Quick answer: Nintendo will let you gift eligible eShop games, DLC and upgrade packs to members of your Nintendo Account family group. The feature needs system update 23.5.0, which is already out on Switch and Switch 2 (released November 9 in the United States). Nintendo’s official U.S. and Japanese support notes schedule the eShop update for November 17. Nintendo’s U.S. news post lists November 16. Gifts go out immediately, and only family group members can receive them. Current as of November 10, 2026.
For years, buying someone a Switch game usually meant a download code or an eShop card. Nintendo is finally adding native gifting to the eShop on both Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2, just ahead of the holidays.
In a U.S. news post and matching Japanese topics article, Nintendo says family group members will be able to buy eligible digital games, DLC and upgrade packs as gifts for other people in the same group. The catch is timing, and it is slightly messy. Nintendo’s U.S. system update notes and the Japanese post both schedule the eShop update for November 17. The U.S. news post says the feature arrives on November 16. Nintendo has not published an exact hour, so treat mid-November as the window and check the eShop on your console rather than counting on one calendar date.
Update your Switch first
The feature only works on systems running version 23.5.0 or later. That update is already available. Nintendo’s U.S. support page lists it as released on November 9, and it should download automatically if the console is online. You can also start it yourself from System Settings, then System, then System Update.
On Switch 2, version 23.5.0 also lets you set accessibility options during first-time setup and adds Portuguese (Portugal) to Text to Speech and GameChat “Convert Text to Speech.” The original Switch update is slimmer: it adds support for the upcoming gifting feature, plus general adjustments and fixes.
How to gift a game once the eShop update is live
Nintendo’s walkthrough is straightforward:
- Open Nintendo eShop on your Switch or Switch 2 and find the product you want to give.
- On the product page, select the Give as a Gift checkbox, then continue.
- Pick the recipient from your family group, and choose which of their linked systems should receive the gift if they have more than one.
- Choose a gift wrap color and complete the purchase as usual.
The gift shows up on the recipient’s HOME Menu. They can select it, accept it and start playing right away. Nintendo is clear that gifts are sent immediately, so you cannot park one for Christmas morning. The Japanese post also notes that the recipient does not need to enter payment information or a download code.
The limits that matter
- Family group only: you cannot gift to a friend who is not in your Nintendo Account family group. A group can have up to eight members.
- It is a new purchase: this is not a way to transfer a game you already own. You are buying a fresh copy as a gift.
- Some products are not eligible. Nintendo has not published a public list.
- Supervised accounts cannot send gifts. They can still receive them.
- There is a cap on how many gift purchases you can make in a given period. Nintendo has not said what that number is.
If you want to use this for the holidays, the practical move is to add your family members to a group now and install 23.5.0, then try the Give as a Gift checkbox once the eShop update appears.
Will you use this for a birthday or a holiday gift, or does the family group limit make it a non-starter?
Sources: Nintendo (U.S. news post, U.S. Switch 2 system update notes, Japanese topics article), Nintendo Life. Image: Nintendo.
