nintendo Switch 2 game pre-orders:

Donkey Kong Bananza $69
- Walmart | Best Buy | Target
Mario Kart World $79
- Walmart | Best Buy | Target
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Switch 2 Edition $79
- Walmart | Best Buy | Target
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the WildSwitch 2 Edition $69
- Walmart | Best Buy | Target
Super Mario Party Jamboree Switch 2 Edition $80
- Walmart | Best Buy | Target
Kirby and The Forgotten Land Switch 2 Edition $79
- Walmart | Best Buy | Target
Street Fighter 6 $60
- Walmart | Best Buy | Target
Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion $70
- Walmart | Best Buy | Target
Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma $70
- Walmart | Best Buy | Target
No Sleep For Kaname Date $50
- Walmart | Best Buy | Target

Chances are this thing is going to sell out and quick…very quick.

Update: Walmart will also be opening up pre-orders for Switch 2 at 12 a.m. ET.

Update: Target has now confirmed that Switch 2 pre-orders will go live at 12 a.m. ET.

Update: GameStop has also now confirmed Switch 2 pre-order times and details:

This leaves us all with one glaring and very important question – what time do Switch 2 pre-orders go live?

Nintendo has not provided any information on exactly what time Switch 2 pre-orders will go live just yet – it hasn’t said really anything outside of the fact that the price will remain as initially announced on the consoles and that pre-orders will go live at retailers in the U.S. (and Canada) on Thursday, April 24.

But we can offer some expert analyses on when pre-orders might go live. You could rely on those sign-up notification things some sites seem to promote, but that will almost certainly be a fruitless endeavor – if you wait to get one of those notifications, you’ll likely miss your chance to pre-order a Switch 2 altogether.

All of that said we have been around the block with these super hot product pre-order launches more than a few times (for well over a decade now). Despite what anyone says at this point, or at least until there is some kind of official announcement from particular U.S. retailers, we highly recommend you’re ready to go the second the clock strikes midnight on April 24. I know it’s a total slog to get up in the middle of the night (or perhaps stay up) only to have to wait in utter uncertainty if it was worth it, but until there’s an actual time, and depending how bad you want to secure one, it’s likely your best shot.

With that in mind, there are some times, based on historical retailer patterns and site updates you will want to have your radar:

Amazon typically updates the deals and home page of its site at midnight PT/3 a.m. ET
Best Buy typically updates the deals and home page of its site at 1 a.m. ET
Target typically updates the deals and home page of its site at 12 a.m. ET
- Target has now confirmed Switch 2 pre-orders will start at midnight ET.
Walmart is a bit of a mixed bag but it tends to update at midnight ET or 1 a.m. ET, and sometimes not until noon.
- Walmart U.S. has now confirmed Switch 2 pre-orders will start at midnight ET.

Pre-order times for PS5 Pro – arguably the most recent major console release – went live at around 10 a.m. ET at retailers like Best Buy. Could this be an indication of what time the Switch 2 pre-orders will hit? It is still unclear.

In the end, and if history is any indication, not all retailers will start at the same time. They might, but they also might not.

Before the Canadian Switch 2 pre-order date was delayed, Walmart officially announced that it would begin taking Switch 2 pre-orders at 12 a.m. while Best Buy maintained it would start at 12 p.m. – these times weren’t just guesses but rather officially-announced kick-off times. This information came straight from the Walmart X feed – it has yet to be updated with anything at this point.

Needless to say after all of that, and even if we did know the time, retailers like Best Buy will be implementing a virtual queue system if the current Switch 2 listing page is any indication:

High Demand Product
- This item is expected to sell out quickly. To improve your odds of getting one, we’ve updated our reservation process.
Account required
- An account is required to purchase this item.
  - And we want you to get one! We made some updates to our reservation process to improve your odds of getting this item.
Sign in or create an account
- An account is required to purchase this item.
Confirm your location
- Make sure your preferred pickup and shipping locations are accurate. This helps us find an available item more quickly.
Add the item to your cart
Follow the on-screen prompts
- Once you click “Add to cart”, you’ll be in line to try and get the item. We’ll then verify your account and check for available inventory.
Complete your purchase
- Once in your cart, the item is “held” for 10 minutes. After time expires, we can’t guarantee the item will still be available. So be sure to complete your purchase quickly!

So even if we did know the time, if I was in the same boat as all of you are, and I 100% am, I would be ready and signed in with credit card information in place the second the clock strikes midnight on the east coast.

Here are some handy links and details to have on your radar ahead of time:

The Switch 2 preorders at Best Buy will kick off on the same day, April 9 “via the Best Buy Mobile App and the official Best Buy site – it also mentions that “stores will have pre-orders for games and accessories” as well. It, unfortunately, did mention a precise time as to when pre-orders will go live next Wednesday.