The Switch has become Nintendo’s top-selling console in history.

The initial Switch has officially become Nintendo’s top-selling console ever after outpacing the DS handheld in total sales. In its recent earnings report, Nintendo indicates that the Nintendo Switch has, as of December 31, 2025, sold 155.37 million units since its debut in 2017, as opposed to 154.02 million units for the 2004 Nintendo DS.

In November, Nintendo disclosed that the Switch and DS were in a close race. It was anticipated that the holiday shopping season would witness the Switch surpass the DS, even with Nintendo revealing its primary focus on the development of Switch 2. Nintendo had previously stated that it would keep selling the original Switch “while factoring in consumer demand and the market conditions.”

Nintendo must continue selling the Switch if it aims to topple Sony’s PlayStation 2 as the best-selling video game console throughout history. The PlayStation 2, which ceased production in January 2013, sold over 160 million units in its 13-year lifetime.

Sales of the Switch 2 surged during the holiday season, with Nintendo reporting 7.01 million units sold in the quarter from October to December, versus 4.54 million units in the prior quarter. Overall, the Switch 2 has now achieved 17.37 million units sold since its launch in June 2025, surpassing the Wii U’s 13.7 million lifetime sales within less than a year.

The launch of Switch 2 has propelled Nintendo to attain a 51 percent rise in net profit over the first nine months of FY26, reaching ¥358.86 billion (around $2.31 billion). Net sales nearly doubled during the same timeframe, skyrocketing to ¥1.906 trillion (approximately $12.2 billion) compared to ¥956.2 billion ($6.1 billion) from the prior year. Looking ahead, Nintendo holds onto its prediction of selling 19 million units of Switch 2 by the conclusion of this financial year.