Minecraft on Switch 2: Free Upgrade, Price and Minecoins

If you bought Minecraft digitally on the original Switch, the native Switch 2 version costs you nothing in most regions, as long as you claim it from the Nintendo eShop by January 31, 2027. If you bought the cartridge, none of the announcements from Mojang or Nintendo so far offers you an upgrade at all.

That is the real news in the pre-order announcement Mojang and Nintendo both published on October 7, 2026. Minecraft for Nintendo Switch 2 launches on October 27, with Vibrant Visuals on by default and three editions priced at $29.99, $39.99 and $49.99 in the US. On that same day, a separate change splits Minecoins bought on Nintendo hardware off from every other platform.

This is a pre-launch guide. It covers who pays what, what the native version changes on paper, and what happens to your worlds and your coins. It says nothing about how the game runs, because the game has not launched yet.

Minecraft on Switch 2 at a glance

Who gets the free upgrade, and who pays

The free upgrade is for people who already own a digital copy of Minecraft for Nintendo Switch. It gets you the digital Standard Edition for Switch 2, and you can claim it as a pre-order now or after launch, up to the deadline.

Three conditions apply. Mojang says the offer is available only through the Nintendo eShop, it calls it a limited-time offer, and its article gives the deadline as "the end of January 2027", which Nintendo's store listing pins to January 31, 2027. Mojang has not published the discounted price for the Deluxe and Ultimate upgrades, so check the eShop listing while signed in to the Nintendo Account that owns the Switch copy.

Cartridge owners are not covered

Mojang's article, Nintendo's news post and the eShop listing all describe the offer as one for digital owners, and none of them mentions an upgrade for physical copies. You do not lose anything on October 27. The Minecraft Wiki notes that the original Switch version is backward-compatible with Switch 2, which is how Switch 2 owners have been playing it until now. What you do not get without paying is the native version, which means no Vibrant Visuals.

Standard, Deluxe or Ultimate

The extra $10 or $20 buys Marketplace content and coins, not a better version of the game. Mojang's announcement lists add-ons, Character Creator items and Minecoins as the only differences between editions, and every edition includes the Super Mario Mash-Up Pack, which Mojang notes is exclusive to the Nintendo versions of Minecraft. Nintendo's listing puts it at 15 music tracks and 40 skins plus the Mario-themed world.

The coins are the catch. Mojang's footnote says the Minecoins included with these editions must be used in the Nintendo ecosystem. Until October 27, Minecoins bought on a Switch could be used across compatible platforms. The 700 or 1,000 bundled here cannot. If you also play on a phone, a PC or another console, those coins are worth less to you than the same number bought before October 27. Our call: take the free Standard Edition, or pay $29.99 for it, unless you specifically want those five add-ons.

What the native version changes

Vibrant Visuals, switched on by default. Vibrant Visuals is Mojang's own graphics mode, with directional lighting, shadows that move with the sun, volumetric fog and water reflections. Mojang's June 9 announcement dates its release to June 2025, alongside the Chase the Skies update. The original Switch version never got it, and the Minecraft Wiki's availability section still lists Nintendo Switch consoles as unsupported. Mojang's announcement says the native version is what lets it bring Vibrant Visuals to Switch 2.

Not in split-screen. Mojang's footnote says Vibrant Visuals is not available in some gameplay, including split-screen and certain Marketplace worlds and content. The wiki adds that console split-screen is limited to the Fancy graphics mode or lower. If your Switch 2 Minecraft is mostly couch co-op, you will be playing with the classic graphics.

Render distance, as tested in the closed beta. The Minecraft Wiki's notes on the Switch 2 closed beta record how it differed from the Switch build. With Vibrant Visuals on, the maximum render distance was 16 chunks and point lights were off. With Vibrant Visuals off, render distance went up to 28 chunks, against 12 on the Switch build. Those are beta figures and could change before October 27, so treat them as a direction rather than a spec.

Not new: the rest of the eShop feature list. Nintendo's Switch 2 listing shows touch screen support, Save Data Cloud with Nintendo Switch Online and Nintendo Account family-group lending, but the US listing for the original Switch version shows all three as well. None of them is a reason to upgrade.

It is still Bedrock Edition, same as the Switch version. Java shader packs from our shaders guide do not apply here.

Your worlds, your friends and the closed beta

Worlds. Nintendo's store listing says Switch worlds can be carried over to the Switch 2 version so you can pick up where you left off. That is the whole statement. Neither Mojang's Switch 2 announcements (June 9, August 5 and October 7) nor Nintendo's listing spells out the steps. Keep the Switch version installed until you have opened your worlds in the new one.

Friends. Cross-platform play needs a Microsoft account, and online multiplayer needs a Nintendo Switch Online membership, both per Nintendo's listing. The same listing says Realms Plus gives you a private server for up to 10 friends.

The closed beta. The wiki's page on the Switch 2 closed beta says the first invitations went out on August 7, 2026, and sign-ups closed on September 14. It also says the beta app is not permanent and that, per the sign-up form, nothing can be transferred out of it. Treat anything you built in the beta as disposable.

The Minecoins split lands the same day

Mojang announced this on September 1, and it starts on October 27, 2026, the Switch 2 launch day. It affects everyone who buys Minecoins on a Switch or Switch 2, not just Switch 2 buyers.

The rules behind that table, all from Mojang's notice:

• Coins you already own are not changing. On October 27 they move to a Legacy Wallet, they do not expire, and they stay usable across compatible platforms.
• Legacy coins are spent first. The Legacy Wallet runs down before any coins bought after October 27, which go into a separate Nintendo Wallet when bought on a Nintendo device.
• Retail cards are being split too. Newer Minecoin cards may no longer support Nintendo devices, so check the platforms printed on the packaging before you buy or redeem one.

The notice is about Minecoins only. It says nothing about Marketplace content you have already bought.

What you will be playing on day one

The Minecraft Wiki lists the Switch 2 launch as the first full release of Bedrock Edition 26.60, an update it dates to October 27 for Bedrock as a whole, so Switch 2 players should start level with everyone else. That means everything up to Wilderness Bound, which shipped on Bedrock as 26.50 on September 15: dappled forests, abandoned camps, cushions and straw beds. It also includes the nautilus mount and the spear from Mounts of Mayhem in December 2025, and the happy ghast from the badlands screenshot further up.

The wiki's page for 26.60 also lists a Drop 4 of 2026 experiment toggle, which is the ice caves, the frostbite and the Freezing effect. If that carries into the release build, Switch 2 players can try them on launch day. On Bedrock, a world with an experiment switched on cannot earn achievements, so use a throwaway world.

Quick Action Checklist

• Own it digitally on Switch? Claim the free Standard Edition on the Nintendo eShop before January 31, 2027. It is 100 yen in Japan and 30 New Taiwan dollars in Taiwan.
• Own the cartridge? Nothing has been announced for you. Your Switch copy keeps working on Switch 2, just without Vibrant Visuals.
• Choosing an edition? Standard at $29.99 unless you want the specific add-ons. The 700 or 1,000 coins in the bigger editions only work on Nintendo hardware.
• Play on more than one platform? Coins in your account before October 27 stay cross-platform. Coins bought on a Switch from October 27 do not, and coins bought elsewhere from that date cannot be spent on a Switch.
• Buying a Minecoin card? Check the platforms on the packaging.
• Keep the Switch version installed until your worlds have carried over.
• Playing split-screen? No Vibrant Visuals in split-screen.
• In the closed beta? Nothing transfers out of it, per the wiki's notes on the sign-up form.
• Want the ice caves on day one? Look for the Drop 4 of 2026 experiment, in a world you do not need achievements in.