Nintendo sets new Q1 record with 5.67 million Switch sales

Nintendo sold more Switch consoles in Q1'21 than in any other first quarter period in the console's history.

Today Nintendo announced record-breaking Fiscal Year Q1'21 earnings on the back of strong hardware adoption. Nintendo managed to sell 5.67 million Switch consoles in the quarter ended June 30, up triple digits (+166%) from last year.

Nintendo's recent quarterly Switch sales are more than twice that of any other Q1 since the system's launch. These numbers also beat any Q2 period since the system's release in March 2017. Nintendo doesn't traditionally break 5 million hardware sales until the critical Q3 holiday period.

This strong spike was driven by COVID-19 lockdowns, which saw millions of consumers buying video games hardware and software to pass the time. This surge has pushed total Nintendo Switch worldwide cumulative shipments to 61.44 million.

The Nintendo Switch is now the seventh best-selling Nintendo console of all time, beating the SNES handily. If it meets the 19 million sales target Nintendo has set for this fiscal year, the Switch will sit at over 74.77 million units and will be close to dethroning the 3DS handheld's 75 million reign.

Software is likewise up to complement hardware adoption. Nintendo sold 50.43 million software in Q1'21, up a mighty 120% year-over-year. Total Switch software sales now sit at 406.67 million. The Switch is now beating the 3DS in software sales, but the older handheld is leading in hardware.