Switch 2 Outsells PS5, All Drop YoY - Worldwide Hardware Estimates for August 2026 - Sales
by William D'Angelo , posted 20 hours ago / 6,826 Views
The Nintendo Switch 2 was the best-selling console worldwide with 873,740 units sold for August 2026, according to VGChartz estimates. The Switch 2 has sold 23.4 million units lifetime.
The PlayStation 5 was the second best-selling console, with an estimated 796,103 units sold, to bring lifetime sales to 94.91 million units. The Nintendo Switch 1 came in third place with 132,893 units sold, to bring its lifetime sales to 155.46 million units. The Xbox Series X|S came in fourth place, with an estimated 104,016 units sold, to bring lifetime sales to 35.32 million units.
Switch 2 sales compared to the same month for the Switch 1 in 2018 are up by nearly 104,000 units, as the Switch 1 sold 770,171 units in August 2018.
PS5 sales compared to the same month for the PS4 in 2019 are up by nearly 116,000 units, while the Xbox Series X|S compared to the same month for the Xbox One are down by over 103,000 units. The PS4 sold 680,168 units for the month of August 2019 and Xbox One sales were at 207,428 units.
Switch 2 sales compared to the same month a year ago are down by 216,379 (-19.9%). PlayStation 5 sales are down by 367,023 (-31.6%), Xbox Series X|S sales are down by 59,358 units (-36.3%) and Nintendo Switch 1 sales are down by 179,805 units (-57.5%).
Looking at sales month-on-month, Nintendo Switch 2 sales are up by nearly 171,000 units, PlayStation 5 sales are up by over 16,000 units, Xbox Series X|S sales are down by over 13,000 units, and Nintendo Switch 1 sales are down by nearly 11,000 units.
2026 year-to-date, the Nintendo Switch 2 has sold 7.81 million units, the PlayStation 5 has sold 5.46 million units, the Nintendo Switch 1 has sold 1.55 million units, and the Xbox Series X|S has sold 1.08 million units.
Monthly Sales:
Global hardware estimates for August 2026 (Followed by lifetime sales):
- Switch 2 - 873,740 (23,400,705)
- PlayStation 5 - 796,103 (94,913,317)
- Switch 1 - 132,893 (155,461,165)
- Xbox Series X|S - 104,016 (35,324,797)
- Switch 2 - 354,454
- PlayStation 5 - 217,516
- Xbox Series X|S - 70,644
- Switch 1 - 43,126
- PlayStation 5 - 306,706
- Switch 2 - 246,665
- Xbox Series X|S - 27,065
- Switch 1 - 25,920
- PlayStation 5 - 243,419
- Switch 2 - 228,789
- Switch 1 - 58,857
- Xbox Series X|S - 2,296
- Switch 2 - 43,832
- PlayStation 5 - 28,462
- Switch 1 - 4,990
- Xbox Series X|S - 4,011
Weekly Sales:
Global August 8, 2026 hardware estimates:
- PlayStation 5 - 200,031
- Switch 2 - 187,428
- Switch 1 - 33,557
- Xbox Series X|S - 20,167
Global August 15, 2026 hardware estimates:
- Switch 2 - 201,242
- PlayStation 5 - 196,827
- Switch 1 - 31,825
- Xbox Series X|S - 22,587
Global August 22, 2026 hardware estimates:
- Switch 2 - 218,823
- PlayStation 5 - 186,145
- Switch 1 - 32,196
- Xbox Series X|S - 28,987
Global August 29, 2026 hardware estimates:
- Switch 2 - 266,247
- PlayStation 5 - 213,100
- Switch 1 - 35,315
- Xbox Series X|S - 32,275
VGChartz Methodology: Hardware estimates are based on retail sampling and trends in individual countries, which are then extrapolated to represent the wider region. This typically allows us to produce figures that end up being within 10% of the actual totals.
This data is regularly compared against official shipment figures released by the console manufacturers and figures estimated by regional trackers with greater market coverage than ourselves. We then update our own estimates to bring them into line with those figures. This can result in frequent changes often within a short space of time, but we feel it's important to prioritise accuracy over consistency.
Note that our estimates are based on sell-through data (units sold to consumers). In almost all cases the figures released by console manufacturers are based on shipment data (sell-in), where as soon as a device has left the factory and entered the supply chain for delivery it is considered a sale. This is why there is always a difference between the companies’ figures (sell-in) and VGChartz estimates (sell-through), even after we’ve made adjustments. The one exception to that is when a console has been discontinued and the remaining stock has finally sold out – at that point the figures will match.
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 and taking over the hardware estimates in 2017. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel. You can follow the author on Bluesky.
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New video discussing the latest VGChartz estimates is now live https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aEVmtJwi_SQ
Numbers for the OG Switch are so weird. If it repeats the 130k units in September, it will end up with 155,594,058, which is lower than 155,920,000, the shipments number from two sales reports ago, 6 months ago. I though sales and shipment number would get closer as the Switch 1 fades away, but the difference between them keeps being huge
Always weird seeing PlayStation topping Nintendo in Asia given how one-sided Japan is in Nintendo's favor.
any chance the ps5 will surpass the ps1 by the end of the year?
The AI bubble needs to pop and all AI data centers must be destroyed.
Interesting numbers & jump for the PS5 compared to PS4, but also quite a big decline compared to last year.
So globally, PS5 sold ~800K in August.
Which would indicate that, if PS5 would sell 800K in every month left of this year, that it would sit at ~98.2M units as of end of December. Leaving a gap left of 1.8M units that needed to be sold in 4 months to reach the 100M milestone.
That should be achievable, especially through November + December.
terrible numbers for the x series! beat by the switch :(
Blame upper management of both Xbox and Microsoft. Satellite Nutella needs a good punch to the face.
i do blame upper management, but as a conservative i do not believe that violence is the answer
A conservative who believes in non-violence? That's a laugh! You seen what conservatives have historically done to the world around them? Especially now? As a 90s kid I can gladly tell you get real.
i see who does all the mass shootings, killed charlie, tried to kill us president. get real.
oh and what about the so called teen takeovers. robbing targets, CVS etc?
i guess next you will call the feelings police?
either way i want the best for everyone!!!!!!!
I guess Steven means a true conservative, living an elegant lifestyle, not the nowadays so-called (fake) conservatives.
im not confused and i do not play pretend
