Topic: Buying a Switch in the USA to use in Europe

Hello all,

For the next two weeks i'm on vacation in the USA and i'm planning on buying a switch here to bring back home in Europe. I know the games are region free, and i know the power outlet is different for the docking station.

But my question is related to power, Europe is 220v. Will it work if i just plug it in. Now days most charger are 110-220v but i'm unable to find a solid answer for this?

Thank you in advance

@xaiamasters Theoretically it's possible to use your Nintendo Switch in another country if you have the correct charger, it's not recommended though. Nintendo's warranty is only valid for the country that the Switch was purchased in. So if something goes wrong, you're on your own.

Nintendo's official advice is as follows. "Although it is possible, there are different factors to consider such as voltage requirements, wireless communication requirements, warranty coverage, etc."

@DanteSolablood

Thank you for taking the time to respond, i could just buy an EU adapter and it would work right.
Regarding Warranty, i have been finding such mixed answers that Nintendo will cover Warranty for the Switch if for example bought from USA and used in Europe

As seen in this topid
https://www.nintendolife.com/forums/nintendo-switch/buying_a_s...

But i'm even more confused now what to do

The Switch is totally region free. But different countries use different wall outlets, so you would need a local charger. Thankfully the Switch uses USB-C with is an international standard. So all you need is a local USB charging station and a standard USB-C cable. If you are still worried, use a portable external battery and only charge your Switch with that, then recharge the battery with the local cables.

Take a power bank, and use a local USB charger for it. That way even if by some unlikely chance something goes wrong with the outlet, or a faulty charger, it's only your power bank that's going to suffer.

Power banks are also great for long trips.

I bought my Switch in Thailand, it is a Japanese Switch yet it came with a UK power plug. Thailand is 220v, the UK 230v.,Japan however is 100v so I guess they supply UK plugs for consoles to be sold in Thailand as it's a close match. Same happened when I bought my phone, Chinese phone, bought in Thailand, UK plug in box. Just so happens I'm from the UK so that works out great for when I'm back home visiting. Thailand does use 2 prongs, however I have lots of 3 prong to 2 prong adaptors anyways. That's great however, if I needed it to be repaired, God forbid, I'd need to send it to Japan and could take 2 or 3 months to return. If I'd bought from the UK though I'd also have to wait several weeks to receive it back.

Why would you buy an adapter?

Just buy a Switch charger from Europe. Crisis averted.

I got my Switch in USA last April, been using it here in Italy since, no issues ... just a tiny adaptor to change the plug to fit the wall ... (did the same for my Wii U, but got a brick of a 'step down adaptor' for that)

That's already to much work just to Switch game. Get the EU version since Switch games are for the most part Region Free. I bought JPN games that are Region Free and they Switched(pun) to EN without problem. And if you come to the US just get the US to EU converter and that suffice when your in the US.

Regardless of what site your using Warranty only are in effect from where the Unit was sold in and made for not what you think it should be at. They will find out if you send it to fix and will charge you for a New unit not a Warranty Repair or tell you the Warranty is voided and no repairs will be made. If you think they won't do that then your in for a world of hurt. Companies make Warranty restriction for a reason and if one can't see that then it's the buyers fault for thinking they know better but don't.

Way to much work just to enjoy the WiiU or Switch. Rather then getting on from your Region your voiding the warranty aready once it leaves the US.

@xaiamasters The Switch adapter is multi voltage (100-240V, I just checked mine), so all you need is a US plug to EU plug adapter. You don't have to worry about the difference in voltage.

Hello everyone,

thank you very much for providing me with all the answers, i went ahead and ordered the switch.
Any place you recommend me to look for pre-owned games

Look at Amazon in your Region if they are located there first and then next would be eBay. Make sure the games do say Region Free. I have found some games that explicitly say JPN only-so those games are out there.

@SwitchForce
Thank you ill check eBay, i never used ebay before, its not common to use eBay in europe.
I'll have a look

Just wanted to let everyone who commented here know that i ended up buying a Switch, super happy with it

They do have eBay in EU and US and sometime they shipped to each location as well.

Join the NS Camp it will be a investment that you won't be unhappy with. Now if you buy accessories make sure they are Nintendo OEM or verified to work like some 3rd party Docks Bricking their NS. So watch out for that. I got 3 OEM Docs and they work just fine there bigger but they do the job and work. And if you go portable take a look at "GripCase" from IndieGoGo/Kickstarter - I got two of them one mine and one my sister and they does wonders for you hand when playing portable. But other then that Thanks for joing the NS gang.

@xaiamasters Hi there. I found your post regarding the nintendo switch and I am now as you were asking the same questions. I am going to the US next week and in comparison to the price here in Ireland it is $299 versus €380 which would be €110 savings to me to buy one.its for my 6 yr old from Santa.
Can you please tell me how it worked out for you? Is it just an eu adaper/charger you have to buy once brought back? Also do most games in eu work on the Us nintendo switch. Thanks for any comments you may have😀👍

@Lucky18M The OP clearly made an account to just ask this question, as he/she hasn't been on this site since March. So I doubt you'll ever receive a reply.

In case you're wondering; The adapter is multi-voltage, so it can handle anything between and around 110-220v. So even a simple plug adapter will do the job, like this one: https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41NW%2B3hisd... Alternatively you could buy an official adapter from Nintendo, but that would be more expensive. And yes, all European games work on a US system, they're all the same, it doesn't matter.

Anyway, please don't revive old threads like this. If you want to ask someone a question, you can also tag them in the thread you created.