What the card buys
A Nintendo eShop card adds funds to the Nintendo Account linked to your Switch. You spend those funds on games, DLC and Nintendo Switch Online memberships.
A download code is a different thing. It unlocks one specific game rather than adding funds, and it is entered on a different screen.
Nintendo is one of the strictest. eShop cards work only in the country they were issued for, and your Nintendo Account country is fixed once the account has made a purchase. There is no way around a wrong-region card.
Check your Nintendo Account country
-
1
Sign in to your Nintendo Account on the web
Open the profile or user information section and read the Country/Region of residence field.
-
2
Or open the eShop on the Switch itself
The prices and the storefront you see are the country of that account. If the shop shows USD, you need a US card.
-
3
Buy the card for that country only
The region chip is next to the price on the listing.
Where your code arrives
My Orders at /account/orders, open the order, and the code is printed on it under a green DELIVERED heading, with a Download as .txt button beside it. eShop card numbers are 16 characters.
Common questions
Can I make a second Nintendo Account for another region?
Yes, and many people do. But funds and games do not move between accounts, so decide which account is your main one before you spend.
The eShop will not accept my card at all.
Check three things in order: the account country, whether you are on the funds screen rather than the download code screen, and whether the code was typed with an O instead of a zero.
The code was dead on arrival.
Open the order at /account/orders, choose Report a problem and attach the Nintendo error message. See /help/refunds.
Nintendo's own help pages
- How to redeem a download code on Nintendo eShop: https://en-americas-support.nintendo.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/22429
- Nintendo support home: https://en-americas-support.nintendo.com/