It’s no secret that the PlayStation 5 has been selling well, as stories of its scarcity were quite popular even for months after its release. That demand has led to 40 million PS5 sales, an achievement that caused Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan to thank players across the world.
Jim Ryan thanks players for their patronage
In a post on the Sony Interactive website, Ryan recalled pandemic-related issues that made the team face roadblocks for “more months than [he cares] to remember.” He noted that supply issues have mostly dissolved and thanked players for their patience.
“With the support of PlayStation fans, we have reached a milestone of 40 million PS5 consoles sold through to gamers since launch,” said Ryan. “Thank you so much to our community of gamers – without you this would have been an impossible task.”
As Sony pointed out at the bottom of the article, that PS5 sales number is as of July 16, 2023.
Ryan also talked about the many games that have come to PS5 over the years and even posted an image about the top 40 PS5 games. Players voted on these titles and they range from big first-party exclusives like Horizon Forbidden West to Returnal to smaller titles like Sifu and Cult of the Lamb. He also touched on peripherals like PlayStation VR2 and the different console accessories like new faceplates and DualSense colors before once again thanking the players.
Sony confirming these new PS5 sales numbers means that it has sold almost twice as many units as the Xbox Series X|S. As captured by Idle Sloth, Xbox revealed in June 2023 that it had sold over 21 million Xbox Series X|S systems. This comparison gives credence to Microsoft’s recent claims that it has lost the console war.
And while outselling the Xbox Series X|S, the PS5 is moving slightly slower than the PS4. Sony announced in May 2016 that the PS4 hit 40 million units, meaning it took two years and six months to hit that milestone. The PS5 hit that same milestone in just about two years and eight months.
