It's looked inevitable for a while, but the Nintendo Switch has officially outsold the Wii U after just 10 months on shelves.

Nintendo broke the news alongside its financials for the nine months ended December 31, and while it's a welcome development, it's hardly unexpected.

The hybrid console has been performing well since launching in March last year, and sold 7.23 million units during a bumper holiday quarter to take lifetime sales to 14.86 million units.

The Wii U, on the other hand, only racked up 13.56 million sales during its entire four-year lifespan, and Nintendo eventually ended production of the struggling console in January 2017.

The Japanese console maker was only expecting Switch sales to hit 14 million by the end of this financial year on March 31, but the system has surpassed that total with three months to spare.

Looking ahead, Nintendo expects the console to keep building momentum, and believes it can sell another 20 million units during the next fiscal year.