Switch Best-Selling Console in the US in July, PS5 Highest Dollar Earner - Sales
by William D'Angelo , posted on 02 September 2021 / 4,946 Views
The Nintendo Switch was the best-selling console in the US in July 2021 in terms of unit sales, according to figures from NPD. NPD includes the dates for July 4 through July 31.
The Switch has been the best-selling console for 32 consecutive months, since December 2018, which is the longest streak since NPD started tracking sales numbers. The Switch is the best-selling hardware platform in the first half of 2021 in terms of dollar and unit sales.
The PlayStation 5 was the best-selling console in terms of dollar sales. This does mean the Xbox Series X|S comes in third place for the month after outselling the PS5 in June.
"PlayStation 5 led the hardware market in dollar sales for the month of July, while Nintendo Switch once again led in unit sales," said NPD analyst Mat Piscatella.
He added, "Nintendo Switch is the best-selling video game hardware year-to-date in both unit and dollar sales."
The PlayStation 5 is the fastest-selling home console in the US after nine months and is only behind the Game Boy Advance when you include handheld sales. The Nintendo Switch will likely take the lead for month 10 as that is the first December for the console.
"Home console, yes," said Piscatella when asked if the PS5 was the fastest-selling console in the US still. "GBA is the fastest selling hardware platform overall after 9 months in market. This will likely be the last month this is the case, however, as next month it will be [compared] to the first December for Switch."
Overall spending on video games increased 10 percent year-over-year from $4.19 billion to $4.60 billion. Year-to-date spending increased 14 percent compared to 2020 to $33.54 billion.
"July 2021 consumer spending across video game hardware, content and accessories increased 10% when compared to a year ago, reaching a July record $4.6B," said Piscatella. "Year-to-date spending totaled $33.5B, a 14% increase when compared to the same period in 2020."
He added, "Hardware was one of the primary drivers of July gains, as dollar sales of console and portable video game systems were 98% higher than in July 2020. Sales of Content increased by $232M, as Mobile, Subscription and Post-Launch Content spend grew vs year ago."
Overall spending on hardware increased 98 percent year-on-year to $323 million. Year-to-date spending on hardware has increased 50 percent compared to 2020 to $2.67 billion.
Spending on video game content in July 2021 increased six percent year-over-year from $3.85 billion to $4.09 billion. Year-to-date spending on content has increased 12 percent from $26.38 billion to $29.45 billion.
Spending on video game accessories jumped 11 percent in July 2021 to $189 million, while year-to-date spending is up 13 percent to $1.42 billion. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD Edition Joy-Con was the best-selling accessory in July in terms of dollar sales. The PlayStation 5 DualSense Wireless Controller White is the best-selling accessory in 2021.
"The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD Edition Joy-Con was the best-selling accessory of July in dollar sales," said Piscatella. "The PS5 DualSense Wireless Controller White remains the best-selling accessory year-to-date."
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD was the best-selling game in the US in July 2021 on the overall charts, as well as on the Nintendo charts. It is the first Nintendo published game to top the charts since the launch of Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury in February.
"The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword was the best-selling game of July 2021," said Piscatella. "It is the first Nintendo published title to lead the monthly best-sellers chart since the launch of Super Mario 3D World in the February 2021 tracking month."
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War was the second best-selling game for the month and is the best-selling game in 2021.
"Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War ranked as the 2nd best-selling game of the month of July, and remains the best-selling game of 2021 year-to-date," said Piscatella. "Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War was the best-selling game of the month on both the PlayStation and Xbox platforms."
Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin debuted in third place on the overall charts. Launch month sales were triple that of the lifetime sales of the original Monster Hunter Stories.
"Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin debuted as the third best-selling game of July 2021," said Piscatella. "Launch month sales of Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin more than tripled the lifetime sales of Monster Hunter Stories, originally released on Nintendo 3DS in 2017."
MLB The Show 21 has outsold Resident Evil Village and is now the second best-selling game of 2021.
"MLB The Show 21 surpassed Resident Evil Village to become the 2nd best-selling game of 2021. Year-to-date sales of MLB The Show 21 are the highest in franchise history," said Piscatella.
Here are the top 20 best-selling games in terms of dollars for July 2021:
Top 10 best-selling Nintendo games for July 2021:
Top 10 best-selling PlayStation games for July 2021:
Top 10 best-selling Xbox games for July 2021:
Here are the top 10 best-selling games of 2021 to date:
A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel dedicated to gaming Let's Plays and tutorials. You can contact the author at wdangelo@vgchartz.com or on Twitter @TrunksWD.