Nintendo Switch Transfer: How to Transfer All Save Data, Games, Profiles, and User Data to Another Switch (OLED, Lite, Regular)

System transfers have been a thing for a good amount of time for Nintendo consoles. Gone are the days when all your adorable gubbins were kept on a game cartridge or memory card (gasp). Now when you get a new version of a console, have a regular switch, a handy Switch Lite or a Switch OLED model – you have to transport all that data from your old system to the new one.

Fortunately, it is relatively easy to transfer everything from one Switch to another Switch, and to prove that fact, we will tell you how in the article you are lucky, lucky beggars.

In this Switch system transfer guide, we will walk you through all the steps to transfer all your data to your new OLED Switch, Switch Lite, or regular Switch from another Switch console.

Want to transfer your Animal Crossing: New Horizons island to your new Switch too? You’ll also want to check out our guide on that topic:

Nintendo Switch System Transfer Guide: Switch to Switch OLED, Switch Lite, or Standard Switch

The instructions below should work for transferring between two Switch systems, whether it’s from a regular Switch to an OLED Switch model, from a Switch Lite to a regular Switch, or any combination of the three available Switch models.

Starting

The first thing you’ll want to do is make sure both your old and new consoles are fully configured. you may do a system transfer when setting up a new console, but it’s a bit easier to do it after you’ve entered your WiFi information and all that good stuff. As long as you can see the home screen and have an active internet connection, you are ready to transfer between Switch systems.

Unlike the 3DS, the Switch doesn’t require any tools to complete the transfer, it’s all handled in software and it’s a much simpler process, so let’s dive into things.

The actual system transfer bit

• Plug an official Nintendo Switch AC adapter into each of the two systems.
• Please select System settings from the start menu in both of them consoles, indicated by a gear in the bottom row of circular icons.

• Scroll down on both of them consoles and select User in the menu on the left side of the screen.
• Please select Transfer your username and save data upon both of them consoles from the right side of the screen.

• Read the information on the screen and select next in both systems.
• Again, read the information on this screen as well and select next in both systems.
• If you have parental controls enabled on either system, enter the required PIN. If you don’t know the PIN, check with the person who set up the parental controls.
• If you are prompted to insert a power supply into one or both consoles, make sure the AC adapters are properly connected.
• You will now see a screen asking you to select which drive will be the Source Console and which will be the Destination Console.
• In you old system with the user profiles you want to transfer, select Console of origin.
• In you new system, select Target console.

• You old The system will ask you which user profile you want to transfer. Select the icon of the user profile you want to send to your new system.

• You new The system will ask you to log into the Nintendo Account associated with the user profile you want to transfer. Please select Log in and then choose the method you used to initially create your account, which is usually Sign in with an email address or login ID. enter the email address and password you chose when you set up the user profile you selected on your previous console, then select Log in.

• As long as you have successfully logged in, you will now see the icon of the user profile you want to transfer to both of them consoles, along with some text that will differentiate between them.
• Please select Continue in you old console.
• Please select next in you new console.
• Both of them The consoles will now try to discover each other, which should take no more than 10 seconds. Make sure the consoles are together to ensure quick discovery.

• One time both of them systems have discovered each other, select To transfer in you old console.

• The systems will now begin exchanging data, which can take up to 30 minutes or more, depending on how much saved data you have. Make sure both of them the consoles are connected to an official power source for the duration of this transfer.

• Once the transfer is complete, your old The system will tell you that your user profile has been successfully transferred. You new It may take a few more minutes for the system to declare that the process is complete.
• One time both of them systems have completed the transfer and are displaying a blue tick icon, select The end upon both of them consoles

The system transfer is complete. Your profile, all your saved data and eShop purchases have been transferred to your new console. Wow!

Where are all my games?

While your save data has been sent, your games themselves have not, because Switch games are hugely massive and if you’ve ever done a system transfer for the 3DS or Wii U, you can understand why Nintendo thought ” crazy about it “with the switch.

Instead, you will have to re-download them from the eShop, but thankfully it is not as painful a process as you might think.

Get those games back

• From the start menu on your new console, select Nintendo eShop, indicated by an orange shopping bag in the bottom row of circular icons.

• If you are prompted to select a user account, select the user account that made the purchases that you want to redownload.

• If you are prompted to log in with your email and password for your user profile, enter your email and password associated with your user profile and select Log in.
• When the eShop has loaded, select the small version of your user icon in the upper right corner of the screen.

• Scroll down and select Download again in the menu on the left side of the screen.
• From here, on the right side of the screen, you will be presented with a list of the games that you have purchased on this account.
• Select the orange cloud icon to the right of each previously purchased game that you want to download to your new console. You will not be charged again for any downloads from this menu.

• Once you’ve selected the orange cloud icon next to all the games you want to redownload, press the Home button to return to the Start menu.
• Your games are now downloading to your new system, which may take several hours, but will continue even when the Switch is in sleep mode (as long as you have the appropriate option enabled in the System Settings menu).

That is all! Once they’re done, you can dive back in like you never left, thanks to all your save data being transferred earlier.

Frequent questions

Can I move my Micro SD card with all my games to my new console instead of downloading them all again?

Sadly no, due to the particular poker game Nintendo has opted for, this just doesn’t work.

Can I make a system transfer for more than one user profile?

Absolutely! Just repeat the steps listed above for each user you want to transfer.

Do I need a subscription to Nintendo Switch Online to do all of this?

Not fortunately. You do not need any type of subscription to transfer this information, even your valuable Breath of the wild Save data.

What about all the screenshots and videos that I have captured?

As long as you take the Micro SD card out of your old console and put it in the new one, you should be able to keep all your old screenshots and videos. Just follow the on-screen instructions and you’ll be golden.

Can I transfer between two OLED Switches or two Switch Lites?

As long as they are Nintendo switches, you can transfer between two Lites, two OLEDs, or two regular ones, no problem.

Can’t I just transfer my profile by rubbing both consoles and singing?

If you try it, please send us a video.

How do I transfer my Animal Crossing: New Horizons island to my new Switch?

Glad you asked, we have a guide for that:

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We hope this guide has been helpful to you. Please let us know below if you have any questions and we will do our best to answer them.