One of the best things about the Nintendo Switch is the region-free eShop. That means you can buy or download games from any region and play them on your console without any problems. It also means you can access games that are region specific, or price and sell in one region but not another, as long as you know how.
But maybe you’ve seen prices in multiple currencies — dollars, euros, and pounds, for example — and noticed that the prices don’t seem to add up at all. Of course it depends on the game and the publisher, and some of them to be more or less the same across the different areas. However, others can be very different.
The Switch eShops in different regions to do thus have different prices, as well as different sales, different tax levels, and even different ways to buy the game that can lower or increase the price. Here’s a breakdown of how much each region charges for games, plus some of the other differences between the two.
Regional Nintendo Switch eShop Price Comparison
Before we get started, however, here are some general tips and warnings…
Things to note
- Use eshop-prices.com to compare prices!
- It is an absolute lifesaver. We used it to create this article!
- Sales take place at different times
- There are plenty of occasions when the US, for example, has a festive sale for a holiday that doesn’t exist in other countries. You can shop around to find out when these will be and what regions they will be in, but keeping track of all the sales is hard work!
- Tax varies
- In countries like the US and Canada, taxes are levied at the time of purchase – often a few dollars on top of the advertised price. Different states and provinces have different tax levels – we’ll go into more detail on this later.
- Your card is not accepted everywhere
- Your card was issued in one country and in other countries you may not have it on file if it was not issued in that region. However, you can use eShop credit – we have a guide below.
- Sometimes you need an address in that region
- Especially if you are trying to use a credit card!
- Your gold points will be linked to that account
- Gold points are earned every time you buy a digital game and can be used to get a discount on your next purchase. If you split your purchases between two or more eShops, those gold points will also be split.
- You will lose access to the games from that eShop if you delete or delete your account
- To re-download purchased games, you need access to the regional account and eShop where you made that purchase, otherwise they will be inaccessible
- Buying in other regions may affect the languages in which the game is available, so you may not be able to get the game in English. Make sure to look at the bottom of the game page!
Okay, with all caveats out of the way, let’s take a look at the regions themselves…
Regional Switch eShop Price Comparisons
We picked a popular Nintendo game (Breath of the Wild) and a popular, cheaper indie game (Stardew Valley) as references to compare the price differences between regions, and it’s pretty enlightening – Japan is surprisingly cheap for first-party games, it seems, but South Africa and Mexico are way ahead of indie games.
Of course, this table also shows that prices are quite unpredictable. You’re really better off looking on a case-by-case basis to see which games are cheaper and where to buy them.
Note 1: The price for Germany applies to most of Europe (excluding Switzerland, Poland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Czech Republic).
Note 2: You can click the “USD Equivalent” headings to sort the rows from lowest to highest.
| Region | Prize for Breath of the Wild | USD equivalent | Award for Stardew Valley | USD equivalent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | £59.99 | $69.10 | £10.99 | $12.66 |
| Germany | €69.99 | $69.25 | €13.99 | $13.84 |
| Japan | ¥7.678 | $53.79 | ¥1,480 | $10.37 |
| United States | $59.99 | $59.99 | $14.99 | $14.99 |
| Canada | $83.99 | $63.94 | $17.84 | $13.59 |
| Australia | $89.95 | $60.72 | $16.99 | $1.46 |
| South Africa | €1,329.00 | $76.86 | R159.00 | $9.20 |
| Mexico | $1,399.00 | $69.57 | $149.99 | $7.45 |
Game Vouchers
Game vouchers are a great way to save money on bigger games, usually first-party Nintendo games or from series like Xenoblade, Bayonetta, Kirby and Metroid. However, you need a Nintendo Switch Online membership to purchase them.
Not every region has them though – here’s a list of where to get them and what they cost (and again, Germany represents most of Europe except Switzerland, Poland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Czech Republic):
| Region | Game voucher x 2 | USD equivalent |
|---|---|---|
| UK | £84.00 | $97.00 |
| Germany | € 99.00 | $98.25 |
| Japan | ¥9.980 | $69.95 |
| Australia | $134.95 | $91.17 |
| South Africa | €1,859.00 | $107.70 |
Quite a range of prices here from Japan to South Africa in particular. The UK and Europe are pricey but will still save you quite a bit if you’re after two £60/€70 games.
Here is the full list of countries that have game vouchers:
- Austria
- Belgium
- Bulgaria
- Croatia
- Cyprus
- Czech Republic
- Germany
- Denmark
- Estonia
- Spain
- Finland
- France
- Greece
- Hungary
- Ireland
- Italy
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Latvia
- Malta
- The Netherlands
- Norway
- Poland
- Portugal
- Romania
- Russia
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- Slovenia
- Slovakia
- South Africa
- UK
VAT
In the US and Canada, you pay different amounts of tax at the point of sale, depending on the region in which your zip code or zip code is located. Here are some examples:
| State / Province | Country | Sales tax (on digital games) |
|---|---|---|
| New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island | Canada | 15% |
| Ontario | Canada | 13% |
| Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Quebec, Saskatchewan | Canada | 5% |
| Arkansas, Colorado | United States | 0% (digital game sales are tax-exempt) |
| Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, Oregon | United States | 0% |
| All other states | United States | 4-10% |
How to pay for eShop games in other regions
Your credit or debit card will most likely not work in a different region, either because the registered address is in a different country or because the card itself was issued in a different country, but you can still buy games with eShop credit. Make sure you buy it in the correct currency!
You can read our full guide to buying eShop credit here – we often have discounts with 10% off, so be sure to check regularly and stock up!
Useful links
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