The retail price of the Nintendo Switch 2 may see an increase by next year in 2026 as a result of tariffs, according to analyst Daniel Ahmad.
Daniel Ahmad., Director of Research and Insights at Niko Partners, took to Twitter/X to respond to point out that Nintendo had considered raising the price of Switch 2 when tariffs were temporarily at 10% for Vietnam. The country’s tariff rate has now been increased to 20%, indicating that a price hike is on the cards.
Nintendo had shifted Switch 2 production and sourcing of parts away from China and towards Southeast Asia, especially Vietnam, in order to circumvent tariffs levied specifically against China. Ahmad mentioned that the new tariff rate for Vietnam is most certainly impacting margins for the console maker. According to him, while the company may not be willing to raise prices right now, it will likely reconsider it by next year.
In response to Ahmad, MST Financial Senior Analyst David Gibson mentioned that that Nintendo based its guidance on 145% China and 10% Vietnam tariffs, the latter of which is now 20%. He pointed out that China still accounts for a part of the Switch 2 supply to the US. Therefore, China potentially going to 20-30% final tariff will offset Vietnam’s increase for Nintendo.
It’s currently difficult to predict what tariffs the US will settle with for China. While there is merit in Gibson’s assessment, it’s based on a lowered tariff rate for the country, which may not end up happening.
Ahmad had correctly predicted the recent PS5 price hike. He noted that, even though Sony Interactive Entertainment is diversifying away from China (for US bound shipments), it’s still an important manufacturing center for the company. According to him, a tariffs of 30% on China, 15% on Japan, 20% on Vietnam, 19% on Malaysia means that the console maker will be impacted no matter what.
