Recent industry data estimates that Sony has told twice as many PlayStation 5 consoles as Microsoft has sold Xbox Series X|S consoles worldwide.
This new data comes from research firm Ampere Analysis. According to a new console insight from the firm, Sony has reportedly sold through roughly 12.8 million PlayStation 5 units (disc and digital models combined) globally as of September, whereas Microsoft is said to have only sold through 6.7 million of its Xbox Series family (Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S combined). During the third quarter of 2021, the research firm estimates that global console sales across Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo reached 9.1 million units, with the Nintendo Switch slightly outselling the PS5 (3.91 million Switch units compared to 3.42 PS5 units).
“Nintendo Switch has dominated global sell-through in 2021, but Q3 sales were closer between Nintendo’s family of devices and Sony’s PS5. In particular, Sony made substantial headway in Western markets where supply was improved and where demand was high”, Ampere’s games research director, Piers Harding-Rolls, writes in his article. “This culminated in PS5 outselling Switch in Europe by some distance. NPD also reported that in the US PS5 outsold Switch for the first time in September. However, Nintendo is once again expected to substantially outsell the other consoles in Q4 helped by the launch of Switch OLED, the seasonal momentum Nintendo enjoys and product availability.”
Interestingly, Harding-Rolls also claims that data suggest that Microsoft’s Xbox Series S has outsold the Xbox Series X in “several key markets”. Actual sales numbers and more details about these “key” markets weren’t provided.
“Microsoft’s two-tier product strategy was a bold move at launch of the Series generation and the lesser-powered Series S has come into its own against a backdrop of component shortages and Xbox Series X supply constraints”, the article reads.
Quite an interesting article from Ampere Analysis, but with Microsoft not sharing console sales numbers, we can’t confirm that these numbers are correct.
