Xbox price increases revealed
Microsoft says it will increase the prices of its flagship Xbox Series S and Series X video game consoles on 3 October, citing changes in the macroeconomic environment.
The Series S models are increasing by $20 to $400 (R6,955) and $450 (R7,825), and the Series X is going up by $50 to $600 (R10,430) and $650 (R11,300). These prices exclude sales taxes like VAT.
The Series X with 2 terabytes of storage is increasing by $70 to $800 (R13,910), Microsoft said in a statement on Friday.
“We understand that these changes are challenging, and they were made with careful consideration,” the company said.
“Looking ahead, we continue to focus on offering more ways to play more games across any screen and providing value for Xbox players.”
This is not the first time Microsoft has increased the prices on Xbox consoles and controllers this year. In May, the company raised the base price of the Xbox Series S by $80 and the Xbox Series X by $100.
Microsoft joined a chorus of other gadget makers who have raised prices in the face of tariffs. Microsoft said on Friday it was not raising prices of accessories at this time.
In May, Microsoft also said some of its new, first-party games will launch at $79.99 (R1,500, excluding VAT) beginning this holiday season.
“Local pricing may differ by country to reflect exchange rates and market conditions,” Microsoft said. Regarding the price of first-party games, Microsoft said local pricing may also differ across platforms.
Microsoft’s May announcement came just weeks after rival Sony said it would increase the prices of its gaming subscription services and PlayStation 5 console.
This is a departure from historical trends. Console prices usually come down in the years after release, but this generation has seen the opposite.
Tariff fallout continues
The price increases on Xbox and PlayStation come as uncertainty about U.S. tariffs and an escalating trade war with China create global economic instability.
Neither Microsoft nor Sony explicitly mentioned tariffs as the reason for the price increases, likely because of how politically fraught the subject is.
Sony only pointed very generally to global macroeconomic conditions as the reason for its price adjustments.
“With a backdrop of a challenging economic environment, including high inflation and fluctuating exchange rates, Sony Interactive Entertainment has made the tough decision to raise the RRP of the PlayStation 5 console in select markets,” it stated.
However, economists worldwide from across the political spectrum have warned that tariffs will lead to higher-priced goods for consumers and could lead to another great recession.
“It’s painful to see a ruinous decision from back in the 1920s being repeated,” renowned economist Thomas Sowell said in a recent interview with The Hoover Institution.
“If you set off a worldwide trade war that has a devastating history, everybody loses because everybody follows suit. All that happens is that you get a great reduction in international trade.”
Sowell said the tariffs were disturbing in another sense.
“Franklin D Roosevelt, when he was president in the 1930s, said that you have to try things and if they don’t work, then you admit it, you abandon that, and you try something else until you come across something that does work,” he said.
“Now, that’s not a bad approach if you are operating within a known system of rules, but if you are the one who’s making the rules, then all the other people have no idea what you’re going to do next.”
Sowell said this uncertainty is a formula for getting people to hold on to their money until they figure out what U.S. President Donald Trump is actually planning.
“When a lot of people hang on to their money, you can get results like those during the Great Depression of the 1930s,” he warned.
“If this is just a set of short-run ploys for various limited objectives, limited in time, fine, maybe,” he continued.
“But if this is going to be the policy for four long years, that you’re going to try this, you’re going to try that, you’re going to try something else, a lot of people will wait.”
The current prices for Microsoft’s Xbox consoles are summarised in the table below.
| Xbox model | Price |
|---|---|
| Xbox Series S 512GB digital edition | R6,999 |
| Xbox Series S 1TB digital edition | R9,999 |
| Xbox Series X 1TB disc edition | R14,999 |
Reporting with Bloomberg
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