Nintendo Switch 2 owners who haven’t picked up a microSD Express Card still have a chance to double their console’s storage capacity for cheap. As of December 31, Amazon’s incredible deal on the SanDisk P9 256GB microSD Express is still available. Normally $55, the SanDisk P9 256GB is on sale for only $33. This deal has been available for about two weeks, so it probably won’t be active for much longer. The $33 price is an all-time low for a microSD Express Card from any brand. The 512GB edition, unfortunately, is selling for its full $100 price.
Amazon is also still selling the Lexar Play Pro 1TB microSD Express, the most popular 1TB card on the market, for $186 (was $220). For a 512GB card from Amazon, the Lexar Play Pro and Samsung P9 are your best bets at $100. Take a deeper dive into the world of microSD Express Cards for Nintendo Switch 2 below.
Expand Nintendo Switch 2 Storage with microSD Express Cards
Nintendo Switch 2 storage can only be expanded with microSD Express Cards.
Best microSD Express Cards at Amazon
The only officially licensed microSD Express is Samsung’s Super Mario-themed 256GB model for $59 (was $60). Samsung launched the P9 microSD Express in November, and while it isn’t officially licensed by Nintendo, you won’t notice a difference between the two–and you can save a bunch of cash at the moment.
Below, we’ve listed every microSD Express Card from a reputable brand we could find on Amazon–though we excluded cards with prices that are substantially higher than average. The Switch 2 is the first major consumer device to use the ultra-fast storage format, so the market is understandably limited. That said, the number of options has doubled multiple times over since Nintendo announced the Switch 2 requires microSD Express to expand storage
- Samsung Switch 2 256GB microSD Express — $59 (
$60) - Samsung P9 256GB microSD Express — $33 (
$55) - Samsung P9 512GB microSD Express — $100
- Lexar Play Pro 1TB microSD Express — $186 (
$220) - Lexar Play Pro 512GB microSD Express — $100 (
$120) - Lexar Play Pro 256GB microSD Express — $50 (
$60) - SanDisk 512GB microSD Express — $100 (
$105) - SanDisk 256GB microSD Express — $60 (
$70) - SanDisk 128GB microSD Express — $60 | Sold out
- TeamGroup Apex 1TB microSD Express — $194.49 (
$212) - TeamGroup Apex 512GB microSD Express — $100 (
$120) - TeamGroup Apex 256GB microSD Express — $58 (
$60) - TeamGroup Apex 128GB microSD Express — $36 (
$39) - Emtec Gaming 512GB microSD Express — $90.60
- Emtec Gaming 256GB microSD Express — $47.37
- Emtec Gaming 128GB microSD Express — $44.43
- PNY 512GB microSD Express — $103.19 (
$120) - PNY 256GB microSD Express — $56.37 (
$60) - PNY 128GB microSD Express — $44.35 (
$45) - Silicon Power 1TB microSD Express — $236
- Silicon Power 512GB microSD Express — $110
- Silicon Power 256GB microSD Express — $70
- Adata 256GB Premier Extreme microSD Express — $70
- Adata 512GB Premier Extreme microSD Express — $130
- Addlink 256GB microSD Express — $59.44
- Addlink 512GB microSD Express — $114.44
microSD Express Cards at Amazon
Best microSD Express Cards at Walmart
Walmart has a smaller selection, but it has three exclusive microSD Express Cards that you should know about, too. The retailer’s in-house tech brand usually offers the most affordable 256GB and 512GB cards. The Onn 512GB microSD Express is currently going for $84.77, while the 256GB model is only $46.77. With the Samsung P9 256GB and Silicon Power 512GB deals, Onn cards are a bit pricier as of December 15. It’s also worth noting that the Walmart-exclusive SanDisk GamePlay 512GB microSD Express is now only $2 cheaper than the regular model that’s sold at all retailers (including Walmart).
- Samsung Switch 2 256GB microSD Express — $59 (
$60) - Onn 256GB microSD Express — $46.77
- Onn 512GB microSD Express — $84.77
- SanDisk GamePlay 512GB microSD Express — $98
- TeamGroup Apex 256GB microSD Express — $58 (
$60) - TeamGroup Apex 512GB microSD Express — $100 (
$120) - Lexar Play Pro 512GB microSD Express — $100
- Lexar Play Pro 256GB microSD Express — $64.62
- SanDisk 512GB microSD Express — $100 (
$105) - SanDisk 256GB microSD Express — $59.33 (
$70) - SanDisk 128GB microSD Express — $60 | Sold out
- PNY 128GB microSD Express — $44.35 (
$45) | Sold out - PNY 256GB microSD Express — $56.37 (
$60) | Sold out - PNY 512GB microSD Express — $100 (
$120)
Nintendo Switch 2 storage space can disappear fast
The Nintendo Switch 2 has 256GB of onboard storage. On the surface, this is a big leap forward, since it’s four times larger than the Switch OLED (64GB) and eight times larger than the original Switch and Switch Lite (32GB). But the Switch 2’s ability to run more graphically intensive games also means larger file sizes. For context, here are file sizes for some Switch 2 games published by Nintendo: Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment (43.5GB), Metroid Prime 4: Beyond (27,7GB), Kirby Air Riders (21.8GB), Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (20.1GB), Mario Kart World (21.9GB), Pokemon Legends: Z-A (11.3GB), Donkey Kong Bananza (8.9GB), Animal Crossing: New Horizons (10.8GB).
You can save your storage space for those first-party games by grabbing physical editions, because all of the titles listed above have the full data file on the card. That’s been the case for every Nintendo-published game on Switch 2 so far, but Pokemon Pokopia will be a Game-Key Card with a 10GB download. It’s too early to know if Pokopia will be anomaly for Nintendo, or if it’s the beginning of a trend. For third-party titles, outside of rare exceptions like Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition and Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma, Switch 2 physical editions come with Game-Key Cards. These are low-capacity cards that essentially serve as unlock keys to download the game from the eShop. So if you buy the physical edition of Madden NFL 26, you’ll still need to download the the game’s 57.1GB file from the eShop. Other sports games are even larger: NBA 2K26 is 69.7GB and EA Sports FC 26 is 71.6GB. Outside of sports: Persona 3 Reload is 21.7GB, and Star Wars Outlaws is 19.4GB.
Looking ahead: Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade is currently expected to have an 87.9GB download on Switch 2, so that game alone will consume an enormous chunk of storage space when it launches January 22. Meanwhile, Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection and Resident Evil Requiem are both estimated at just under 30GB.
The prevalence of Game-Key Cards and larger file sizes for AAA games in general will likely cause many Switch 2 owners to run out of storage space even faster than they did on the original Switch.
microSD Express: What is it?
The Express format is a recent advancement in the semiconductor industry that hasn’t been widely adopted by manufacturers just yet. If you’re wondering why Express cards seem so expensive compared to the UHS-I cards you used on the original Switch console and most devices, it all comes down to speeds. For example, the SanDisk Ultra 512GB microSD Card is $40 and reaches 150MB/s read speeds, while the SanDisk 512GB Express Card is $100 with 880MB/s read speeds. The Express costs 2.5 times the price of the Ultra, but it’s nearly six times faster. The prices make more sense when you consider this context. These new cards are markedly faster than SATA SSDs. You can take a closer look at many of the microSD Express Cards from the lists in the gallery below.
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