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Yes: in the U.S. in July 2026, year-over-year console hardware unit sales fell for PS5, Xbox Series, and Nintendo Switch 2, according to Circana. The declines were not equal: PS5 fell 6%, Xbox Series 18%, and Switch 2 51%. That is a one-month U.S. comparison—not proof that sales fell worldwide or across all of 2026.
How much did console sales fall in July 2026?
Circana reported that total U.S. video game hardware unit sales were down 39% from July 2025. Hardware spending declined less sharply, falling 29% to $282 million. The difference matters: the average selling price of a new hardware unit rose 16% year over year, to $542, so the dollar total did not fall as quickly as the number of units sold. Circana’s July 2026 U.S. market report provides the monthly figures.
Which console platforms declined?
All three platform families in Circana’s July U.S. comparison recorded lower unit sales than a year earlier.
| Platform | U.S. unit sales change, July 2026 vs. July 2025 | Context |
|---|---|---|
| PS5 | Down 6% | Led hardware dollar sales in July 2026. |
| Xbox Series | Down 18% | Higher hardware prices and component costs were among the pressures Circana identified. |
| Nintendo Switch 2 | Down 51% | Led hardware units sold in July 2026; the comparison is against the period following its record-setting June 2025 launch. |
The figures compare units sold, not each platform’s revenue or installed base. Circana’s Mat Piscatella, Senior Director, Video Games, summarized the monthly result: “Unit sales were down on all console platforms when compared to a year ago.”
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Why were sales down?
The Switch 2 comparison has an unusually high baseline
Switch 2’s 51% drop is measured against July 2025, shortly after the console’s record-setting June 2025 launch. A launch-period comparison can make the following year’s percentage decline especially large; the July figure alone does not show that Switch 2 has lost half its buyers or explain its longer-term trajectory. Nintendo reported 23.68 million Switch 2 hardware units sold worldwide cumulatively as of June 30, 2026, a different measure from one month of U.S. unit sales. Nintendo’s hardware and software sales data reports the company’s worldwide totals.
Higher prices and component costs are a headwind
Circana cited higher hardware prices, driven by the RAM and component crisis, as a pressure on PS5 and Xbox Series selling rates. Rising average selling prices also help explain why hardware spending fell less than unit volume. The monthly data do not quantify how much of the decline came from component costs, price changes, consumer demand, or other factors, so no single cause accounts for the full 39% drop.
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Do these numbers mean console sales are falling everywhere?
No. The platform declines and aggregate figures above describe the U.S. market in July 2026 versus July 2025. They cannot establish a worldwide monthly trend or a full-year result. Company-reported worldwide totals also should not be treated as direct comparisons with Circana’s monthly U.S. figures: Sony reported more than 95 million PS5 units sold cumulatively worldwide as of June 30, 2026, while Nintendo’s Switch 2 total is also worldwide and cumulative. Sony’s disclosure is not a July U.S. sales measure. Sony’s June 2026 quarterly supplement gives its cumulative figure.
Nor does the July hardware decline mean the entire U.S. video game market contracted. Circana said U.S. consumer spending on video game hardware, content, and accessories reached $60.7 billion in 2025, up 1.4% from 2024. Its projected 3% rise to $62.8 billion in 2026 is a forecast for the whole U.S. games market, not hardware alone. Circana’s market coverage distinguishes that broader spending outlook from the monthly hardware result.
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