One of the best microSD playing cards for the Nintendo Swap 2

The Nintendo Swap 2 is right here, and which means hundreds of thousands of individuals will finally have to purchase a brand new microSD card. Whereas the console comes with 256GB of storage by itself, its improved efficiency implies that some video games will chew up a ton of house. Cyberpunk 2077 is a 60GB obtain, for instance, whereas Break up Fiction checks in at 69GB. Different titles aren’t practically as huge (notably these made by Nintendo itself), but it surely’s not laborious to see how you could possibly find yourself deleting and redownloading video games inside a pair months.

Everytime you do need to add room, you’ll want a microSD Categorical card. The “Categorical” half is vital: These are not the identical because the outdated dependable microSD playing cards you would possibly’ve purchased for the unique Swap or different gaming handhelds — they’re newer, quicker and considerably costlier. However they’re your solely selection. When you’re searching for the perfect microSD card for the Swap 2 at the moment, we’ve damaged down what you need to know before you purchase.

One of the best microSD playing cards for the Swap 2 (aren’t all that vital)

The Swap 2 is the primary mainstream system to require microSD Categorical for storage growth, so there aren’t many choices available for purchase simply but. Of the small handful of appropriate fashions we’ve seen to date, we’ve examined 5: the SanDisk microSD Categorical Card (aka the “SanDisk GamePlay microSD Categorical Card” at Walmart), the Lexar Play Professional, the Samsung microSD Card for Nintendo Swap 2, the PNY microSD Categorical Card and the GameStop Categorical microSD Card for Nintendo Swap 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 ought to be the case with one other card bought by Walmart underneath 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 Categorical playing cards throughout a spread of Swap 2 video games, our recommendation is straightforward: Get whichever one is on the market for the bottom worth within the capability you need. They aren’t similar, particularly if you wish to transfer a recreation to the cardboard from the console’s inside storage (or vice versa). However the variations in load occasions and general efficiency inside precise video games are robust to note until you will have a stopwatch helpful.

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 of Cyberpunk 2077 took about 38 seconds in every case. Loading a save in a very asset-heavy space (Jig-Jig Avenue) then took between 26 and 29 seconds, relying on the cardboard.

With Quick Fusion, a smaller native Swap 2 recreation, the preliminary load at all times 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 Swap 2 improve for The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (utilizing a Swap 1 cartridge): Every card took simply over six seconds to get to the beginning display, 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 important points with in-game hundreds when taking part in every recreation, both.

All of this implies that the Swap 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 be aware that the console’s built-in storage was constantly quicker than any exterior possibility: The hole wasn’t at all times huge, however no card actually outpaced it in any of our exams. Loading that demanding space in Cyberpunk, for instance, took about 22.5 seconds on common. So if you’d like absolutely the quickest load occasions, don’t put your recreation on a card in any respect.

When you want the psychological consolation of realizing you technically have the perfect card accessible, get the SanDisk microSD Categorical Card. It had no outliers throughout our many recreation loading exams, and it was constantly proper close to the highest when it got here to transferring video games to and from system storage, which suggests it affords sturdy sequential learn and write efficiency. Benchmark testing on PC with instruments like CrystalDiskMark backed this up, as famous in our broader microSD card shopping for information.

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 write 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 be aware 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 recreation to that specific mannequin will take for much longer.

Virtually talking, although, pace variations aren’t as vital on this case as having numerous house to carry video games at a worth you possibly can stay with. To make issues simple, we’ve listed each Categorical card we’ve seen at retailers on the time of writing beneath. Keep in mind: You need microSD Categorical, not “Excessive,” just like the branding SanDisk makes use of for some standard microSD playing cards. A microSD Categorical card could have a giant “EX” emblem printed on it.

128GB

• SanDisk microSD Categorical Card ($64 MSRP)

• PNY microSD Categorical Card ($47 MSRP)

256GB

512GB

1TB

• Lexar Play Professional ($220 MSRP)

• GameStop Categorical microSD Card for Nintendo Swap 2 ($190 MSRP)

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

However inventory for all of those playing cards has been patchy because the Swap 2 landed, particularly for the Walmart Onn mannequin, which is by far the most affordable selection. If just one card is definitely accessible by the point you learn this — and you have to have it at the moment — it’s secure to simply get it. You gained’t lose or achieve all that a lot on the subject of real-world efficiency.

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

The Swap 2 is extraordinarily in style, so extra microSD Categorical playing cards will have to be made and costs will (finally) come down. Ideally, we’ll see extra high-capacity choices as properly: Nintendo says the Swap 2 technically helps 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 Swap 2 first, even when it means having to delete a recreation or two. However if you happen to completely want extra space instantly, the playing cards above ought to be positive.

What are microSD Categorical playing cards?

Most microSD playing cards are primarily based on an ordinary referred to 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’ll have purchased up 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 Swap 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 might attain as much as 312 MB/s. These are pricier and far much less widespread than playing cards primarily based 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 idea (624 MB/s), however no microSD playing cards have truly used it.

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

Therefore, SD Categorical. This customary has technically been round since 2018 however largely went nowhere till the Swap 2 got here alongside. It additionally makes use of a second row of pins, but it surely lets microSD playing cards make the most of the PCI Categorical (PCIe)/NVMe interface, which is identical underlying tech utilized by trendy SSDs. In consequence, it could actually produce significantly quicker learn and write speeds, with a present theoretical most of 985 MB/s.

As famous above, real-world efficiency gained’t be fairly that quick. Even when it was, the perfect microSD Categorical 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 no less than 5,500 MB/s.) And so they’ll fall properly beneath their peak speeds underneath sustained hundreds: SanDisk, as an example, says sustained write speeds for its 128GB Categorical card can drop as little as 100 MB/s.

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

It stays to be seen how properly these Categorical 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-Swap 2 units that assist microSD Categorical 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 system (until you purchase a expensive exterior reader). Nonetheless, whereas the elevated prices and restricted choice are annoying, the tech itself is worthy of a next-gen Swap.

How we check microSD Categorical playing cards

We put our microSD Categorical playing cards by means of a sequence of exams meant to simulate how folks would use every card on the Swap 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 massive one in Cyberpunk 2077 and a hybrid in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, which ran off a Swap 1 cartridge however used a roughly 10GB Swap 2 improve pack that was downloaded and put in digitally.

We first timed how lengthy it took to maneuver every recreation from the system’s inside storage to the cardboard in query, and vice versa. We then timed how lengthy it took to load every recreation when put in to a given card. After that, we measured how shortly 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 Fort 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 areas.

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

Current updates

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