Despite the success of Nintendo Switch 2 since its release in June, a new report found that November sales of video game hardware in the US had hit a low level not seen since the mid-1990s. Although the Switch 2 was placed on November 2025 sales figures in the US, the report indicated that console spending was down while console prices were up compared to November 2024.
It's no secret that the Switch 2 has been a successful console for Nintendo, having sold over 10 million units globally in its first four months of availability. However, the $449 introductory price of the Switch 2 has been a point of contention for some consumers. During Black Friday 2025, Nintendo chose not to include any special Switch 2 console bundles for buyers to consider. Instead, Nintendo offered discounts on various first-party Switch games, including Luigi's Mansion 3 and Super Mario Odyssey. While the Switch 2 can play original Switch titles via backwards compatibility, Nintendo's lack of a holiday console bundle didn't go unnoticed by consumers. In comparison, Sony offered a PS5 Fortnite Flowering Chaos bundle as an option, with prices as low as $399 for the digital edition.
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Video game hardware sales hit a low not seen since the days of the SNES
However, the apparent success of the Switch 2 was not enough to stop the US console hardware market from trending downward in November 2025. According to reports published on Bluesky by Circana senior director Mat Piscatella, only 1.6 million consoles were sold across all platforms in the US in November 2025, which is the lowest level in the month of November 5a that had not been 19 years after 30 years. In November 1995, when consoles like the SNES, Sega Genesis, and the original PlayStation ruled the market, video game hardware sales in the United States reached just 1.4 million units sold. Piscatella also stated that monthly hardware spending was $695 million last month, down 27% from November 2024, and that this marked a 20-year low in hardware spending.
Although the Switch 2 placed in the top three for consoles sold in the US during November 2025, the PS5 outsold it. The NEX Playground system, which gave the PS5 a run for its money in mid-November, took third place in hardware units sold in the US, while the Xbox Series X/S was third in the dollar category. In terms of software, Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 was the top-selling game of the month, despite lower dollar sales compared to November 2024. Video game content sales saw a slight year-over-year increase, a 16% increase in subscription spending combined with a 2% increase in mobile game sales managed to offset a decline in console and PC content spending.
The news gets worse for console buyers
Despite making a decent amount of money in November 2025, Piscatella stated that Xbox console sales in the US were down 70% year-over-year, the lowest ever for Microsoft's console lineup in the month of November. The decline in hardware sales, especially for Xbox consoles, can be partially explained by the rising cost of hardware caused by various economic factors, including the US government's tariffs on various goods from countries such as China. The tariffs have already prompted Microsoft to raise the price of Xbox Series X/S consoles in the U.S. twice in 2025, which may have deterred potential customers from buying one. To make matters worse, rumors of another potential price hike for Xbox consoles have been circulating, this time due to the ongoing RAM crisis affecting the entire hardware industry.
The RAM situation is also likely to affect sales of Switch 2 consoles in 2026, as DRAM contract prices from companies like Samsung have effectively doubled in the fall of 2025. Ergo, customers looking to get a Switch 2 may not want to wait until after the holidays before potential price increases start piling up.
Sources: IGN, Nintendo Life
