Console prices only went up in 2026: where PS5 and Xbox stand now

Where the numbers sit now

If you are pricing a console in late 2026, the direction of travel has been one way. As of a 21 August 2026 accounting by GamingBible, the disc-drive Xbox Series X sells for $799.99 in the United States, up from its $499.99 launch price in November 2020, an increase of $300. The Series S is $499.99, up from $299.99 at launch. On the PlayStation side, GamingBible put the standard PS5 at $649.99 and the PS5 Pro at $899.99.

These are point-in-time figures, and we are dating them deliberately, because they have moved more than once this year.

How PlayStation got here

Sony did not reach those figures in a single step. Wikipedia's sourced price history records the PS5 launching in November 2020 at $499 for the disc model and $399 for the Digital Edition. In August 2025 Sony added $50 across models, tying the move to 'a challenging economic environment.' A further increase followed in April 2026, including $50 on the Digital Edition and $150 on the PS5 Pro, this time attributed to the 'global economic landscape.'

The PS5 Pro is the sharpest example. It launched in November 2024 at $699, already among the most expensive mainstream consoles, and the 2026 increase pushed it to the $899.99 that GamingBible reported in August.

Xbox followed

Microsoft's consoles moved the same direction in 2026, leaving the Series X at $799.99 and the Series S at $499.99 as of GamingBible's August report. GamingBible also flagged a leaked Series X25 Limited Edition expected at roughly €899.99 with a late-November 2026 window. We treat that specific model, its price and its date as unconfirmed until Microsoft says otherwise.

What it means if you are buying

The practical takeaway is that waiting has not been rewarded this cycle. Console prices have gone up, not down, and 2026 has been a year of rising component and memory costs across the hardware market more broadly. Sony pointed to economic conditions for its own increases (Wikipedia).

So the buying logic is simple. If a console at today's price fits your budget and library, there is little sign of an imminent cut to wait for. If it does not, the cheaper routes remain the Digital Edition or the Series S, as long as you accept the disc, storage and performance trade-offs that come with them.

It is also worth watching bundles and trade-in offers rather than the sticker alone. With the base hardware sitting at these levels, a pack-in game or a store credit can matter more to the real cost than the small gap between one model and the next. And because the figures here trace back to an August 2026 report and a running price history, they are a snapshot, not a guarantee of what a given retailer is charging today.

Our take

We are dating every figure to its source because these numbers have changed repeatedly in 2026, and a launch-era price is now a poor guide to what you will actually pay. Anyone comparing consoles should check the current regional price at the point of sale rather than trust an older headline number, including ours.