Samsung’s new microSD Express cards are discounted in Amazon’s Black Friday 2025 sale. Nintendo Switch 2 customers can grab the Samsung P9 512GB microSD Express Card for just $75 (was $100), the lowest price we’ve seen on Amazon all year for the 512GB model. Update: As of Nov. 20 at 8:30 p.m. PT, the Samsung P9 is still in stock, but Amazon’s store page has updated to note that it’s “selling out fast.” A 256GB model is also available for $47.49 ($55).
Samsung launched the P9 microSD Express earlier this month, so we were surprised to see the 512GB model with such a substantial discount. If you’re interested in expanding your Switch 2’s storage capacity, you probably shouldn’t wait too long. This is one of only a few Black Friday deals on microSD Express cards (so far, at least).
Quick Look: MicroSD Express Black Friday Deals
The popular Lexar Play Pro microSD Express is also featured in Amazon’s Black Friday sale, but unfortunately the 1TB edition is still priced at $200. The price cut is for 512GB and 256GB capacities. The 512GB model is available for $49.49 (was $120), while the 256GB version is down to $49.49 (was $60).
Best MicroSD Express Cards at Amazon
Below, we’ve listed every microSD Express card from a reputable brand that we could find on Amazon—though we’ve excluded cards that are A lot of things Pricer than average. The Switch 2 is the first major consumer device to use the ultrafast storage format, so the market is understandably limited. That said, ever since Nintendo announced that the Switch 2 needs microSD Express to expand storage.
Best MicroSD Express Cards at Walmart
Walmart has a smaller selection, but it has three special microSD Express cards that you should also know about. The retailer’s in-house tech brand In general The most affordable are the 256GB and 512GB cards. ONN 512 GB MicroSD Express currently. 84.77, while the 256GB model is just $46.77. With Samsung P9 512GB deal running at Amazon, ONN has been declassified for the first time. Walmart recently restocked its exclusive SanDisk Gameplay 512GB microSD Express for $98.
Nintendo Switch 2 storage space can disappear quickly
The Nintendo Switch 2 has 256GB of onboard storage. On the surface, it’s a huge leap forward, as it’s four times larger than the Switch OLED (64GB) and eight times larger than the original Switch and Switch Lite (32GB). But the Switch 2’s ability to run more graphically intensive games also means larger file sizes. For context, here are the file sizes for some current and upcoming Switch 2 games published by Nintendo: Hyrule Warriors: Age of Ultron (43.4 GB), Metroid Prime 4: Beyond (31.6 GB), Kirby Air Raiders (21.7 GB), Zelda: Tears of the Empire (20 GB), Mario Kurt World (10 GB), Donkey Kong Killa (8.9 GB).
You can save your storage space for these first-party games by grabbing a physical edition, as all of the aforementioned titles have the full data file on the card. So far that’s been the case with every game Nintendo has published on the Switch 2, but a Pokemon Pokupa game will be the key card. We will have to wait and see if this is an anomaly. For third-party titles, with rare exceptions like Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition and Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma, physical games for Switch 2 are using game key cards. These are low capacity cards that basically act as unlock keys to download games from eShop. So if you buy the physical edition of Madden NFL 26, you will need to download the 57.1GB game file from the eShop. Other sports games are even larger: NBA 2K 26 is 69.7GB and EA Sports FC 26 is 71.6GB. Outside of games: Persona 3 Reloaded is 21.7GB, and Star Wars Outlook is 19.4GB.
Looking forward to next year: Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade is currently expected to be an 87.9GB download on the Switch 2, so that game alone will eat up a huge chunk of storage space. Meanwhile, Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflections and Resident Evil Requiem are both estimated to be just under 30GB.
The proliferation of game key cards and large file sizes for AAA games in general likely caused many Switch 2 owners to run out of storage space that they used to have on the original Switch.
MicroSD Express: What is it?
Express format is a recent development in the semiconductor industry that has not yet been widely adopted by manufacturers. If you’re wondering why Express cards seem so expensive compared to the UHS-I cards used on your original Switch console and most devices, it all comes down to speed. For example, the Sandisk Ultra 512GB microSD card has a read speed of 150mb/s, and the Sandisk 512GB Express card can hit 880MB/s—that’s nearly six times faster. Express Cards are significantly faster than SATA SSDs. Prices make more sense in this context.
You can get a closer look at many of the microSD Express cards listed in the gallery below.
$59
- Read: 800MB/s
- Write: 400MB/s
Samsung’s officially licensed model features a Mario Red color scheme and an M logo. Unsurprisingly, this is by far the most popular microSD Express card for the Switch 2. Samsung and SanDisk are widely considered the top brands for microSD cards. Since SanDisk’s Nintendo-licensed card isn’t available yet, Samsung is the only “official” option.
At $60, the Samsung MicroSD Express is a much more reasonable price for the original Switch than the pricier Nintendo-themed SanDisk cards.
We’ve included read/write speeds for each card in this list. Read the speed range between 800-900MB/s, but that’s it extremely It’s unlikely you’ll ever notice the difference between the Samsung’s 800MB/s read speed and the Lexar’s 900MB/s.
The Nintendo-licensed Samsung card has the slowest write speed on this list. At the cost of importance, it sounds bad, but really it indicates what is important and what is not. If an officially licensed card says 400MB/s, it’s likely that the Switch 2 doesn’t benefit from faster speeds.
256GB / 512GB – Black Friday Deal
- Read: 800MB/s
- Write: 330MB/s
Samsung’s P9 MicroSD Express Card is available in 256GB and 512GB capacities as of November 4. The 512GB model typically retails for $100, which is less than many competitors. The 256GB edition is usually $5 less than Samsung’s officially licensed card for the Switch 2. The P9 matches the official card’s 800MB/s read speed, but has a maximum write speed of 330MB/s, making it slightly slower than the Mario-themed card.
1TB / 512GB / 256GB – Black Friday Deal
- Read: 900MB/s
- Write: 600MB/s
The Lexar Play Pro is the only microSD Express card from a major brand with a 1TB model, but it will usually cost you $200-$220.
Outside of Samsung’s officially licensed cards, the Play Pro is the most popular MicroSD Express on Amazon. Unlike most of the cards in this roundup, the PlayPro was available before the Switch 2 console launch. If you want to add 1TB to your Switch 2, the Lexar Play Pro is the best option.
512GB / 256GB / 128GB
- 128 GB
- Read: 880MB/s
- Write: 480MB/s
- Write Sustained: 100MB/s
- 256 GB
- Read: 880MB/s
- Write: 650MB/s
- Write Sustained: 210MB/s
- 512 GB
- Read: 880MB/s
- Write: 650MB/s
- Write Sustained: 220MB/s
SanDisk’s microSD Express card is available in 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB models. All three capacities offer read speeds of 880MB/s, but, as shown above, write and sustained write speeds differ markedly when moving from 128GB to 256GB. The 512GB edition is benchmarked for slightly faster write speeds.
At $120, SanDisk’s 512GB model is pricier than some other solid choices, but if you want to go with a brand with a great track record, this is the 512GB card to choose. There are plenty of good choices in the 256GB category to strongly recommend paying full price for it—especially when there’s an officially licensed Samsung card. The 128GB model retails for $60, so we’ll steer clear of it unless it goes on sale for a big price cut.
SanDisk will release a Nintendo-licensed microSD Express card with a Mario Red color scheme and logo, but a release date has yet to be revealed. We know that the licensed edition is the same card with a different look-just like the Sandisk gameplay situation.
512GB / 256GB – Walmart Exclusive
- Read: 800MB/s
- Write: 600MB/s
Walmart-owned tech brand Own is known for its budget prices, and that’s true with its microSD Express cards. This was especially true in the first few months after the Switch 2’s launch, as Walmart sold the 256GB card. 35.77 and sold the 512 GB model for $65.77.
Prices were increased about a month ago, but. 46.77 is still the lowest in the 256GB category. even. Despite the 19-year price hike to $84.77, the 512GB ONN card is often cheaper than the competition.
Story wise, I’ve been using the 512GB model since launch day and haven’t experienced any issues.
Walmart says the cards are “water, shock, temperature and magnet proof.” Your purchase includes a one-year limited warranty.
$98 | Walmart exclusive
- Read: 880MB/s
- Write: 650MB/s
- Permanent Write: 220MB/s
In addition to offering microSD Express cards from its Tech brand, Walmart was the only retailer to sell the SanDisk GamePlay microSD Express. If you snagged one of these 512GB cards at Walmart when they were on sale for $78, you scored quite a deal.
SanDisk Gameplay is identical to SanDisk’s regular MicroSD Express from a technical and performance standpoint. They were not the same when it came to price. The original $78 price of the SanDisk Gameplay was $42 less than the SanDisk 512GB microSD Express. The latter still sells for $120 today.
But just like it did with its branded cards, Walmart raised the price a few months after launch. It went on sale during October, but the card is back as of November 4.
1TB / 512GB / 256GB / 128GB
- Read: 800MB/s
- Write: 500MB/s
Team Group is a reputable budget manufacturer of microSD cards. Apex is the team group’s first card with Express Tech. TeamGroup’s prices are often significantly lower than competitors, but that’s not the case yet.
512GB / 256GB / 128GB
- Read: 890MB/s
- Write: 550MB/s
Popular budget tech brand PNY has 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB microSD Express cards.
1TB / 512GB / 256GB
- Read: 800MB/s
- Write: 700MB/s
GameStop also sells branded microSD Express cards. It is not known which manufacturer makes the card, and there are no customer reviews on GameStop’s store page. It doesn’t make much sense to get a 256GB or 512GB model from GameStop when you can get one from a reputable brand for the same price or less.
GameStop is one of the few brands that offers a 1TB model, and the $190 MSRP is the lowest. Still, if you’re going to spend that much cash on microSD Express, snapping up the Lexar Play Pro 1TB is a safe bet.
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