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Use Nintendo’s transfer tools—not a microSD card or game card. A direct user transfer moves one Nintendo Account user and that user’s saves between two consoles. Nintendo Switch Online Save Data Cloud can download a backup for supported games. If the destination is Nintendo Switch 2, System Transfer can move users, saves, settings and other content during setup, including saves for games that do not support cloud backup.
Your save data is stored in the console’s internal system memory. Copying a microSD card, swapping a cartridge or merely signing in to the same Nintendo Account will not move game progress.
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Choose the right transfer method
The best route depends on which consoles you have, whether you need a copy or a relocation, and whether the game supports cloud backup.
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|---|---|---|---|
| Both Switch-family consoles are available | Transfer Your User and Save Data | Moves one user and that user’s save data directly between consoles | Software, updates, screenshots, videos and console settings are not included |
| You want a backup or the other console is not available yet | Nintendo Switch Online Save Data Cloud | Uploads a supported game’s save and downloads it to another console using the same Nintendo Account | Not every game supports cloud backup; downloading can overwrite the destination save |
| You are moving from Nintendo Switch to Nintendo Switch 2 | Switch 2 System Transfer | Transfers users, saves, settings and other listed content during setup | The server-upload option can initialize the source console; uploaded data is retained for approximately 364 days |
| Animal Crossing: New Horizons on an original Switch | Dedicated island-transfer service | Moves the console-level island data | Ordinary user or save-data transfer functions do not handle the island |
For a normal move with both systems in front of you, direct transfer is usually the simplest. For a supported title where you want to keep using the old console, cloud backup is the better fit. For Switch 2, use System Transfer when possible, especially for games excluded from Save Data Cloud.
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Direct transfer between two Nintendo Switch-family consoles
Nintendo’s built-in transfer moves a selected user and that user’s save data from one console to another. The consoles must communicate during the process, so have both systems available before you begin.
Prepare both consoles
- Install the latest available system update on both consoles.
- Connect both consoles to the internet.
- Confirm that the user being moved is linked to a Nintendo Account.
- On the destination console, link that same Nintendo Account to the corresponding user.
- Keep both consoles nearby and connect their AC adapters. A transfer that stops because a battery runs out can leave you without a completed move.
- Make sure you know which user owns the save. Saves are associated with a console user, not with the cartridge or microSD card.
Start the transfer
- Open System Settings on each console.
- Choose Users.
- Select Transfer Your User and Save Data.
- Follow the on-screen prompts to identify the source and destination consoles.
- Choose the user whose account and saves you want to move, then confirm the destination.
- Leave both systems powered and connected until the consoles report that the transfer is complete.
This route transfers the selected user-related information and that user’s save data. It is a relocation workflow rather than a general content backup, so use it when you intend to move that user and progress to the other console.
What direct transfer includes—and what it does not
| Content | Transferred? | What to expect |
|---|---|---|
| Selected user information | Yes | The user is moved with the transfer and must use the corresponding Nintendo Account on the destination. |
| That user’s save data | Yes | Game progress associated with the selected user is transferred. |
| Game software | No | Download the game again on the destination console if necessary. |
| Software update data | No | Install the current game update again after downloading the software. |
| Screenshots and videos | No | Move or back up captures separately using the console’s capture-management options. |
| Console settings | No | Reconfigure settings on the destination as needed. |
Nintendo treats save data as separate from software and update data. Seeing a game icon missing after transfer does not necessarily mean the save failed; download the software, install its update, and then launch it with the transferred user.
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Cloud transfer is a backup-and-download process. It is useful when the destination console is elsewhere, when you want a recoverable copy, or when you plan to continue using the original system. It requires an active Nintendo Switch Online membership for the user and a game that supports Save Data Cloud.
Back up the save on the original console
- Sign in with the Nintendo Account that owns the game’s save.
- Open the game’s save-data cloud controls from the Nintendo Switch Online features on the console.
- Select the game and choose the option to back up its save data.
- Wait for the backup to finish before turning off the console or changing accounts.
Download the backup on the destination console
- Link the same Nintendo Account to a user on the destination console.
- Open the game’s save-data cloud controls.
- Select the title whose backup you created.
- Choose the option to download the backup to the destination console.
- Confirm the warning after checking that the destination does not contain newer progress you need to keep.
Nintendo warns that downloading a cloud backup can overwrite the destination console’s save for that game, and the overwrite cannot be undone. Check both consoles before confirming. A cloud backup is maintained per Nintendo Account per software title, so one account has one stored backup for a given game rather than an unlimited history of versions.
Games that do not support Save Data Cloud
Cloud support is not universal. Nintendo’s current support information lists these non-supported examples:
- 1-2-Switch
- Splatoon 2
- Pokémon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! and Pokémon: Let’s Go, Eevee!
- Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield
- Animal Crossing: New Horizons
- Pokémon UNITE
- Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Pokémon Shining Pearl
- Pokémon Legends: Arceus
- Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet
- Pokémon Legends: Z-A
Check the game’s Nintendo eShop details or the software’s options screen before relying on cloud backup. A Nintendo Switch Online subscription by itself does not make an unsupported title cloud-compatible.
Cloud transfer versus direct transfer
Cloud download copies a stored backup to another Switch-family console, so it is the route to consider when the old console must remain usable. Direct transfer is designed to relocate the selected user and saves between two consoles that are available together. Decide whether you need a duplicate or a move before starting; choosing the wrong route can leave you with an unwanted overwrite or without the old user’s local data in the place you expected.
Transfer from Nintendo Switch to Nintendo Switch 2
Nintendo Switch 2 offers System Transfer as part of the console’s setup. It is the broadest route for a Switch-to-Switch 2 move because it can carry users, save data, settings and other content listed by Nintendo. Local communication is the normal choice when both consoles are available.
Local System Transfer during setup
- Start setting up the Nintendo Switch 2 and choose the System Transfer option when it appears.
- Prepare the original Nintendo Switch, update both consoles and connect them to the internet.
- Keep both systems close together and connected to AC power.
- Follow the prompts to pair the consoles and select the content to transfer.
- Do not interrupt either system until Switch 2 confirms completion.
System Transfer is particularly important for software that does not support Save Data Cloud. Nintendo’s Switch 2 guidance gives Splatoon 2 and Pokémon Scarlet/Pokémon Violet as examples of games whose saves can move through System Transfer even though cloud backup is unavailable.
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Server-upload System Transfer when Switch 2 is not in hand
Nintendo also provides a server-upload route. You can upload the transfer data from the original Switch before you physically have the Switch 2, then retrieve it during Switch 2 setup. Nintendo says this uploaded data is retained for approximately 364 days (Nintendo Support, 2026).
There is a major consequence: the server-upload route can initialize the source console. Use it only after confirming that you no longer need the source system in its current state and that any separately needed captures or other content have been handled. If you intend to keep playing on the old Switch, use local transfer or an eligible cloud backup instead.
Animal Crossing on Switch 2
Switch 2 System Transfer can carry the Animal Crossing: New Horizons island. After the move, Nintendo says users may need to be linked to the resident data again if the system prompts for that step. Follow those linking instructions before launching the game for the first time on Switch 2.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons on an original Nintendo Switch
Animal Crossing: New Horizons stores island information at the console level. On an original Nintendo Switch, it cannot use the ordinary user-transfer or save-data-transfer functions. Nintendo provides a dedicated island-transfer service for moving the island to another console.
What this means for your move
- Do not expect a normal user transfer to carry the island.
- Do not rely on Save Data Cloud; the title is listed among games that do not support it.
- Use Nintendo’s dedicated island-transfer process on the consoles involved.
- If the destination is Switch 2, use System Transfer and complete any resident-data linking steps that appear afterward.
The island is not equivalent to an individual player save, so identify this special case before selecting a standard transfer route.
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Copying a microSD card
Save data is stored in the console’s system memory, not on the microSD card. Moving the card can carry compatible downloadable software or other files, but it does not carry your game progress. Use direct transfer, cloud download for an eligible game, or Switch 2 System Transfer instead.
Swapping a game card
Packaged software does not store your save on the game card. Inserting the same cartridge into another console supplies the game software, not the original console’s progress.
Signing in to the same Nintendo Account
Nintendo Account sign-in establishes the account relationship; it does not automatically synchronize local saves. Nintendo’s support guidance directs users who change consoles to move their save data or download it through Save Data Cloud. Choose one of the supported transfer methods explicitly.
Assuming every game has cloud backup
Several major titles are excluded from Save Data Cloud, including the Pokémon games and Animal Crossing: New Horizons listed above. Verify support for the exact title before you erase, sell or reset the old console.
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Troubleshoot a transfer that did not work
The destination has no game icon
Direct transfer does not include software or update data. Redownload the game on the destination console, install its update, select the transferred user and then check for the save.
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The cloud option is missing
Confirm that the user has Nintendo Switch Online and that the game supports Save Data Cloud. If the title appears on Nintendo’s non-supported list, use direct transfer when both consoles are present or Switch 2 System Transfer for a Switch 2 move.
The destination save was replaced
Cloud download can overwrite the destination save, and Nintendo says that overwrite cannot be undone. Stop downloading additional copies and determine whether the local destination progress was the version you needed before proceeding with any other transfer.
The consoles cannot find each other
- Install pending system updates on both consoles.
- Connect both systems to the internet and keep them nearby.
- Connect AC adapters and restart the transfer from System Settings → Users → Transfer Your User and Save Data.
- Verify that the intended user is linked to the same Nintendo Account on the destination.
If the transfer is interrupted, do not initialize either console until you have checked whether the user and save are still present and selected a supported recovery route.
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A Pokémon or Animal Crossing save is missing
Check the title’s transfer rules first. Unsupported cloud games require direct transfer or Switch 2 System Transfer, while Animal Crossing: New Horizons on an original Switch requires the dedicated island-transfer service.
Transfer scenarios and the safest choice
You have both consoles and want one complete move
Use direct user/save transfer for two Switch-family consoles, or local System Transfer when the destination is Switch 2. Keep both systems powered and connected until the on-screen confirmation appears.
You bought the destination later
For a cloud-supported game, back up the save with Nintendo Switch Online and download it after linking the same Nintendo Account to the new console. For Switch 2, server-upload System Transfer is an alternative, but only if you accept that the source console may be initialized.
You want to keep playing on the old console
Use Save Data Cloud for a supported title. A direct transfer is intended as a relocation of the selected user and saves, not as a second independent working copy.
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Your game is excluded from cloud backup
Arrange access to both consoles and use direct transfer, or use Switch 2 System Transfer when moving to Nintendo Switch 2. For an original-Switch Animal Crossing island, use Nintendo’s dedicated service.
How long transfers take
Nintendo does not publish one universal transfer-time estimate. The duration varies with the amount of data, the network connection and the route you choose. Keep the consoles connected to power, avoid putting them to sleep, and wait for the completion message rather than judging progress by elapsed time.
Quick Recap
Final pre-transfer checklist
- Identify the source and destination consoles.
- Confirm whether the move is to another Switch-family console or specifically to Switch 2.
- Determine whether you need a relocation or a backup that leaves the old console usable.
- Check the game’s Save Data Cloud support in the Nintendo eShop or the software’s options.
- Link the same Nintendo Account to the destination user.
- Update both consoles and connect them to the internet.
- Connect AC adapters and keep both systems available for the entire operation.
- For Switch 2 server upload, understand that the source may be initialized and that the upload lasts approximately 364 days.
- For Animal Crossing: New Horizons on an original Switch, use the dedicated island-transfer service.
- After transfer, redownload game software and updates because they are not included in a standard direct user transfer.
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