Sony sold more than 563.2 million PlayStation consoles. That is from Q2 2022 to December 3, 1994, when the first PlayStation was launched.
While the PlayStation brand still sits comfortably as the world’s most popular gaming console, its main competitors, Microsoft (Xbox Series X) and Nintendo (Switch) are slowly narrowing the gap.
Take a deeper look at how many people play PlayStation consoles and how much Sony earned from their beloved consoles throughout all these years.
Did you know that up to 41% of PlayStation players are females? Find out more down below.
Here are all PlayStation generations, with a few upgraded models in between:
- PlayStation 1 – December 3, 1994
- PlayStation 2 – March 4, 2000
- PlayStation 2 Slimline – October 29, 2004
- PlayStation Portable (PSP) – March 24, 2005
- PSP-2000 – August 30, 2007
- PSP-3000 – October 14, 2008
- PSP Go – October 1, 2009
- PSP Street – October 26, 2011
- PlayStation 3 – November 11, 2006
- PlayStation 3 Slim – September 1, 2009
- PlayStation 3 Super Slim – January 27, 2013
- PlayStation Vita – December 17, 2011
- PS Vita Slim – October 10, 2013
- PlayStation 4 – November 15, 2013
- PlayStation 4 Pro – September 7, 2016
- PlayStation 5 – November 12, 2020
Sony PlayStation sales numbers
How many PlayStations are there in the world?
How many people play PlayStation?
Most popular PlayStation games
Fascinating PlayStation Facts
- Sony sold a total of 563.2 million PlayStation consoles, with 142 million of them being PlayStation 4’s and 5’s.
- PlayStation 5 sold the most units in its launch year (7.8 million) and was played the most in its first 6 months (52 hours per month on average).
- An average of 106.6 million monthly active users played PlayStation consoles in 2021, with a current average for 2022 showing a slightly lower 102.5 million monthly users.
- Sony’s Gaming & Network Services division earned around $23.28 billion in 2021, with $6.05 billion coming solely from console sales.
- PlayStation had a 46% market share in 2021, which has shrunk down from 52% in 2020 and 56% in 2019.
- People bought up to 1.54 billion games for PlayStation 2, with PlayStation 3 holding the second spot for selling 999 million titles.
Sony PlayStation Sales Numbers
- Sony sold more than 563.2 million PlayStation consoles between 1994 and 2022, according to Sony Interactive Entertainment.
That includes all 5 PlayStations and the PSP (PlayStation Portable).
Out of all consoles, PlayStation 2 was the most successful, selling more than 155 million units as of 2012 (when it was discontinued).
Here’s how many PlayStations have been individually sold so far:
| PlayStation generation | Units sold |
|---|---|
| PlayStation | 102.4 million |
| PlayStation 2 | 155 million |
| PSP (PlayStation Portable) | 76.4 million |
| PlayStation 3 | 87.4 million |
| PlayStation 4 | 117 million |
| PlayStation 5 | 25 million |
- Sony’s second most successful PlayStation, the fourth-gen, sold the most units in 2016, topping at 20 million.
The table shows annual sales for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 (the latest official numbers):
| Year | PlayStation 4 sales | PlayStation 5 sales |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | / | 5.7 million |
| 2021 | 1.0 million | 11.5 million |
| 2020 | 5.7 million | 7.8 million |
| 2019 | 13.5 million | / |
| 2018 | 17.8 million | / |
| 2017 | 19.0 million | / |
| 2016 | 20.0 million | / |
| 2015 | 17.6 million | / |
| 2014 | 14.8 million | / |
| 2013 | 7.6 million | / |
- On the other hand, PlayStation 5 broke the record for the most units sold in the launch year.
And that’s despite a bumpy launch, with consoles constantly out of stock and issues with so-called scalpers buying multiple units and selling them for a higher price.
Here are the launch year sales for every PlayStation console:
| PlayStation generation | Units sold in the launch year | Launch year |
|---|---|---|
| PlayStation 1 | 0.7 million | 1994 |
| PlayStation 2 | 1.4 million | 1999 |
| PlayStation 3 | 3.6 million | 2006 |
| PlayStation 4 | 7.6 million | 2013 |
| PlayStation 5 | 7.8 million | 2020 |
- PlayStation 2 is the best-selling console of all time, with 157 million units sold.
PlayStation 4 holds second place with 117 million, and Nintendo Switch, with 107 million units sold at third place.
The table shows only non-handheld consoles (apart from the Switch, which can be both).
| Rank | Gaming console | Units sold |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | PlayStation 2 | 157 million |
| 2. | PlayStation 4 | 117 million |
| 3. | Switch | 114.3 million |
| 4. | PlayStation 1 | 102 million |
| 5. | Nintendo Wii | 101 million |
| 6. | PlayStation 3 | 87.4 million |
| 7. | Xbox 360 | 85 million |
| 8. | NES | 61 million |
| 9. | Xbox One | 50.56 million |
| 10. | SNES | 49.1 million |
How Many PlayStations are There in the World
- If we assume people threw away their PlayStations after 5 years, there would be around 63 million Sony consoles in use.
On the other hand, if people change their video game console every 7 years, there could be around 107 million PlayStation 3, 4, and 5 in the world.
If people hold to their consoles for up to 10 years, there should be more than 131.8 million PlayStations.
For this estimation, we used official PS4 and PS5 sales numbers and an estimated number of PS3 consoles sold after 2015 (knowing that by the end of 2013, PS3 sold 80 million units).
Here’s the table of our results above:
| If people threw away their consoles after: | Estimated number of PlayStation consoles in the world |
|---|---|
| 5 years of use | 63 million |
| 7 years of use | 107 million |
| 10 years of use | 131.8 million |
See what is the best wireless gaming headset for PlayStation.
How Many People Play PlayStation?
- PlayStation had an average of 106.6 million monthly active users in 2021.
Which is, on average, 4.65 million fewer monthly players than in 2020.
These are users that played a game or logged in to PlayStation Network. The official number for 2019 or earlier are unavailable.
The current average for 2022 is lower at 102.5 million monthly active users.
| Year | Average monthly active users |
|---|---|
| 2022 | 102.5 million |
| 2021 | 106.6 million |
| 2020 | 111.25 million |
- PlayStation had 102 million monthly active users in Q2 2022.
That’s 1 million less compared to Q1 2022 and 12 million less compared to Q1 2020 and Q3 2020, representing the highest monthly active users count since Sony started to follow these numbers.
Here’s a more detailed view of how PlayStation monthly active users changed between 2022 and 2020:
| Quarter of the year | Monthly active users |
|---|---|
| Q2 2022 | 102 million |
| Q1 2022 | 103 million |
| Q4 2021 | 106 million |
| Q3 2021 | 111 million |
| Q2 2021 | 104 million |
| Q1 2021 | 105 million |
| Q4 2020 | 109 million |
| Q3 2020 | 114 million |
| Q2 2020 | 108 million |
| Q1 2020 | 114 million |
- There are an estimated 92 million people still playing PlayStation 4.
Assuming that PlayStation users who upgraded to PS5 no longer play PS4 and that their video game console still works.
At least Microsoft claims their consoles are designed to last for 10 years. Hopefully, it’s the same on Sony’s side.
(Eurogamer, SIE)
Here’s data on video game addiction and mobile gaming numbers.
PlayStation Revenue
- Sony’s Gaming & Network Services segment (G&NS) earned $23.28 billion in 2021.
That’s $1.19 billion less compared to 2020 but $5.54 billion more than in 2019.
The revenue was calculated quarterly using a historical currency converter for the date of the report and then summed together.
The table below shows precisely how much does PlayStation make a year:
| Year | Annual revenue from G&NS | Growth |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | $23.28 billion | -4.86% |
| 2020 | $24.47 billion | +37.94% |
| 2019 | $17.74 billion | -11.39% |
| 2018 | $20.02 billion | +20.24% |
| 2017 | $16.65 billion | +15.38% |
| 2016 | $14.43 billion | +15.9% |
| 2015 | $12.45 billion | / |
And here’s the revenue from hardware & other sales only (including non-PlayStation hardware):
| Year | Annual revenue from Hardware & Others | Growth |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | $7.31 billion | +1.25% |
| 2020 | $7.22 billion | +36.74% |
| 2019 | $5.28 billion | -26.36% |
| 2018 | $7.17 billion | -1.91% |
| 2017 | $7.31 billion | +36.62% |
| 2016 | $5.43 billion (hardware only) | -10.1% |
| 2015 | $6.04 billion (hardware only) |
- Based on quarterly revenue results, the third quarter always brought the most money to Sony and PlayStation.
The table shows the PlayStation revenue for each quarter from Q2 2022 to Q1 2017, separated by overall revenue and hardware & other revenue for comparison:
| Quarter of the year | Gaming & Network Services revenue |
|---|---|
| Q2 2022 | $4.86 billion |
| Q1 2022 | $4.32 billion |
| Q4 2021 | $5.31 billion |
| Q3 2021 | $6.92 billion |
| Q2 2021 | $5.61 billion |
| Q1 2021 | $5.44 billion |
| Q4 2020 | $5.82 billion |
| Q3 2020 | $8.40 billion |
| Q2 2020 | $4.69 billion |
| Q1 2020 | $5.56 billion |
| Q4 2019 | $3.90 billion |
| Q3 2019 | $5.68 billion |
| Q2 2019 | $4.06 billion |
| Q1 2019 | $4.10 billion |
| Q4 2018 | $4.33 billion |
| Q3 2018 | $6.91 billion |
| Q2 2018 | $4.72 billion |
| Q1 2018 | $4.06 billion |
| Q4 2017 | $4.03 billion |
| Q3 2017 | $6.05 billion |
| Q2 2017 | $3.68 billion |
| Q1 2017 | $2.89 billion |
| Q4 2016 | $3.30 billion |
| Q3 2016 | $5.10 billion |
| Q2 2016 | $3.01 billion |
| Q1 2016 | $3.02 billion |
| Q4 2015 | $2.74 billion |
| Q3 2015 | $4.70 billion |
| Q2 2015 | $2.84 billion |
| Q1 2015 | $2.17 billion |
Revenue from hardware sales and other:
| Quarter of the year | Hardware & Others revenue |
|---|---|
| Q2 2022 | $1.75 billion |
| Q1 2022 | $1.44 billion |
| Q4 2021 | $1.52 billion |
| Q3 2021 | $2.27 billion |
| Q2 2021 | $1.90 billion |
| Q1 2021 | $1.62 billion |
| Q4 2020 | $1.96 billion |
| Q3 2020 | $3.27 billion |
| Q2 2020 | $0.96 billion |
| Q1 2020 | $1.03 billion |
| Q4 2019 | $0.71 billion |
| Q3 2019 | $2.08 billion |
| Q2 2019 | $1.17 billion |
| Q1 2019 | $1.32 billion |
| Q4 2018 | $1.08 billion |
| Q3 2018 | $2.96 billion |
| Q2 2018 | $1.78 billion |
| Q1 2018 | $1.35 billion |
| Q4 2017 | $1.08 billion |
| Q3 2017 | $3.39 billion |
| Q2 2017 | $1.70 billion |
| Q1 2017 | $1.14 billion |
| Q4 2016 | $0.83 billion (hardware only) |
| Q3 2016 | $2.39 billion (hardware only) |
| Q2 2016 | $1.05 billion (hardware only) |
| Q1 2016 | $1.16 billion (hardware only) |
| Q4 2015 | $0.87 billion (hardware only) |
| Q3 2015 | $2.71 billion (hardware only) |
| Q2 2015 | $1.40 billion (hardware only) |
| Q1 2015 | $1.06 billion (hardware only) |
PlayStation Profit
- PlayStation console sales earned Sony $6.33 billion of gross profit in 2021.
We assumed the average gross profit rate of the company at 27.2% for the fiscal year. The profitability of the PlayStation category isn’t known. Therefore we estimated it with the average for Sony. PlayStation gross profit is 27.2% of the Gaming & Network Services category revenue.
Here’s how much we estimate Sony earned from PlayStation sales:
| Year | Annual PlayStation sales |
|---|---|
| 2021 | $6.33 billion |
| 2020 | $6.36 billion |
| 2019 | $4.61 billion |
| 2018 | $5.20 billion |
| 2017 | $4.33 billion |
| 2016 | $3.75 billion |
| 2015 | $3.24 billion |
How much money has PlayStation made
- Based on our above estimations, PlayStation brought in around $36.03 billion from 2015 to Q2 2022.
| Year | Annual PlayStation sales | Cumulative PlayStation sales |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 (Q1 & Q2) | $2.49 billion | $36.03 |
| 2021 | $6.05 | $33.54 |
| 2020 | $6.36 | $27.49 |
| 2019 | $4.61 | $21.13 |
| 2018 | $5.20 | $16.52 |
| 2017 | $4.33 | $11.32 |
| 2016 | $3.75 | $6.99 |
| 2015 | $3.24 | / |
PlayStation Market Share
- PlayStation had around 46% market share in 2021, leading the console video game industry.
It’s losing a few percent of its share every year while Nintendo is gaining.
On the other hand, Microsoft is somewhat stagnating at around 25%.
Here’s the gaming console market share between 2021 and 2019:
| Company | Market share in 2021 | Market share in 2020 | Market share in 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sony | 46% | 52% | 56% |
| Microsoft | 25% | 23% | 25% |
| Nintendo | 29% | 25% | 19% |
PlayStation Demographics
- Users between 31 and 36 are the likeliest to own PS4 or PS5, adolescents aged 13-to-18 are the likeliest to own PS1.
The data is from Sony’s official report in 2021 and is an interpretation of its data charts.
The table below shows the ownership distribution of PlayStation 4/5 and PlayStation 1 between different age groups:
| Age group | Ownership distribution of PS4/PS5 | Ownership distribution of PS1 |
|---|---|---|
| 13-18 | 13% | 25% |
| 19-24 | 14% | 21% |
| 25-30 | 16% | 18% |
| 31-36 | 18% | 14% |
| 37-42 | 15% | 9% |
| 43-48 | 12% | 5% |
| 49-54 | 9% | 4% |
| 55+ | 3% | 4% |
- Up to 41% of PS4 and PS5 gamers are females.
That’s a lot more compared to 18% of female PS1 gamers.
| PlayStation generation | Percentage of MALE users | Percentage of FEMALE users |
|---|---|---|
| PlayStation 4 & PlayStation 5 | 59% | 41% |
| PlayStation 1 | 82% | 18% |
Here’s more gamer demographics data.
- People spent more time playing games when buying PlayStation 5 in the first five months after launch compared to PlayStation 4.
On average, new PS5 owners spent 52 hours per month playing games, compared to 34 hours and 43 minutes for new PS4 owners.
Here’s a more detailed view of how people engaged with PS4 and PS5 first five months after launch:
| Month | PlayStation 4 average monthly playtime | PlayStation 5 average monthly playtime |
|---|---|---|
| November | 27 hours (2013) | 37.3 hours (2020) |
| December | 37.3 hours (2013) | 55.5 hours (2020) |
| January | 40.9 hours (2014) | 62.3 hours (2021) |
| February | 33.8 hours (2014) | 53.4 hours (2021) |
| March | 34.6 hours (2014) | 51.5 hours (2021) |
- Despite PlayStation originating from Japan, US citizens are more likely to visit PlayStation.com than Japanese.
Here are the top 5 counties that most frequently visit PlayStation.com:
| Country | Share of playstation.com visitors |
|---|---|
| USA | 21.1% |
| Japan | 8.24% |
| Germany | 5.09% |
| UK | 4.72% |
| China | 4.37% |
| Others | 56.47% |
Most popular PlayStation games
- God of War Ragnarok was the most downloaded game for PS5 in November 2022.
On the other hand, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II was the most downloaded on PS4.
| Month | Most downloaded for PlayStation 5 | Most downloaded for PlayStation 4 |
|---|---|---|
| November 2022 | God of War Ragnarok | Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II |
| October 2022 | Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II | Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II & FIFA 23 |
| September 2022 | NBA 2K23 & FIFA 23 | NBA 2K23 & FIFA 23 |
| August 2022 | Madden NFL 23 (US & CA) Saints Row (EU) | Madden NFL 23 (US&CA) FIFA 22 (EU) |
| July 2022 | Stray (US & CA) F1 22 (EU) | Stray (US & CA) F1 22 (EU) |
| June 2022 | The Quarry (US & CA) Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order (EU) | Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Shredder’s Revenge (US & CA) FIFA 22 (EU) |
| May 2022 | Evil Dead: The Game (US & CA) NBA 2K22 (EU) | NBA 2K22 |
- The most popular free-to-play game was Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0.
Among PS VR games, Beat Saber was the most downloaded in North America, whereas Europeans preferred SUPERHOT VR.
(PlayStation Blog)
- People bought more than 3.829 billion games for PS1, PS2, PS3, and PSP combined.
Looking at software sales separately for each console:
| PlayStation generation | Number of software sales |
|---|---|
| PlayStation 1 | 962 million |
| PlayStation 2 | 1.537 billion |
| PlayStation 3 | 999 million |
| PlayStation Portable | 331 million |
- PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4 combined sold around 578.5 million game copies from 2020 to 2022.
That includes bundle, download-only, and PS VR copies.
Here are the annual game sales for both consoles:
| Year | Annual games sold (all games) | Annual games sold (first-party games) |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 (Q1 & Q2) | 109.7 million | 13.3 million |
| 2021 | 303.2 million | 43.9 million |
| 2020 | 338.8 million | 58.4 million |
| 2019 | 268.6 million | 43.3 million |
| 2018 | 257.6 million | n/a |
| 2017 | 246.9 | n/a |
Read more:
Conclusion
These were the latest and most in-depth PlayStation statistics you can find. Sony still firmly believes in the future of its consoles, estimating PS5 could break most of its previous records.
Are you a PlayStation or Xbox gamer? Did exclusives play a significant role in deciding which one to buy? How long do you have your console?
Let us know down in the comments.
Sources: SIE, Sony, Sony 2, Gamespot, Eurogamer, Ampere Analysis, HOT, Facts Chronicle, Similarweb, PlayStation Blog, Statista, Nintendo
From a childhood fascination with sound, Peter’s passion has evolved into a relentless pursuit of the finest headphones. He’s an audio expert with over 5 years of experience in testing both audiophile and consumer-grade headphones. Quote: “After many years, I can confidently tell which headphones are good and which are terrible.” Find his honest opinion in his reviews.
