Sony hikes the PS5 price by $100, PS5 Pro by $150: 'this was a necessary step'

Sony has confirmed significant price rises for the PlayStation 5, PlayStation 5 Pro, and PlayStation Portal. These landing not long after it raised prices in the United States in 2025, and globally (excluding the US) in 2022.

The PlayStation 5 was launched at $500, and the Digital Edition at $400. The newer Slim versions were launched in late 2023 with the Digital Edition going up in price by $50. The standard version remained at $500.

"With continued pressures in the global economic landscape, we’ve made the decision to increase the prices of PS5, PS5 Pro, and PlayStation Portal remote player globally," Sony says in a blog post.

"We know that price changes impact our community, and after careful evaluation, we found this was a necessary step to ensure we can continue delivering innovative, high-quality gaming experiences to players worldwide."

Sony cited "a challenging economic environment" for its previous US price hike in August of last year. No doubt the ongoing scarcity and rising costs of memory are somewhat to blame for the latest.

Another price hike back in 2022, which was rolled out globally but excluded the United States, cited "high global inflation rates".

The new prices are expected to be rolled out by retailers commencing April 2, 2026. That means there's still stock on the shelves that will not be immediately impacted, though whether these will be sold at higher prices sooner is yet to be seen. A sudden surge in demand off the back of this announcement, possibly from scalpers, wouldn't be unexpected.

This comes at a strange time in the existing generation's life. Sony has already detailed its partnership with AMD for a new SOC to power its next generation console. If rising memory costs weren't already a dark cloud over the price of future consoles, this move suggests even Sony is not immune.

Valve's plans for the Steam Machine (et al) have also been scuppered by rising memory costs. Nintendo has also said it is "carefully considering the situation".

The memory crisis is not expected to clear up for a long time. Micron, a major memory manufacturer, confirmed "demand significantly in excess of our available supply for the foreseeable future" in a recent earnings call.

A market research firm recently suggested that it looks unlikely to clear before the end of 2027. That's when the next-generation of consoles are expected to show up, providing rising costs don't delay things.

SK Hynix, another memory manufacturer, expects it to last until 2030.

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