Sony's PS5 Price Hikes Go Into Effect Today But You Can Dodge Them If You Hurry
Sony announced a round of sweeping price cuts to its entire PlayStation 5 console family, which go into effect in the United States today. According to Sony, it was a "difficult decision" as it continues to "navigate a challenging economic environment," which is code for tariffs, though not so difficult that it decided to leave well enough alone for a console generation that is approaching five years old. If you're fast, however, you can still snag a PS5 at the now-old MSRP, or even a little cheaper.
"Similar to many global businesses, we continue to navigate a challenging economic environment. As a result, we’ve made the difficult decision to increase the recommended retail price for PlayStation 5 consoles in the U.S. starting on August 21," Sony stated on its PlayStation blog.
The new official pricing looks like this...
- PlayStation 5: $499.99 → $549.99
- PlayStation 5 Digital Edition: $449.99 → $499.99
- PlayStation 5 Pro: $699.99 → $749.99
This amounts to a $50 increase for all three consoles, or +10% for the PS5, +11.1% for the PS5 Digital Edition, and +7.1% for the PS5 Pro.
It's only a matter of time before the new pricing is reflected in retail listings, though at the time of this writing, we're still seeing the PS5 family selling at the old price points at various retailers. Here's a current snapshot...
- PlayStation 5 (Slim): $489 at Amazon
- PlayStation 5 (Slim): $499 at Walmart
- PlayStation 5 (Slim): $499.99 at Best Buy
- PlayStation 5 (Slim): $499.99 at Target
- PlayStation 5 Digital Edition (Slim): $449 at Amazon
- PlayStation 5 Digital Edition (Slim): $449 at Walmart
- PlayStation 5 Digital Edition (Slim): $449.99 at Best Buy
- PlayStation 5 Digital Edition (Slim): $449.99 at Target
- PlayStation 5 Pro: $699 at Amazon
- PlayStation 5 Pro: $699 at Walmart
- PlayStation 5 Pro: $699.99 at Best Buy
- PlayStation 5 Pro: $699.99 at Target
Price hikes are becoming the new reality, as Nintendo kicked things off in the console space when it announced higher MSRPs for it entire Switch 1 family (Switch, Switch OLED, and Switch Lite). However, it remains to be seen if retailers will actually adopt the new pricing.
For example, several retailers are still selling Switch consoles at the old prices. Some are even selling for lower than the original MSRP, like the Switch OLED—it now carries a $399.99 MSRP, up from the original $349.99 MSRP when it launched, but is available for $299 at Amazon and Walmart.
GameStop has your back. https://t.co/ksPN4H3o1g pic.twitter.com/JkGHtAQO1q
— GameStop (@gamestop) August 21, 2025
In addition to holding firm at old prices in some cases, retailers are finding other ways to ease the blow. Case in point, GameStop announced on X that it is offering a $50 bonus when trading in any PS4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, or Switch to offset the PS5's price increase and mitigate the "sticker shock."
It's disappointing that it's come to this, but kudos to the retailers that are pushing back.
