The Nintendo Switch 2 uses fast microSD Express cards — here’s where can you buy one

We’ve suspected that the Nintendo Switch 2 will use microSD cards, just like the original Switch, for the purpose of storing more games than can fit on its internal storage. But Nintendo shared during its Direct showcase that the Switch 2 supports microSD Express cards, which retain the same size and shape of microSD cards, but boast greatly enhanced read and write speeds.

Will you need one when the Switch 2 launches on June 5? Yes, as regular microSD cards will not work in the new console. The good news if you buy a microSD Express card? They’re backwards compatible with all supported original Switch games. The not-so-good news? They’re kind of expensive.

Compared to the tremendous value of buying a high-capacity microSD card, where $75 or so can get you 1 TB, microSD Express cards are much more expensive at the moment. That’s partially because only a couple of companies manufacture microSD Express cards (SanDisk and Samsung). Plus, while the tech is a handful of years old, the Switch 2 is the first mainstream gaming device to support it.

As mentioned above, there’s a good reason for the price increase: these cards are classified as NVMe SSDs. To that end, they can read and write data about four times faster than your run-of-the-mill microSD card, resulting in faster everything, from downloads, updates, and loading. It’s likely system boot times will be faster, too.