Nintendo Switch Online membership explained – expansion, family plan, cost and best 12-month deals

The Nintendo Switch continues to fly off shelves as the innovative hybrid console – now available in three different models – approaches its seventh birthday, and with rumours that a so-called Switch 2 is now likely to be launching in early 2025 (as opposed to the second half of 2024, as previous industry reports had claimed), you might be thinking about whether Nintendo Switch Online is worth your time and money.

And there’s no doubt that Nintendo's service is in the strongest place it's ever been in, especially if you subscribe to the Expansion Pack tier, which last year rounded off the rollout of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe DLC tracks, and added (and continues to add) Game Boy Advance titles to its existing library of NES, SNES and N64 games. If you're a longtime Nintendo fan, it's a veritable treasure trove of Ninty goodness that is gradually expanding.

If you don't already have an individual or family membership code, then the various Nintendo Switch Online features, from cloud saving to online multiplayer functionality, might prove tempting. We've got more for you below, including where to get the best deals on 12-month membership codes as things currently stand.

Our latest price check took place on February 23, 2024.

Nintendo Switch Online membership features explained – what's it all about, then?

Shop Nintendo Switch Online membership

Launched in September 2018, Nintendo Switch Online is the gaming company's third-generation online subscription service, following in the footsteps of Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection and Nintendo Network. It's Nintendo’s answer to the likes of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PlayStation Plus, even if it works quite differently in practice.

Features of Nintendo Switch Online include online multiplayer access for the vast majority of games (although there are some notable free-to-play exceptions where you can access this function without a Switch Online subscription, including Fortnite Battle Royale).

You can also take advantage of cloud storage for a number of Nintendo titles with Switch Online membership. This means that in the event that your Switch console is lost, damaged or stolen, you can download synced data to a new device, and if you have multiple Nintendo Switch devices, you can easily access your saves without having to manually transfer them over.

There are, however, some notable exceptions to cloud storage functionality, including some of Nintendo's most popular titles such as Animal Crossing: New Horizons (which has its own backup functionality), the Nintendo Switch editions of Minecraft, FIFA 18 and 19, and a number of Pokémon titles. Unlike its predecessor, Splatoon 3 does support cloud saves, but only for offline save data.

A list of games excluded from Nintendo Switch Online's cloud save function can be found here.

You can also use the Nintendo Switch Online smartphone app (for Apple iOS and Android OS) to unlock voice chat for selected games, along with special features for the likes of Splatoon 3 and Super Smash Bros Ultimate. This feature is available to Nintendo account holders aged 13 years and older only.

Nintendo Switch Online subscribers can also access a library of classic NES and Super NES games, if you're in the mood for some Mario, Kirby or Zelda nostalgia. Classic games have a rewind feature and allow you to suspend and save your progress at any point, a godsend when you’re playing infamously unforgiving retro titles.

Nintendo also added Game Boy games to the service in February 2023, with the initial batch including Tetris, Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins, The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX, Gargoyle's Quest, Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare, Game & Watch Gallery 3, Metroid II: Return of Samus, Wario Land 3, and Kirby's Dream Land. Games added since include Quest for Camelot, Kirby & The Amazing Mirror, and The Legend of Zelda: Oracle 0f Ages and Oracle of Seasons games.

In the February 2024 Nintendo Direct Partner Showcase, four classic Rare games were added to the library. They are Snake Rattle N Roll, R.C. Pro-Am, Battletoads in Battlemaniacs and Killer Instinct.

You will have ongoing access to these

Related: Nintendo Switch buyer's guide – Is a Nintendo Switch worth it?

Finally, you can access exclusive member offers as a Nintendo Switch Online subscriber, including retro-style, full-size SNES and NES controllers (albeit wireless, of course) to use with your Switch console. There is a limit on the number of controllers that you can buy. These are very rarely (if ever) in stock now, though, so you may have to turn to resellers if you really want one.

You can also purchase digital Nintendo Switch Game Vouchers, which are valid for 365 days from the date of purchase. They're only available in pairs, but you can redeem each voucher separately.

The Game Voucher pack costs £84 in the UK, or €99 in Europe, and you can use them to save on selected titles. While you can't transfer them to another account, you can redeem them as part of a pre-order purchase – as long as the release date falls before the expiry date of your voucher.

Additionally, you can get exclusive in-game items for the likes of Super Smash Bros Ultimate, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Splatoon 3 – and you can download Tetris 99 and 2023's F-Zero 99 to play on your Switch, too.

Nintendo Switch Online membership Expansion Pack tier explained

First launched in the second half of 2021, a Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack membership opens up access to an expanding library of N64, Sega Mega Drive, and more recently Game Boy Advance titles, as well as a number of game add-ons such as the now complete Mario Kart 8 Deluxe - Booster Course Pass (sold separately for £22.49) and the Happy Home Paradise DLC for Animal Crossing: New Horizons.

The Expansion Pack costs £34.99 a year, which is a fair amount more than a £17.99 annual Nintendo Switch Online membership, but for the extra cash you get 29 N64 games at the time of writing, including iconic Nintendo titles such as Mario Kart 64, Super Mario 64, Paper Mario, Mario Tennis and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. In 2023 the likes of Goldeneye 007 and 1080° Snowboarding joined the service, while in the February 2024 Nintendo Direct Partner Showcase, Blast Corps for N64 joined the Expansion Pack tier.

You will have ongoing access to these games for as long as you maintain your membership, and can play them offline. Quite a few games have an added online multiplayer component, but otherwise they’re broadly the same as you remember them. You can see the full list of currently available games here.

In addition to the Game Boy library available to standard Nintendo Switch Online members, Expansion Pack members can also access Game Boy Advance titles. Initially the library included Super Mario Bros. 3, WarioWare Inc.: Mega MicroGames, Kuru Kuru Kuruin, Mario Kart: Super Circuit, Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, and The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap. Metroid Fusion, Golden Sun and Kirby and the Amazing Mirror have since been added.

Also included with the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack is a large library of Sega Mega Drive titles, which includes Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (which first introduced Tails to the series), Streets of Rage 2, and the challenging adventure game Ecco the Dolphin.

The other major incentive to join the Expansion Pack tier right now is free access to the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe - Booster Course Pass. With this, 48 remastered courses that span the entire Mario Kart were added in waves to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe for Nintendo Switch. All new tracks have now been added.

Note that you need the base game, sold separately, to access the DLC tracks, and as it can be a bit fiddly to get them to show up, Nintendo offers instructions in case of any issues.

Again, you can also buy the Booster Course Pass on its own for £22.49 or £72.48 with the base game if you don’t want to upgrade to the Expansion Pack, the advantage being that you then permanently own it.

Nintendo Switch Online subscribers can upgrade to the Expansion Pack at any time, with your automatic renewal settings automatically adjusting according to your most recently purchased membership. Click here for information on how to upgrade or change your membership.

Nintendo has in the past sold special edition Nintendo Switch Online classic controllers for Mega Drive, SNES and N64 games, but they’re very difficult to find now and all sold out on the Nintendo website.

Nintendo Switch Online family plan vs individual plan membership explained

Related: Best Nintendo Switch accessories

If you're in a larger household or family group, it might be more cost-effective for you to take up a Nintendo Switch Online family plan and split the fee between you.

The Family Plan is only available with an annual subscription, but if you create a Family Group (of up to eight unique Nintendo accounts, including children's accounts), then all of you can benefit from family membership.

Does Nintendo Switch Online have a free trial?

New customers who've never had Nintendo Switch Online before – and who have set up a Nintendo account – can indeed take advantage of a 7-day free trial via the Nintendo eShop.

You'll be able to access "online play, voice chat via the smartphone app, Save Data Cloud and Nintendo Entertainment System - Nintendo Switch Online services".

Related: Best Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch Lite deals

If you'd like to continue with the service, you can take up automatic renewal after the trial period. Alternatively, if you decide that Nintendo Switch Online isn't for you, want a break, or would prefer to shop around to see if you can get a discounted membership code – then "you can terminate automatic renewal during the free trial and will not be charged", per Nintendo.

To do this, head to the Nintendo eShop on your Switch console and log in. Then, select 'Nintendo Switch Online' from the sidebar, go to 'My Membership Settings' and there should be an option to 'Terminate Automatic Renewal'.

Automatic renewal will not be set up for customers under 18, but will be activated if you purchase an Individual or Family subscription. Unless you turn automatic renewal off, your subscription will renew 48 hours before it's due to run out.

Nintendo Switch Online membership explained – Is it worth it?

Competitor services like Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PlayStation Plus have a higher price point, but Nintendo Switch Online doesn't have quite as wide a feature set.

However, it does offer a competitively-priced route to online play – as well as the nostalgia factor with those Game Boy, NES and SNES games. And once you’ve had cloud save functionality, it’s really hard to go back.

As for the Expansion Pack, at the outset it wasn’t an easy sell, but with new N64 titles arriving fairly regularly and the promise of more to come in the coming months, plus the truly excellent Game Boy Advance library finally arriving last year and enough new Mario Kart 8 Deluxe tracks to fill a whole game, it’s becoming harder for ardent Nintendo fans to resist.

The member-exclusive Game Vouchers are also good value and can lead to savings on popular Nintendo-published titles, which are rarely discounted in sales.

As for whether Nintendo Switch Online will continue in its current guise when Nintendo launches the Switch successor? That we don't know, but given that the library of retro titles is still growing and the large install base the current Switch has, we think it's pretty likely that Nintendo will endeavour to make it a smooth transition for those who want to upgrade when the time comes.

Nintendo Switch Online membership code cost – and best 12-month deals

If you think you’re only interested in the basic Nintendo Switch Online membership, that costs £3.49 (or €3.99) per month in the UK and Europe respectively. A 90-day membership is better value, priced at £6.99, or €7.99 in Europe.

However, the best value overall is for a 12-month individual membership code, which usually costs £17.99, or €19.99 in Europe. If you want to buy from Amazon, you can shave off a few pennies and pay £17.12.

That said, at time of writing, CDKeys is offering a more substantial 27% off the price of a Nintendo Switch Online 12-month membership code in the UK – you can purchase one there for £12.99. It is also offering a 28% discount on the three-month individual membership, down to £4.99 from £6.99, and promises "instant delivery" of the digital codes on purchase.

Additionally, CDKeys lists individual memberships for customers in the US, Australia and New Zealand, and family plan memberships for US customers.

ShopTo is also offering a discount on Nintendo Switch Online 12-month membership codes, pricing them at £14.85 and promising "instant delivery". It also offers a competitive price for 90-day memberships, at £5.85.

Nintendo Switch Online family plans are only available for 12 months, priced at £31.49 in the UK and €34.99 in Europe.

You can save here too, though, with ShopTo pricing a 12-month family membership at £24.85. The site has its own loyalty points scheme, too, which might sway your decision if you're a regular customer or intend to buy from the brand again in the future.

The Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack can only be purchased as a rolling 12-month membership, as opposed to the shorter terms you can select with the standard tier. An individual membership costs £34.99 and a family membership is £59.99.

If you’re looking to upgrade from a Nintendo Switch Online membership, either individual or family, you can use the days you have left as a discount on the price of the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack tier. Nintendo explains exactly how to do that here.

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