How to Add Friends on Nintendo Switch (2021 Guide)

A Quick Video On How To Add Friends On Nintendo Switch

In this article you will learn how to add friends on Nintendo Switch.

In particular you will learn:

Why Add a friend in Nintendo Switch?
Link Your Nintendo Switch to Your Nintendo Account
How to Add Friends on Nintendo Switch
Where to find your Friend Code / How to View Your Nintendo Friend Code
How to add friends on Nintendo website
How to change your friend code for an Nintendo Account
Keep Your Friend Code in Your Contact Card
Add Friends Locally
How to Manage Your Nintendo Switch Friend Settings
Add Friends You’ve Played with Before on Nintendo Switch
Can you add friends on switch without online?
How do I add cross platform friends to my switch?
How to add friends on Switch by username?
Adding friends through Nintendo apps
Adding Best Friends to Switch
How to find Nintendo friend code on website
Adding Facebook and Twitter Friends to Nintendo Switch
Starting an Online Game with a Friend
Share your experiences on social media
How do I decline a friend request on Nintendo?

Seems quite a long list.

But, after reading all this, you will learn and understand everything about how to add friends on Nintendo Switch and start playing games like Splatoon 2.

Keep Readin’…

Something to Note: If you don’t have a Nintendo Switch Online Subscription, you won’t be able to invite a friend to play a game with you online, but you will still be able to add them as a friend.

This article applies to: Nintendo Switch Family, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch Lite

Once you add a friend on your Switch, you’ll be able to play multiplayer games in the same room or online games with a Nintendo Switch Online subscription. Unfortunately, if you don’t have a Nintendo Switch Online subscription, you won’t be able to invite friends to Nintendo Switch online, but you will still be able to add them as a friend.

Why add a friend in Nintendo Switch?

If you want your Nintendo Switch experience to be a social one, you need to find and swap friends and add some pals to play with.

This can make inject more joy to your gaming experience.

Moreover, it can revive your passion for games and can create a deep connection with your your buddies.

Likewise, you will be able to play multiplayer games like Animal Crossing: New Horizon and Super Mario Maker 2, & Rocket League etc. in the same room or online games with a Nintendo Switch Online subscription.

Here’s how you can add friends on Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch Lite using these super easy to follow steps:

Link Your Nintendo Account to Your Switch

To add a friend on switch, you would have to link Nintendo Account to your Switch first.

Doing so is simple.

Very simple.

Make sure you have a Nintendo Account.
If don’t make one here.
Select System Settings on the Switch home screen.
Scroll down and highlight Users.
Then select the account you want to link to access its profile settings.
Select Link Nintendo Account.

How to Add Friends on Nintendo Switch

Let’s start with the basic one:

There are few things you must do:

Ensure that your console in running the latest software version.

Just connect the Switch to the Internet via Wi-Fi or ethernet.

Go to the Nintendo Home Screen > System Settings > System > System Update.

When this is done, you can ask for the Friend code.

Friend codes are numbers issued to users on Nintendo Switch that are linked to Nintendo Accounts. You can use friend codes to send friend requests on Nintendo Switch.

There are two ways to add a friend on the Nintendo Switch:

Send a friend request using someone’s friend code
Accept a friend request sent to you.

You can also search for friends locally using Bluetooth.

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How to add Friends on Nintendo Switch: Send a friend request using someone’s friend code

You can send a friend request from your Nintendo Switch if you know someone’s friend code.

Navigate to your profile in the top-left corner of your Nintendo Switch screen.
Select Add Friend.
Select Search with Friend Code.
Enter their 12-digit Friend Code in the box.

How to Add Friends on Nintendo Switch - A Complete Tutorial (2021)

Your friend will receive a request from you on their Nintendo Switch Console.

You can also manage any friend requests that you’ve sent by clicking on the Sent Friend Requests option under the Add friend menu in your User account.

This way you can add friends on Nintendo Switch and start playing Fortnite or Rocket league.

How to add Friends on Nintendo Switch: How to Accept a Friend Request

If you receive a friend request, you can manage this on your User page.

You have the option to accept or decline your friends request on your Nintendo.

Navigate to your profile in the top-left corner of your Nintendo Switch Screen.
Select Add friend.
Select Received Friend Requests.
Select Become Friends or Decline Request if you don’t want to add friends on Nintendo Switch.

And, if you still decline a friend request on your Switch, you can still receive a friend request from that same person in the future.

This is how you can add friends to your Nintendo Switch and start playing Mario kart 8.

How to View Your Nintendo Friend Code

Once your Nintendo account is linked, you can access Switch’s online features and add friends to your friend list.

But, before that is a little step.

You need to find 12 digit friend code of yours before you can share it with others.

Here’s how you can do it.

Select your user icon on the home screen.
Select Profile
You’ll find your Friend Code on the right side of the screen

That’s all there is to it. Now you can play with friends on Nintendo Switch.

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How to add friends on Nintendo website

Select your user icon (My Page) on the HOME Menu, and then select Add Friend.
From this screen, you can accept pending friend requests that have been sent to you, view pending friend requests you have sent, or use the following methods to send friend requests.

Friend Suggestions: Select this option to send friend requests to users that you are friends with on Nintendo smart-device apps, Wii U, Nintendo 3DS, Facebook, or Twitter.

To do this, link to your Nintendo Network ID to your Nintendo Account prior to having visibility to your Wii U and Nintendo 3DS friends.

Apart from that you must link your Facebook or Twitter account to your Nintendo Account before adding friends over these services.

This way you can add friends on to your Nintendo Website.

How to change your friend code

Note: Before changing the friend code again, you would have to wait for 30 days.

Click on the user icon on the home screen.
Select User Settings > Friend Settings.

Select Reissue Friend Code.

This will change your friend code.

Your friend list should be there too so you don’t need to re-add people after making the change.

Keep Your Friend Code in Your Contact Card

It is equally important to remember the code by storing it somewhere you’ll always be able to find it…your contact list.

This way you can ease the burden of remembering and sharing that code everytime.

Here’s how you can do it.

Use your smartphone and select your contact app.
Find contact card.
Click on Edit
Look for ‘Add social profile’ option.
Name it Nintendo or something that you want
Store your Friend code there.

This way you can share it with someone from your contact list.

You can even store YOUR code in a social media bio like on your Twitter account so it makes finding you easier.

Hence, this way you can keep your friend code in your contact card.

How to Add Friends Locally on Nintendo Switch

This option will let you add friends on Nintendo Switch for local consoles.

To do this you have to:

Tap your user icon. It’s at the top-left corner of the home screen
Click on Add friend
Tap link to a Nintendo Account
Then search for local users
Select an icon and have your best friend select the same icon.
Once selected, your Switch will scan the room for other users who’ve selected the same icon.
Now, select your friend from the list of local users.
Tap on Continue. This will send a friend request to your friend.
If for any reason, your Nintendo controller is not connected to the Internet, the request will be temporarily saved until it connects back to the Internet.
After that, it will send in automatically.

Yooo, you can now start playing multiplayer games like Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Super Mario Party, Minecraft, Pokémon, and Diablo III that support local wireless play.

Launch the game and follow the on-screen instructions to add in your friend.

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How to Manage Your Nintendo Switch Friend Settings

The friend settings function on your Nintendo Switch allows you to:

Reissue a new friend code
Manage blocked users
Clear any linked social media accounts.

To manage your Nintendo Switch Friend settings you have to:

Navigate to your profile in the top-left corner of your Nintendo Switch screen.
Select User Settings.
Under Friend Functions, select Friend Settings.

This is where you can manage nickname, icon, account information and eShop settings.

How to add Friends on Nintendo Switch: Add Friends You’ve Played with Before on Nintendo Switch

Nintendo lets you add users that you’ve played with before.

Head over to Add Friends section on the user page.

Click on Search for users you played with and hit the Send Friend Request button to add them again.

Can you add friends on switch without online?

You can search for local consoles via Bluetooth, but you need to be connected to a Wi-Fi network to add friends locally, otherwise, the friend request will be temporarily saved on the console.

How do I add cross platform friends to my switch?

So for example, you want to add friends on Minecraft on your Nintendo Switch, you’ll have to launch Minecraft and sign in with a Microsoft Account.

Then link your Microsoft account to the game.

Choose an existing world or create a new one and launch your game.
Open the settings menu.
Move your cursor to far left side and select ‘Invite to Game’.
On the next screen, select the option to “Find Cross-Platform Friends.” The appearance of this screen will differ slightly depending on what console you’re using.
You can find your friend using their Minecraft ID or gamer tag.
Select “Add Friend” once you find your buddy
Check the box to select the friend and click ‘send 1 invite’.

Now, you have to wait until your friend accepts the invite.

Can you add friends on switch by username?

When you open your Switch’s user profile to your Nintendo Account, you’ll be able to add friends.

Select your profile in the top-left corner and tap ‘Add friends’.

Under the Sent Friend Requests icon, you’ll see your 12-digit friend code.

How to add Friends on Nintendo Switch: Adding Best Friends to Switch

If you are devoted to a particular friend, you can upgrade them to Best Friend Status.

Navigate to your friend list and pick one of your favorite.
Click the best friends option.
Now, that user will have a start in the upper left-hand corner of their icon

Sadly, you friend will not learn about this.

As a result, he will not get to know about the newfound importance in your life.

How to find Nintendo friend code on website

To find your Nintendo friend code on website:

Select your User icon (My Page) from the HOME Menu.
Select Profile, and then check the right side of the screen to find your friend code.

Adding Facebook and Twitter Friends to Nintendo Switch

Tap your user icon. It’s at the top-left corner of the home screen.
This will open the user page
Select Friend Suggestions. It’s the third option in the sidebar menu to the left.
Select the Facebook or Twitter icon. Both are at the top of the screen.
Select Link to a Facebook Account or Link to a Twitter Account. It’s the button at the bottom of the main page to the right.
This will displays a login screen for either Facebook or Twitter in full screen.
Enter your login information and tap Continue or Authorize App.
Once your password is accepted, you’ll see a list of your friends who also have Nintendo Switch.
Your friend’s information will appear. Select a friend.
Now, select send friend request. You will see this in the sidebar to the left below the user’s profile picture and the username.
On the pop-up, click on OK
Now, this way you can start a game with your friend.

Starting an Online game with a Friend

For this to happen, you have to subscribe to Nintendo Switch Online.

A paid subscription is required.

Install the Nintendo Switch Online app.
Scroll down and select play online. It is there in the left panel.
Now, select a friend to play against with.
Your friend will be asked to connect with your for the game.
Now, select the game from the list on the screen.

This will start the game.

Enjoy!

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Share Your Experiences on Social Media

This is where you can exchange friend codes by sharing pictures over social media.

It has a share feature that lets you attach image captions and generate memes to upload to Facebook and Twitter.

On the user page, click on User Settings and scroll down to Posting to Social Media to link your Switch to your Facebook and Twitter accounts.

Once you link them, go to the home page and select Album.

Here you have to select an image, add a caption, and click Post to show it across social media.

How do I decline a friend request on Nintendo?

Here’s how you can decline a friend request on Nintendo.

Tap open the home page to open the home menu.
Select Friend List. It’s on the left side
You will see a message that says, You’ve received a friend request!
Tap on this message to display a list of the friend requests you have received.
Tap on the friend request you wish to accept or reject.
Tap Reject or Accept, or scroll down and select Block if you wish to block the user.
Tap Yes to confirm your choice, and then tap OK.