Like some sad April Fools joke, Sony has decided to raise the price of their hardware yet again.
Normally when you buy a console at launch, you expect to be paying the premium. You got the new fancy hardware, early games, and got it while everyone else struggles to find a unit on store shelves for a few months. Then six years later you see people buying it for half the price, heck you might even pick up a second one yourself, or trade up since it’s so cost effective.
Normally the cost of manufacturing that hardware goes down too, enabling profit margins for the console makers, and lower prices come into play while they shift their R/D to making a new console. Then focus shifts from hardware sales to software, or accessories, etc… which makes it a really fun time to be a consumer.
Not today.
Like most of our generation getting shafted by cost of living and outrageous housing markets, PlayStation is jumping in on the fun. Six years into its life cycle, the PS5 is becoming the most expensive console to date.
Sony announced the following price increases for the base PS5, PS5 Pro, and even the PS Portal that will take effect April 2nd:
U.S.
PS5 – $649.99
PS5 Digital Edition – $599.99
PS5 Pro – $899.99
U.K.
PS5 – £569.99
PS5 Digital Edition – £519.99
PS5 Pro – £789.99
Europe
PS5 – €649.99
PS5 Digital Edition – €599.99
PS5 Pro – €899.99
Japan
PS5 – ¥97,980
PS5 Digital Edition – ¥89,980
PS5 Pro – ¥137,980
Lucky for some gamers, Sony totally forgot the PSVR2 exists and it doesn’t appear to be impacted by the absurd pricing, probably because they still can’t find a way to sell the backlog they have.
But diving deeper into the pricing. This makes the PS5 essentially more expensive than when the PS3 was released. If you want to “adjust for inflation” then Sony already surpassed that mark when they raised the price last year in August by $50, however this new increase puts the Digital “Cheaper” PS5 right at the same price the 60GB PS3 (Premium version) released at ($600). People thought we were insane buying a PS3 at that price, and we were!
And the portal got hit too:
U.S. – $249.99
U.K. – £219.99
Europe – €249.99
Japan – ¥39,980
As for the Portal, it makes even less sense to buy it at this price. At $250 it makes it more expensive than a Nintendo Switch Light ($229) and just $50 less than a standard Switch ($299), you can buy a new Switch 2 at $449. All of which, you know, actually play games natively and don’t require a console to stream from. In my opinion the PS Portal has no business sitting in this price range. It is nearly useless without a PS5 and PS Plus premium (which also saw a price increase) and has no functions natively to warrant it.
The price increases on the consoles include a $50 increase in 2023, the $50 increase from last August, and a $100 today for base units, making them $200 more expensive than launch (Sony also raised prices globally, except for the US in 2022 by $50). The Pro increased by $50 in 2025 to $749, and is now seeing a $150 increase to hit $900. Making it $200 more expensive since launch. It seems that the PS5 is going up yearly at this point.
If you’re looking to rush out and buy a PS5 right now to save for a holiday present, or your launch model is finally overheating and you don’t want to lose a hundred bucks, it makes sense. There are still some deals on current models including the Fortnite model which is the only time PS5 pricing has gone in the right direction, coming in under the current MSRP by $100. The discount essentially makes it $200 cheaper than buying a PS5 at the jacked up price. Gamestop also appears to be hosting a trade in event for Pro members this weekend to get up to $400 on a PS5 to trade towards a new one.
The pricing is incredibly ridiculous, and it may not be entirely on Sony being greedy. While they released an overpriced VR headset, have incredibly high priced controllers, and continue to raise the price of PS Plus, this one feels different. Hardware across tech has been impacted by AI companies suffocating supply, and the focus from hardware makers (SSDs, Memory, Processors etc) all shifted away from the consumer, and towards these AI farms. Of course with stricter supply, and global politics, nothing adds in favor of console or PC makers. But is spending 900 dollars on a six year old PS5 really worth it?
The future of console gaming appears increasingly expensive, especially given current hardware costs and rumors surrounding the next iteration of Xbox, Sony’s primary competitor. Speculation suggests the next Xbox could start at $1500 or more as it shifts focus toward PC-style performance. Considering Sony’s existing pricing trends, a PS6 retailing for over $1200 is entirely plausible. In the past, the availability of $1000 PC builds helped keep console prices competitive, but that baseline has since moved to $2-3k due to changes in market demand.
I’ll say one thing, paying over $1k for a console doesn’t excite me in the slightest. The PS6 needs to be the hybrid console the Vita promised to be, if they want to warrant any type of pricing structure. It’ll also be interesting if the next PlayStation has any connection to PC gaming. If PC prices were to come back down to reality, it would help shift a lot of core gamers to PC with these prices, but even that doesn’t seem likely to happen any time soon.
Then you take into account the upcoming Steam Machine, if it is cometively priced towards these PS5 inflated prices, it’s an easy jump for a lot of gamers.
It’s not too soon to say “just kidding, April fools” Sony, we will forgive you.
