The question of where to find the cheapest PlayStation 5 (PS5) and Xbox Series S consoles in North America has been answered. Those looking to snag the latest offerings from Sony and Microsoft likely won’t find a better price than in Canada. In fact, Canada has the cheapest next-gen consoles in the Western world and is only behind a handful of Asian countries overall, according to a recent study.
The cheapest next-gen consoles outside Asia
According to a study by Paxful, the new digital edition of the PlayStation 5 costs $492.72 in Canadian dollars. That translates to just $385.95 USD and gives Canada the second-cheapest PS5 on the planet, behind only Japan by just $2.95 USD. It’s also less than half the cost of the same console in Brazil, the most expensive country on the list at $790 USD.
| Rank | Country | Retail price in USD | Retail price in CAD |
| 1 | Japan | $383.00 | CA$489.13 |
| 2 | Canada | $385.95 | CA$492.72 |
| 3 | Cambodia | $398.86 | CA$509.20 |
| 4 | Kyrgyzstan | $399.00 | CA$509.38 |
| 4 | Macao | $399.00 | CA$509.38 |
| 6 | Thailand | $399.74 | CA$510.37 |
| 7 | United States | $399.99 | CA$510.69 |
| 8 | Hong Kong | $410.33 | CA$523.88 |
| 9 | Pakistan | $418.99 | CA$534.94 |
| 10 | Kuwait | $440.53 | CA$562.44 |
| 60 | Brazil | $790.00 | CA$1,008.73 |
The study found similar results in pricing for the Xbox Series S. The latest console from Microsoft retails for just $377.62 CAD, which equates to $295.69 USD. This puts Canada behind only Japan, Hong Kong and Macao for the cheapest Series S on the planet. Here, the most expensive console was found in Argentina, where it costs almost three times as much, at $810.77 USD.
| Rank | Country | Retail price in USD | Retail price in CAD |
| 1 | Japan | $286.40 | CA$365.70 |
| 2 | Hong Kong | $294.11 | CA$375.55 |
| 3 | Macao | $294.17 | CA$375.68 |
| 4 | Canada | $295.69 | CA$377.62 |
| 5 | United States | $299.99 | CA$383.12 |
| 6 | Indonesia | $306.98 | CA$391.97 |
| 7 | Switzerland | $332.17 | CA$424.14 |
| 8 | United Kingdom | $335.10 | CA$427.83 |
| 9 | Taiwan | $335.99 | CA$428.97 |
| 10 | UAE | $340.05 | CA$434.15 |
| 69 | Argentina | $810.77 | CA$1,035.19 |
The most affordable PS5 and Xbox Series S
The same study, using income data from Numbeo, found that the low retail prices for these systems, combined with a relatively high average monthly income in Canada, also made the country one of the most affordable for picking up a new console. At a monthly income of $3,077 CAD after taxes, the average Canadian would only need to set aside 15.4% of their paycheck to pick up a PS5 Digital Edition or 11.8% to pick up an Xbox Series S.
Using the same metric, the most affordable consoles overall were found in Switzerland (7.2% of a monthly pay check for the PS5, 5.3% for Xbox) and the United States (11.3% for PS5, 8.4% for Xbox). In terms of affordability, the most expensive were once again Brazil and Argentina. The average Brazilian consumer would need to shell out 221.8% of their salary to grab a PS5, or more than double what they make in a month. Similarly, in Argentina, an Xbox Series S costs 182.9% of the average monthly income.
All tables in this post were provided by Paxful. Any currency conversion referred to in the above data was calculated by Paxful on Feb. 1.
Published: Feb 22, 2021 12:04 pm