In November 2020, Sony and Microsoft launched their new generation of game consoles PS5 and Xbox Series X|S respectively, sparking enthusiasm among gamers worldwide. However, after 29 months of fierce competition, the gap between the sales of the two consoles is becoming more and more obvious. According to the latest data from the VGChartz website, as of March 2023, the PS5 has sold 35.94 million units worldwide, while the Xbox Series X|S has only 21.35 million units, a difference of 14.59 million units. 62.7% of the market share is held by the PS5, while the Xbox Series X|S has only 37.3%.
VGChartz is a professional gaming data analysis platform that publishes monthly sales comparison reports on various gaming hardware and software. The latest report released by VGChartz compares the sales of PS5 and Xbox Series X|S since their launch, and it points out that PS5 is ahead of Xbox Series X|S in major markets such as North America, Europe and Japan, while Xbox Series X|S has a slight advantage in other regions. The results show that the PS5 currently trails the PS4 by about 2.87 million units, while the Xbox Series X|S is ahead of the Xbox One by about 950,000 units.
Why was the PS5 able to beat the Xbox Series X|S so overwhelmingly? Industry insiders believe that there are several reasons for this: first, PS5 has more exclusive games and quality games, attracting more gamers; second, PS5 has certain advantages in design, performance and compatibility, providing a better user experience; third, PS5 also does a better job in marketing and channel distribution, increasing its brand influence and accessibility; finally Third, PS5 has a deeper user base and loyalty in some important markets such as Japan and Europe, creating a good word-of-mouth effect.
However, this does not mean that the Xbox Series X|S does not have any advantage or hope. Microsoft is also constantly improving and innovating its game console offerings with attractive services and features such as Xbox Game Pass, cloud gaming, backward compatibility and more. In addition, Microsoft has acquired a number of well-known game developers and IPs, adding a lot of interest to the future game lineup. Therefore, Xbox Series X|S still has the potential to close the gap with PS5 or even overtake it in the future.
