Subscribe to Nintendo Life on

Nintendo Switch Online launches this week, which means you'll have to pay if you want to carry on playing Splatoon 2, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and any other premium online game. Note we said premium, so free to play titles like Fortnite and Paladins will absolutely not require the service for online play.

While it's not the most expensive service in the world – a year's worth of it is just shy of $20 – you may still feel a tinge of frustration that something you've had for free so far is suddenly locked behind a paywall. And no, Nintendo, those NES games aren't really that much of a comfort.

However, there is a solution. Nintendo has carved a path that allows you to get Nintendo Switch Online for as little as $5 per year, and it's completely legitimate. Below, we'll detail exactly how you can achieve this so you're ready to hit the go button on Thursday, when the service goes live.

Nintendo Switch Online - How To Get It For $5 Per Year

Nintendo Switch Online costs $4 monthly, $8 quarterly, or $20 yearly with an individual membership. However, you can get yourself a family membership for $34.99, which provides Nintendo Switch Online for up to eight Nintendo Accounts.

$34.99 divided into eight is around $4.37, which is actually less than $5! It's really simple to set up as well. You just need to decide who is going to be the master account (i.e. the person paying for it) and get them to follow our simple guide to set up a family group.

Everyone who wants to get involved have to have a Nintendo Account, and you can register for one of those right away if you don't already have one. Our guide above also includes a section on how to set up a Nintendo Account so go there if you're struggling.

Also, one thing worth bearing in mind, is that Nintendo Switch Online is linked to a Nintendo Account and not your Nintendo Switch. So if you purchase it on an account – or have a particular account attached to your family group - only that account will have access to Nintendo Switch Online. In other words, any other accounts attached to your Nintendo Switch will not be able to use Nintendo Switch Online unless they acquire it separately.

Are you excited for Nintendo Switch Online? Do you have your doubts? Let us know what's going on in the comments section below.