The US console market is going through its most delicate phase in decades. Data from research firm Circana, shared by analyst Mat Piscatella, shows that Xbox sales in the United States hit the platform's lowest mark on record in 2026, while PlayStation is having its worst performance since 2013. Behind the drop are prices that have never been higher.
The numbers
The data covers January through August 2026 compared with the same period of 2025, in the US market only:
| Platform | Units sold (change) | Average price paid |
|---|---|---|
| Xbox | down 33%, all-time low | US$529 (up 26%) |
| PlayStation | down 25%, worst since 2013 | US$597 (up 20%) |
Both average prices are US records. In August alone, according to Twisted Voxel, Xbox sales fell 31% from the same month of 2025, PlayStation dropped 11% and Nintendo fell 15%.
Why sales fell so much
The main explanation is price. Over 2026, consoles became more expensive in the US because of component shortages, especially memory, driven by demand from artificial intelligence data centers. Manufacturers passed the cost on to consumers, and the average price paid for a console soared.
Piscatella summed up the problem bluntly, saying both prices are at all-time highs in the US and that price sensitivity is becoming a real problem. In his view, the hardware market has not been in such a precarious position since the early 1980s, the era of the video game crash.
GTA 6 could help
The analyst sees possible relief at the end of the year: the launch of GTA 6 on November 19, only on PS5 and Xbox Series. The most anticipated game of the decade has the potential to bring people to stores looking for a new console. Piscatella cautions, however, that the effect depends on consoles being available amid the pressure on memory and components, and on how much they will cost.
In other words, Rockstar will launch the game at a time when buying a console has never been more expensive in the United States. For the price of the game itself, see our GTA 6 price and editions guide.
What we still don't know
Absolute unit sales per platform for the year have not been released, nor has September's data, which should come out in the coming weeks. There is no equivalent survey for other countries. Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo have not commented on the numbers.
