The best free Switch games offer up a variety of experiences at no charge. The Switch library is jam-packed with options, and if you're looking for something you can play next that won't cost you anything, there's happily a great selection of free games to choose from. While some might offer some in-game purchases, that it isn't a requirement is key here - meaning that you can play any one of the games below without having to spend if you don't wish to.
From puzzle games to platformers, shooters, and more, some of the biggest series have some free game offerings - including the likes of Pokemon. And if you're looking for something you can play with pals, there are also some free multiplayer games available, too. And while they aren't free, if you're looking for more recommendations, we suggest checking our roundup of the very best Switch games around right now.
It's an exciting time for Nintendo's hybrid console, with the reveal of the Switch 2 and a Nintendo Switch 2 Direct set to give us a more in-depth look at the new-gen console. While we still have plenty of upcoming Switch games to look forward to, here's hoping we'll also find out more about what upcoming Switch 2 games will be coming in the future. Perhaps some day we'll see some more free additions land on the Nintendo store (here's hoping). But if you're looking for another game to jump into that won't require any spending right now, you've come to the right place. Read on below as we guide you through the 10 best free Switch games available right now.
10. Warframe
Developer: Digital Extremes
Released: 2013
First up, there’s the small matter of Warframe, one of the best free-to-play shooters of the last few years that has seemingly effortlessly ported to Switch. Predictably, the adventures of the Tenno aren’t quite as sharp as they are on PS4, but that won’t stop you from marveling at just how slick and fluid the shooter action is here and wondering how on earth so much of it is absolutely free. A little like starting a TV show in the middle of season five, Warframe is initially intimidating, but once you’ve chosen your Warframe and your skills, everything seems a little easier to understand, and you can concentrate on the glossy PvE-ness at hand. Think impressive free-to-play Destiny on Switch, complete with grind, and you’re on the right murderous space track.
Read our Warframe review for more information.
9. Pokemon Cafe Remix
Developer: Game Freak
Released: June 23, 2020
Pokemon Cafe Remix is a cute little puzzle game themed around food and various classic critters from Game Freak's beloved series. As you run your own cafe, Pokemon will begin arriving to get some grub, and every dish you serve up takes the form of puzzle. Using the Switch's touch screen, you have to chain icons of Pokemon (with the likes of Charmander, Eevee, Squirtle, Pikachu, and more) together and move them around to prepare ingredients - such as chopping up tomatoes, or whipping cream. You only have a set number of moves, though, which is where the challenge comes in. If you're looking for something Pokemon shaped, this is a great option to tuck into.
Want to catch 'em all? Check out our list of the best Pokemon games.
8. Apex Legends
Developer: Respawn
Released: 2019
Apex Legends is an incredibly fun battle royale that allows you to pick a character based on their skill set. If you're more of a run-and-gunner, you might enjoy a character like Bangalore, who can set off smoke bombs to hide her tracks and rain down a barrage of bombs on enemies. If you like to play things more tactically, you can always try out Wattson, who can build electric perimeter fences to help keep enemies away from certain areas. As another free-to-play game available on Switch, you can hop in right now and give another battle royale a spin.
Read our five-star Apex Legends review for more details!
7. Jump Rope Challenge
Developer: Nintendo
Released: June 16, 2020
Jump Rope Challenge is a free game developed by Nintendo that's well worth checking out if you're looking for something to get you moving. The exercise experience for up to two players sees you essentially transform your Joy-Con controllers into the handles of a jump rope and you start hopping as a bunny. While you can jump along, you can also play it by just moving your arms or bending your knees. You can even dress your bunny up in various Nintendo-themed costumes thanks to an update that came shortly after launch back in the day.
6. Sky: Children of the Light
Developer: Thatgamecompany
Released: 2019
Sky: Children of the Light from Journey developer thatgamecompany is hard to describe succinctly. The developer calls it a "social adventure," and it certainly is that, but it's also a third-person adventure game with seamless multiplayer, effectively making it an MMO of sorts. The whole point is to soar around and explore a beautifully animated world in order to, as the developer puts it, spread hope "through the desolate kingdom to return fallen Stars to their constellations." It's musical, magical, and well worth your time. And free!
Check out our list of the best multiplayer Switch games.
5. Super Kirby Clash
Developer: HAL Laboratory
Released: 2019
A HD version of the largely ignored Team Kirby Clash Deluxe on 3DS, this multiplayer actioner is a surprisingly in-depth RPG. It turns out that there's far more to Kirby than just inhaling everything he sees, and in Super Kirby Clash, you must choose between the Sword Hero, Hammer Lord, Doctor Healmore, and Beam Mage classes to take on Kirby bosses. It's a little heavy on the requirement of Gem Apples - the game's in-app purchases and rewards for performing quests - but the online battle system is brilliant fun, and upgrades genuinely feel like progression. Plus, if you don’t want to go online, AI friends fill in almost too well for each brawl, proving that you don't need real humans after all. Just spherical, colorful blobs with swords. Yay.
You can check out more cute titles with our list of the best Kirby games next.
4. Overwatch 2
Developer: Blizzard Entertainment
Released: 2022
Say what you want about Overwatch 2, but the fact remains that it's inarguably the best free hero shooter on Nintendo Switch. Constantly evolving, and not always in ways that the community likes or wants, Overwatch 2 scratches a certain kind of itch that other games on the Nintendo Switch just can't. We could argue all day about whether there was any need for it to exist when the original Overwatch was right there, but exist it does, and it makes for a perfectly fine - though not extraordinary - experience.
Overwatch 2 isn't the best shooter by any means, but to find out more, read our Overwatch 2 review.
3. Brawlhalla
Developer: Blue Mammoth Games
Released: 2017
Even among fighting game fans, Super Smash Bros: Ultimate can be divisive. The brand of gravity-wrangling, weapon-raining combat might not be for you. And that's where the excellent Brawhalla comes in. It's a free, immediate, beautifully designed fighter that will give a clear sense of how you’ll manage Smash’s frenetic combat. But more than this, it's an excellent standalone scrapper in its own right. There's a huge selection of characters, pixel-perfect platforming, and an active, engaged community. And if anything, the crisp design and cartoony presentation might actually be easier to parse than Ultimate's boisterous and explosive design. The bad news, though, is that this means you'll have no excuse when a cartoon Viking smacks you into oblivion with an axe.
2. Fortnite
Developer: Epic Games
Released: 2017
Introducing Fortnite at this stage feels a bit like being the person at a party acting like the MCU is a little-known series of indie movies that only they know intimately. The good news, though, is that Fortnite fits on Nintendo Switch like a certain apocalypse-causing glove from the aforementioned not-so-indie movies. Whether you’re handing Epic Games your credit card details or not, the colorful 100-player carnage runs beautifully on the handheld at 30fps and fully supports cross-platform play. As battle royale games go, nothing can compete with Fortnite’s constant evolutions to keep the world playing, making it still one of the most exciting games to arrive on Switch. That Nintendo's console can happily stand alongside its bigger brothers and still deliver a perfect hit of cinematic chaos is a feat worth flossing about.
Read our Fortnite review for more information on this classic.
1. Tetris 99
Developer: Arika
Released: 2019
If you think Battle Royale Tetris sounds like a fever dream as a genre, you're not entirely wrong. It just shouldn't work but, somehow, 99 Tetronimoe spinning players all desperately trying to reign supreme as the music gets faster and faster is one of the most exhilarating multiplayer experiences in years. Maybe it's the fact that you can choose to attack only the weakest of players or just the glorious idea that all those decades of lone block spinning are finally paying off, but Tetris 99 has managed to effortlessly become one of the best free games on Switch. It's definitely not the calmest experience on this list - you'll need to get to 8 for that - but as tests of your reaction times go, it doesn’t get much better than blocky Battle Royale. It's worth noting that while it is technically free-to-play, you will need a Nintendo Online subscription.
Check out our list of the new games to stay on top of all the latest titles coming to Nintendo's console. Or check out our guide to all the Switch exclusives you can play right now.
