Checked October 3, 2026 (01:13 KST) against two Nintendo Australia & New Zealand support pages: "microSD Express Card FAQ" and "microSD Card and microSD Express Card Compatibility". We have not bought, used or tested any memory card or Nintendo Switch 2 for this guide. It does not recommend a card, a brand or a store.
Short answer: To expand game storage on Nintendo Switch 2, the card has to be a microSD Express card. A regular microSD card from your original Switch won’t do that job. And a bigger card doesn’t change where your game progress lives — Nintendo says game save data is stored in system memory and cannot be copied to a microSD Express card. (Nintendo support: microSD Express Card FAQ)
So there are two separate questions before you pay: Is this card the right standard? and How much of my library do I actually want installed at once?
Check 1: Compatibility before capacity
Work through these in order. If a card fails the first one, its size doesn’t matter.
| # | Check | What Nintendo’s support pages say |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Is it microSD Express? | Nintendo Switch 2 is only compatible with microSD Express cards. If a card you used on the original Switch doesn’t support the microSD Express standard, you can’t use it with Switch 2 (apart from one narrow import exception, below). |
| 2 | Is it 2 TB or smaller? | Any card up to 2 TB that meets the microSD Express standard can be used on Switch 2. |
| 3 | Can you get the console online the first time? | A system update via the internet is required the first time you use a microSD Express card. |
Two notes on those checks:
- "Up to 2 TB" is a ceiling, not a shopping list. It tells you the largest supported capacity. It does not tell you which 2 TB card exists, is genuine, or is a good buy — we haven’t verified any.
- The card isn’t in the box. Nintendo says microSD Express cards are sold separately. Its Australia & New Zealand compatibility page also says licensed microSD Express cards for Switch 2 will be available on the Nintendo Store; we haven’t checked what is listed there today.
The one thing an old microSD card can still do
Your original-Switch microSD card isn’t completely useless on Switch 2 — but its job is narrow. If it holds screenshots and videos captured on a Nintendo Switch, you can insert it and import them to the Switch 2’s system memory (Nintendo names the option "Import From a Nintendo Switch Console’s microSD Card"). Nintendo says microSD cards can’t be used with Switch 2 for any other purpose, and that a card previously used on a Switch won’t let you save or load digital games or save data on Switch 2.
Check 2: What actually fills the card — and what doesn’t
Nintendo lists what can be saved to a microSD Express card on Switch 2:
- Can go to the card: downloadable software, software update data, downloadable content (DLC), and screenshots and captured videos.
- Stays in system memory: game save data. Nintendo says it cannot be copied or saved to a microSD Express card.
That second line is the one people mix up. Buying a card gives your downloaded games, updates and DLC more room. It is not a backup of your progress.
A few more behaviors worth knowing before you plan your library:
- The card becomes the default. When a microSD Express card is inserted, Nintendo says it becomes the default save location for downloadable software.
- You can move things over. Screenshots and captured videos can be moved between system memory and the card in either direction, and downloadable software can be transferred too.
- One card is the plan Nintendo recommends. Nintendo recommends using a single microSD Express card. If you run out of space, you can copy all the data to a larger microSD Express card. Software saved across multiple cards can’t be combined later into a single card — so buying a small card now and "adding another later" is a different path from upgrading to one larger card.
Check 3: Size it from your own library (worksheet)
We’re not giving a "you need X GB" number: we haven’t verified any title’s download size. Fill this in with sizes you’ve looked up yourself for the exact games you own or plan to buy. Leave a cell blank if you don’t know it — a blank is "unknown", not zero.
| Line | What to enter | GB |
|---|---|---|
| A | Install sizes of the downloaded games you want installed at the same time (sizes you’ve looked up yourself) | |
| B | Update data and DLC for those games that you know of | |
| C | Room you want for screenshots and captured videos, if you’ll keep them on the card | |
| D | A buffer you choose for future downloads and updates (your own number — there’s no official rule) | |
| E | Total you want on the card = A + B + C + D (only if every line is filled) |
Then compare E with the capacities you’re considering:
- If A or B is blank, look those sizes up before you decide on capacity. A total built on a guess will be wrong in one direction or the other.
- If E fits comfortably on a smaller card, a larger card mostly buys headroom — decide whether that’s worth it to you.
- If E is more than any card you’d pay for, the honest answer may be a smaller installed library — fewer games installed at the same time.
Remember the multi-card note above: if you expect to grow, Nintendo’s own guidance points to moving everything to one larger card rather than splitting your library across several.
What we can’t tell you yet
We have not verified any specific card’s brand, model, price, stock, authenticity or warranty, and we don’t rank brands. This page has no retailer links. If we ever add a specific product link, it will only be after we verify that exact offer, and any affiliate relationship will be disclosed before the link.
Quick checklist before you pay
- [ ] The card says microSD Express — not just microSD, microSDHC or microSDXC.
- [ ] Capacity is 2 TB or less.
- [ ] You can connect the console to the internet for the first-use system update.
- [ ] You’ve filled in lines A and B of the worksheet from real sizes.
- [ ] You know the card stores downloaded games, updates, DLC and captures — not your save data.
Sources
- Nintendo Australia & New Zealand Support, "microSD Express Card FAQ": https://www.nintendo.com/au/support/articles/microsd-express-card-faq/ (read October 3, 2026, 01:13 KST)
- Nintendo Australia & New Zealand Support, "microSD Card and microSD Express Card Compatibility with Nintendo Switch 2 and Nintendo Switch": https://www.nintendo.com/au/support/articles/microsd-card-and-microsd-express-card-compatibility-with-nintendo-switch-2/ (read October 3, 2026, 01:13 KST)