Following the Xbox Series X release, the Playstation 5 is finally out, marking the official start to Sony’s next generation of gaming. Pre-orders were a bit of a debacle for this console, so it’s possible you weren’t able to reserve one before launch. That’s a shame- the PS5 is much faster than the PS4 and the adaptive triggers on the Dualsense controller are a unique experience you can’t get elsewhere. The launch library’s thin enough that there is a strong argument to be made for waiting until next year to buy a PS5, but we’ve actually seen listings with stock today and it seems like Walmart has yet to actually start selling its inventory. So if you’re planning to early adopt or you just absolutely have to play Spider-Man: Miles Morales at 60 fps, there’s still hope that you can buy one without waiting too long.
There’s two versions of the Playstation 5 out now, but they’re identical aside from the lack of a disc drive. Here’s where you might be able to find each.
Playstation 5
US PS5 retailers at a glance: Amazon | Best Buy | Gamestop | Target | Newegg | Walmart
US PS5 resellers at a glance: eBay | stockX
The Playstation 5 is Sony’s aptly named successor to the PS4, and has a custom 8-core Zen 2 cpu and custom 10.3 teraflop RDNA 2 GPU. On paper, that leaves it a little less powerful than the Xbox Series X, but optimization and specific games will probably make performance more of a case-by-case issue. This version comes with a 4K Blu-ray disc drive as well, which might be important to you if you like to own your games and movies physically.
We expect supply for the PS5 to be largely sold out throughout the day, but we did briefly see new stock up earlier in the day at Best Buy, so it’s not a bad idea to check major retailers on occasion. Plus, during the writing of this article, the “sold out” button on Best Buy’s PS5 listing also briefly changed to “shop open-box.” That option’s gone now, but it could mean we might see the company let customers buy returned or cancelled units soon.
Walmart is also an anomaly, as it seems that it’s waiting to put the PS5 on sale until today at Noon.
All other major official US retailers seem to be sold out for now and aren’t offering restock notifications. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t more underground options available. If you must buy aftermarket, the current PS5 markup on eBay seems to be between $100 – 200 depending on your listing. There’s also stockX, which has one PS5 listing up for about $865.
Playstation 5 All-Digital Edition
US PS5 retailers at a glance: Amazon | Best Buy | Gamestop | Target | Walmart
US PS5 resellers at a glance: eBay | stockX
The Playstation 5 release also marks the first time Sony is releasing a discless version of one of its consoles. This isn’t like the Xbox Series S- the PS5 Digital Edition is the same machine as the regular PS5, just without a disc drive. Still, that concession will save you $100 if you can manage to find one new.
It also gives you another avenue to find a Playstation 5 that’s in stock. Unlike the PS5 with the disc drive, we haven’t seen this one selling anywhere yet today. But like the regular PS5, Walmart apparently hasn’t yet opened its doors and will instead start selling the console at Noon.
Alternately, aftermarket sellers are also an option here. The current markup for the PS5 All-Digital Edition seems to be about $100 on eBay, which is probably your best bet when it comes to resellers. That’s because the only stockX listing for the All-Digital PS5 right now is $845, which is only slightly cheaper than the site’s listing for the version with a disc drive.