On the covered Nintendo Switch console, 9001-0039 means an error that comes up when you try to redeem a download code. First, note the exact error code and message on the screen and what you were doing when it appeared.
Differential
Likely causes of “Nintendo Switch console code 9001-0039”, and how to tell them apart
- 1
A download code typed wrongly
What separates it The eShop rejects the code at once
How to confirm Re-enter every character with care, using the code exactly as printed
- 2
Characters that look alike
What separates it An 8 read as a 3 or a K read as an X
How to confirm Try the look-alike characters in the doubtful places
- 3
A code that is not sixteen characters
What separates it The OK button does not accept it
How to confirm Count the characters and enter all sixteen without dashes or spaces
- 4
The wrong account selected
What separates it The code works on one account and not another
How to confirm Choose the account that should receive the game
- 5
A code that was already used
What separates it The error repeats for a code that worked before
How to confirm Check your purchase history for the title
Before you touch a setting
Record this first — changing settings destroys the evidence
- The exact code and the message on screen
- The account selected
- Whether the code was already used
- The characters that were hard to read
Try in this order
0 of 8 completedWhat to do first
ReversibleNote the exact error code and message on the screen and what you were doing when it appeared.
Correct only the documented fault domain
ReversibleSelect Nintendo eShop on the HOME Menu. Select the account you want to use. Select Enter Code on the left side of the screen. Nintendo says to contact Nintendo Support if the steps do not resolve it.
Open the eShop
ReversibleSelect Nintendo eShop on the HOME Menu.
Pick the account
ReversibleThe one you want to use.
Choose Enter Code
ReversibleOn the left side of the screen.
Type all sixteen characters
ReversibleCarefully, trying look-alike characters.
Select OK
ReversibleThen watch for the download icon.
Contact Nintendo
ReversibleIf the issue persists.
Model-specific
What is true of this model and not of its siblings
- Nintendo's wording
- The article says the code was probably entered wrongly.
- Look-alikes
- Try the similar-looking characters.
- Reading the code on a card
- Download codes are printed or shown as sixteen characters in groups, and the groups are separated by dashes that you do not type. Cards that have been in a wallet or a drawer can be scuffed, and a scratch-off panel that was rubbed too hard can leave a character half revealed. Hold the card under a good light and compare each character with the others in the same position of the code, because the font used for download codes makes some pairs look alike.
- Where the code can be used
- A code redeems on the Nintendo Account selected on the console, for the region of that account. A code bought for another region, or one that a shop activated at the till, may already have been used. If a retailer sold the card, the receipt and the card together are what Nintendo support will ask to see, so keep both until the game is installed.
- After a successful redemption
- When the code is accepted, the game icon appears on the HOME menu with a progress bar, and the title is added to your Nintendo Account library, so you can download it again on another console later. If the icon does not appear, open the eShop, check your purchase history for the title, and start the download from there.
Stop boundary
When this stops being a self-service repair
- !If a carefully typed code still fails, contact Nintendo Support with the code's source
- !Keep the receipt or the card the code came from
- !Do not share the code
Evidence ledger
Sources behind this answer
Exact questions
Common questions
What does 9001-0039 mean on a Nintendo Switch console?+
an error that comes up when you try to redeem a download code.
What does this redeem error mean?+
Nintendo says it typically means the download code was entered incorrectly.
Which characters get mixed up?+
An eight and a three, or a K and an X, are the usual pair.
How long is a download code?+
Sixteen characters.
Where do I enter it?+
Under Enter Code in the eShop.