Sony Increases PlayStation 5 Prices in America Due to Tariff Concerns

Sony is set to increase the price of its PlayStation 5 gaming consoles in the U.S. by approximately \$50 (around £37) starting this Thursday.

Starting Thursday, August 21, 2025, Sony has announced that PlayStation 5 (PS5) consoles in the U.S. will become approximately $50 more expensive. This price increase applies to every model—the Digital Edition, the standard PS5, and the high-end PS5 Pro, which will now retail for $749.99, up from its previous $699.99. The standard PS5 will move to $549.99, and the Digital Edition will go up to $499.99. Importantly, Sony confirmed that accessories like controllers and headsets will remain unchanged in price.

Sony acknowledges, “tough but necessary decision”

In an announcement shared on the PlayStation Blog, Isabelle Tomatis, Sony Interactive Entertainment’s VP of Global Marketing, acknowledged that this was a tough but necessary decision amid what she described as a “challenging economic environment.”

The driver behind this move? A combination of rising U.S. tariffs on imported electronics and persistent inflationary pressures—factors that are tightening margins across the tech industry. Analyst reports suggest that Trump-era tariffs of up to 25% on Japanese imports have seriously impacted Sony’s costs.

This isn’t an isolated development. Sony previously raised PS5 prices in regions like Europe, the UK, Australia, the Middle East, and New Zealand, starting earlier this year. Competitors like Microsoft (Xbox) and Nintendo (Switch) have also enacted similar price increases across global markets.

For U.S. gamers, this announcement brings urgency: many retailers—including Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart, and Target—are still offering pre-increase prices, providing a narrow window to buy at the current rates before the change takes effect.