US Console Sales Hit Worst November Since 1995

Circana says US hardware sales and physical game spending hit their worst November since 1995. PS5 led the month, Switch 2 followed, and prices hit a record.

US gamers bought fewer consoles than any November since 1995

US games market tracking firm Circana has dropped a bit of a reality check: November 2025 was brutal for console hardware and even worse for physical game sales. Despite Black Friday and the run-up to Christmas, Americans bought fewer consoles than they have in any November since 1995, and the average price people paid hit a record high.

Below is what happened, what it means, and why "just discount it" isn't the simple fix people want it to be.

US console hardware sold 1.6m units in November 2025, the lowest November since 1995
Hardware spending hit $695m, down 27% year-on-year, and the weakest November since 2005
The average price paid for hardware was record $439 in November (up 11% vs. last year)

The numbers: November hardware fell hard

November 2025 hardware totals, per Circana’s US tracking:

1.6 million hardware units sold (lowest November since 1995)
$695 million spent on hardware (down 27% vs last year; lowest November since 2005)
$439 average price paid for a new hardware unit (an all-time November high; 11% higher year-on-year)

November is usually a monster month because of Black Friday deals and holiday shopping. This time, the pricing looks like it did the opposite of helping.

Black Friday meets sticker shock

Circana’s read is pretty direct: hardware prices were likely the main reason sales stayed low, even in peak season.

Mat Piscatella (Circana) was asked how manufacturers could lower prices with pressures like tariffs and component costs
His answer: they “likely cannot and will not”
And if pricing jumps again due to components, he warned it could be “catastrophic” for dedicated gaming devices

In plain terms: people want cheaper consoles, but the people who make them don’t sound confident they can (or want to) do that.

Who “won” the month: PS5 first, Switch 2 close behind

Even in a down month, the rankings still matter:

PlayStation 5 was the best-selling console in the US for November (units and dollars)
Nintendo Switch 2 ranked second in both units and dollars
Xbox Series X|S was third in dollars
NEX Playground was third in units sold

So yes, the PS5 topped the month. But the bigger story is still that the whole hardware pie shrank.

Physical game spending just hit a new low

Circana also flagged an ugly milestone for discs and boxes:

Physical software spending fell 14% vs November 2024
It’s an all-time low for a November since tracking began in 1995
Important catch: this does not include digital software, which made up the majority of US game sales

For UAE readers, this lines up with what you already feel on shelves: physical still exists, but the momentum is clearly on the digital side. If you’re deciding between a disc console and a digital-only one, our guide breaks it down in plain English: Which PS5 should you buy in the UAE?

Call of Duty still topped the charts, but sales slipped

On the software side:

Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 was the best-selling game of November
It’s the 7th best-selling game of 2025 so far V
But the franchise saw a “double-digit percentage” decline in full-game dollar sales versus November last year

So CoD is still doing CoD things. It’s just doing them in a softer market.

Is this the worst November for console sales ever?

Circana’s data says November 2025 had the lowest hardware unit total for a November since 1995, and the weakest November hardware spending since 2005.