Sony has announced a rather significant price increase for select PlayStation 5 consoles affecting multiple regions, including the UK, with the Digital Edition bearing the brunt of the adjustments in what the company describes as "a challenging economic environment".
The price changes, effective from today, see the disc-free PS5 Digital Edition rise by £40 to £429.99 in the UK, and by €50 to €499.99 across European markets. Note that while the price increase appears to have gone into effect on Sony's own store, we still see slightly lower prices on Amazon at the time of writing.
Meanwhile, the standard PS5 with Ultra HD Blu-ray disc drive maintains its current pricing in these territories.
PS5 customers in Australia and New Zealand, meanwhile, face increases on both console variants.
In Australia, the PS5 with disc drive increases to AUD $829.95 (from AUD $799.95), while the Digital Edition jumps to AUD $749.95 (from AUD $649.95).
New Zealand pricing rises to NZD $949.95 for the disc drive model, and NZD $859.95 for the Digital Edition.
Elsewhere, the PS5 Pro models remain unaffected by any price changes across all regions. For now, at least.
And while no US price changes have been announced, industry watchers believe similar adjustments may follow.
In an attempt to take some of the sting out of these increases, Sony has reduced the price of its add-on disc drive accessory.
UK customers will now pay £69.99 instead of £99.99, while European buyers benefit from a €40 reduction to €79.99.
In Australia, the disc drive price drops to AUD $124.95 from AUD $159.95, and New Zealand sees a reduction to NZD $139.95 from the previous NZD $169.95.
This marks Sony's second PS5 price adjustment since launch, following similar increases implemented in August 2022.
The timing coincides with broader economic pressures affecting the consumer electronics industry, including potential impacts from recently announced US import tariffs on Chinese-manufactured goods. Sony produces a significant portion of PlayStation hardware in China.
Nintendo's recent Switch 2 announcement has also faced similar challenges, with the company suspending US pre-orders while it assesses "the potential impact of tariffs and evolving market conditions" – suggesting wider industry pricing pressures that extend beyond Sony.
Time will tell if similar increases will hit the broader tech market.
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