The most effective microSD playing cards for the Nintendo Change 2

The Nintendo Switch 2 is right here, and which means tens of millions of individuals will finally have to purchase a brand new microSD card. Whereas the console comes with 256GB of storage by itself, its improved performance implies that some video games will chew up a ton of area. Cyberpunk 2077 is a 60GB obtain, for instance, whereas Split Fiction checks in at 69GB. Different titles aren’t almost as large (notably these made by Nintendo itself), however it’s not arduous to see how you may find yourself deleting and redownloading video games inside a pair months.

Everytime you do wish to add room, you’ll want a microSD Specific card. The “Specific” half is necessary: These are not the identical because the previous dependable microSD cards you may’ve purchased for the unique Change or different gaming handhelds — they’re newer, quicker and considerably dearer. However they’re your only choice. For those who’re searching for one of the best microSD card for the Change 2 immediately, we’ve damaged down what you need to know before you purchase.

The most effective microSD playing cards for the Change 2 (aren’t all that necessary)

The Change 2 is the primary mainstream machine to require microSD Specific for storage enlargement, so there aren’t many choices available for purchase simply but. Of the small handful of appropriate fashions we’ve seen up to now, we’ve examined 5: the SanDisk microSD Express Card (aka the “SanDisk GamePlay microSD Express Card” at Walmart), the Lexar Play Pro, the Samsung microSD Card for Nintendo Switch 2, the PNY microSD Express Card and the GameStop Express microSD Card for Nintendo Switch 2. The primary 4 are made by real storage producers, whereas the GameStop card seems to be a rebadged model of one other mannequin. (This must be the case with another card sold by Walmart beneath its Onn sub-brand, which hasn’t been in inventory for a lot of the previous a number of months.) We used the 256GB model of each card aside from Lexar Play Professional, which was 1TB.

After timing these microSD Specific playing cards throughout a variety of Change 2 video games, our recommendation is easy: Get whichever one is offered for the bottom value within the capability you need. They aren’t similar, particularly if you wish to transfer a sport to the cardboard from the console’s inside storage (or vice versa). However the variations in load instances and total efficiency inside precise video games are robust to note until you may have a stopwatch useful.

All 5 playing cards loaded up the digital model of Mario Kart World, as an example, between 18 and 20 seconds. Every loaded the primary Grand Prix race in about 6.5 seconds. Attending to the beginning display screen of Cyberpunk 2077 took about 38 seconds in every case. Loading a save in a very asset-heavy space (Jig-Jig Street) then took between 26 and 29 seconds, relying on the cardboard.

With Fast Fusion, a smaller native Change 2 sport, the preliminary load all the time took six to seven seconds, whereas every card loaded the primary championship race in roughly 4 seconds. It was the same state of affairs with the Change 2 improve for The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (utilizing a Change 1 cartridge): Every card took simply over six seconds to get to the beginning display screen, between 19 and 20 seconds to load a save simply earlier than the ultimate boss, about 16 seconds to quick journey between Kakariko Village and Korok Forest, and so forth. We noticed no vital points with in-game hundreds when taking part in every sport, both.

All of this means that the Change 2 has a comparatively particular goal for these playing cards to hit, and that there might not be a lot room for one mannequin to leap too far out in entrance of the others. We’ll additionally word that the console’s built-in storage was constantly quicker than any exterior possibility: The hole wasn’t all the time large, however no card actually outpaced it in any of our assessments. Loading that demanding space in Cyberpunk, for instance, took about 22.5 seconds on common. So if you need absolutely the quickest load instances, don’t put your sport on a card in any respect.

For those who want the psychological consolation of understanding you technically have one of the best card obtainable, get the SanDisk microSD Express Card. It had no outliers throughout our many sport loading assessments, and it was constantly proper close to the highest when it got here to shifting video games to and from system storage, which suggests it gives sturdy sequential learn and write efficiency. Benchmark testing on PC with instruments like CrystalDiskMark backed this up, as famous in our broader microSD card buying guide.

Placing Mario Kart (a 21.9GB file) on that card took 4 minutes and 39 seconds on common, which was solely second to the Lexar Play Professional by six seconds. It was the quickest to jot down Quick Fusion (3.5GB), taking a median of 27 seconds throughout three runs. Solely PNY’s card was quicker to maneuver video games again to the console’s storage, however that one was far slower at writing video games to the cardboard — getting Mario Kart on there took seven minutes and 11 seconds on common. Simply word that the 128GB model of SanDisk’s card has slower sequential writes than the bigger variations, together with a lot slower sustained write speeds (100 MB/s vs 210-220 MB/s). So transferring a sport to that exact mannequin will take for much longer.

Virtually talking, although, pace variations aren’t as necessary on this case as having a number of area to carry video games at a value you’ll be able to reside with. To make issues simple, we’ve listed each Specific card we’ve seen at retailers on the time of writing under. Keep in mind: You need microSD Specific, not “Excessive,” just like the branding SanDisk makes use of for some conventional microSD cards. A microSD Specific card may have an enormous “EX” brand printed on it.

128GB

• SanDisk microSD Express Card ($64 MSRP)

• PNY microSD Express Card ($47 MSRP)

256GB

512GB

1TB

• Lexar Play Pro ($220 MSRP)

• GameStop Express microSD Card for Nintendo Switch 2 ($190 MSRP)

As you’ll be able to see, whereas the SanDisk card is quick, it’s additionally the most costly of an already-pricey bunch. Is it value an additional $10-20 to shave a pair seconds off sure hundreds in sure video games, or a pair minutes when shifting a sport to exterior storage? In all probability not for most individuals.

However inventory for all of those playing cards has been patchy for the reason that Change 2 landed, particularly for the Walmart Onn mannequin, which is by far the most cost effective alternative. If just one card is definitely obtainable by the point you learn this — and you need to have it immediately — it’s protected to simply get it. You received’t lose or achieve all that a lot on the subject of real-world efficiency.

Finally, although, we advise holding off on shopping for any microSD Specific card for so long as you’ll be able to. President Trump’s tariff shenanigans might spike costs a little bit increased within the brief time period, however on the whole, all of those playing cards must be as costly immediately as they’ll ever be. And in comparison with conventional microSD choices, they are expensive: The Samsung Pro Plus, for instance, prices $17 for 128GB, $25 for 256GB, $43 for 512GB and $90 for 1TB as of this writing.

The Change 2 is extremely popular, so extra microSD Specific playing cards will should be made and costs will (finally) come down. Ideally, we’ll see extra high-capacity choices as properly: Nintendo says the Change 2 technically supports playing cards as much as 2TB, however to this point solely a pair even go as much as 1TB. All of this implies you need to attempt to use all 256GB baked into the Change 2 first, even when it means having to delete a sport or two. However in case you completely want extra space immediately, the playing cards above must be wonderful.

What are microSD Specific playing cards?

Most microSD playing cards are based mostly on a typical known as Extremely Excessive Velocity (UHS), of which there are three variations: UHS-I, UHS-II and UHS-III. The overwhelming majority of playing cards you could have purchased prior to now make the most of UHS-I. These have one row of pins within the again and a theoretical most information switch pace of 104 megabytes per second (MB/s). (Although many playing cards are in a position to surpass that restrict with proprietary tech and card readers.) The unique Change has a UHS-I microSD slot, as do most different gaming handhelds like Valve’s Steam Deck.

UHS-II playing cards add a second row of pins and may attain as much as 312 MB/s. These are pricier and far much less widespread than playing cards based mostly on UHS-I, however they’re supported by some cameras and higher-power handhelds just like the ASUS ROG Ally X. UHS-III, in the meantime, is twice as quick as UHS-II in concept (624 MB/s), however no microSD playing cards have really used it.

UHS-I playing cards have held on through the years as a result of they’re low cost, extensively supported and quick sufficient for the issues most individuals want them to do: file 4K video, stash images and so forth. However with the Change 2, Nintendo needs more. The brand new console is dramatically extra highly effective, which permits it to run demanding games that will have initially been constructed for stronger {hardware} just like the PlayStation 5, Xbox Collection X or gaming PCs. The machine also uses UFS 3.1 storage internally, which is far speedier than the eMMC storage utilized by the unique Change. (A customized file decompression engine helps enhance load instances as properly.) So if the Change 2 goes to just accept microSD playing cards, it wants ones that received’t carry a severe drop-off in efficiency and may maintain up with fashionable video games.

Therefore, SD Specific. This normal has technically been around since 2018 however principally went nowhere till the Change 2 got here alongside. It additionally makes use of a second row of pins, however it lets microSD playing cards benefit from the PCI Specific (PCIe)/NVMe interface, which is identical underlying tech utilized by modern SSDs. In consequence, it may possibly produce significantly quicker learn and write speeds, with a present theoretical maximum of 985 MB/s.

As famous above, real-world efficiency received’t be fairly that quick. Even when it was, one of the best microSD Specific playing cards would nonetheless be a lot slower than the NVMe SSDs used by the PS5 and Xbox. (Sony recommends SSDs with sequential learn speeds of at the very least 5,500 MB/s.) They usually’ll fall properly under their peak speeds beneath sustained hundreds: SanDisk, as an example, says sustained write speeds for its 128GB Specific card can drop as little as 100 MB/s.

However they’re nonetheless a marked enchancment over previous UHS-I playing cards, and in concept, they need to be faster than some older SATA-based SSDs when it comes loading sport ranges, asset streaming, retrieving saves or copying video games to exterior storage. Whereas SanDisk’s microSD Specific card can produce sequential learn speeds round 900 MB/s, Lexar’s Professional Silver Plus — the highest UHS-I choose in our basic microSD card information — topped out simply over 200 MB/s, and that’s with a proprietary reader. (On the primary Change, it’d be nearer to 100 MB/s.) Sequential writes and random speeds have been three to 4 instances higher as properly, and typically much more relying on the benchmark we used.

It stays to be seen how properly these Specific playing cards will maintain up with years of use, and there’s no approach to know precisely when their sky-high costs will drop. Non-Change 2 gadgets that help microSD Specific are nonetheless exceedingly uncommon, and the usual itself isn’t backwards appropriate with UHS-II, so that you’ll be restricted to UHS-I speeds if you wish to use your card with one other machine (until you purchase a pricey external reader). Nonetheless, whereas the elevated prices and restricted choice are annoying, the tech itself is worthy of a next-gen Change.

How we check microSD Specific playing cards

We put our microSD Specific playing cards by a collection of assessments meant to simulate how individuals would use every card on the Change 2 in the actual world. We primarily labored with 4 video games: a mid-sized title in Mario Kart World, a small one in Quick Fusion, a comparatively giant one in Cyberpunk 2077 and a hybrid in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, which ran off a Change 1 cartridge however used a roughly 10GB Change 2 improve pack that was downloaded and put in digitally.

We first timed how lengthy it took to maneuver every sport from the system’s inside storage to the cardboard in query, and vice versa. We then timed how lengthy it took to load every sport when put in to a given card. After that, we measured how rapidly the playing cards might load sure in-game situations: the primary Grand Prix race in Mario Kart; the primary championship race in Quick Fusion; quick touring between the Jig-Jig Avenue, Embers and Downtown Central areas in Cyberpunk and quick touring between the Kakariko Village, Korok Forest and the Hyrule Fortress City Ruins areas in Zelda. (We selected these locations within the latter two video games as a result of they’re extra taxing than different areas.) With Cyberpunk and Zelda, we additionally timed how lengthy it took to load up totally different save recordsdata in these places.

With every check, we accomplished three to 5 runs to account for any irregularities and marked down the common time taken between them. We did every check in airplane mode, with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth off, to attenuate any efficiency drain that would come up from background downloads. Between every check, we additionally spent at the very least an hour taking part in the video games off every card to make sure there have been no vital drop-offs in comparison with the console’s built-in storage.

Current updates

September 2025: We’ve taken one other move by this information to substantiate our recommendation remains to be correct. We’ve additionally famous a brand new 512GB model of PNY’s microSD Specific card and confirmed {that a} “SanDisk GamePlay” Specific card bought at Walmart has the identical efficiency as the usual SanDisk mannequin we suggest above, simply with a distinct title.