Sony’s $700 price for the PS5 Pro set the internet alight yesterday, but now the dust is settling on the mid-gen upgrade’s announcement, gamers in Europe and Japan are realizing just how much more expensive it is to buy in their home countries.
The PS5 Pro costs £699.99, €799.99, and ¥119,980 (includes tax). Based on current currency conversion rates, European and Japanese fans are faced with paying a great deal more for the PS5 Pro than those in the U.S.
At the time of this article’s publication, $700 is £537. Sony is charging UK gamers £160 more than that. It’s a similar situation in countries that use the euro, where $700 is €635. Japan, though, perhaps has it worst. There Sony is charging ¥119,980, approximately $847, for a PS5 Pro. It’s worth keeping in mind that Sony recently raised the price of the base PS5 in Japan to ¥79,980 (around $552), up from its ¥49,980 (around $353) at launch.
While European and Japanese gamers have had to endure higher prices than U.S. gamers for some time now, the situation with PS5 Pro has sparked a backlash online, with social media littered with complaints. Some in the UK and other European countries are even trying to work out if it would be cheaper to import a PS5 Pro from the U.S. than buy one in their own country. In the UK, if shipping is less than £150, it may well be cheaper to do so.
And none of this factors in the additional cost if you want a disc drive or a vertical stand for your PS5 Pro. Both of those devices are cheaper in the U.S. by currency conversion than outside of it.
PS5 Pro in Japan costs roughly $840 converted, but feels like $1200 to Japanese consumers. Inexplicably, absurdly out of reach for all but the hardest of the hardcore who also happen to have deep pockets
— John Ricciardi (@johntv) September 10, 2024
Japanese PlayStation gamers are being extorted with the PS5 Pro.
— Genki✨ (@Genki_JPN) September 10, 2024
$699 USD should equal around 100,000yen at today's exchange rate not 120,000yen. That is 20,000yen ($140) more than the US price https://t.co/oqHUhFV9Ia
the UK pricing for the PS5 Pro is beyond ridiculous. PS5 Pro + the disc drive works out to $1,045 in the UK ?
— Tom Warren (@tomwarren) September 11, 2024
In the US it’s as little as $818 with sales tax in many states for the same console + disc drive, nearly a $230 difference ☠️ pic.twitter.com/KS47veDY2d
Sony, of course, will have anticipated this reaction. IGN has reported on one analyst who said the PS5 Pro pricing reflects Sony’s adjusted strategy to protect its margin, supply chain inflation, and, crucially, “a lack of direct competitor to its mid-cycle upgrade compared to last generation (where Microsoft was preparing the Xbox One X).”
We’ve also had a look at how PS5 Pro's price compares with other launch consoles, to get some historical context. IGN readers have already had their say on the PS5 Pro's $700 cost, too.
The PS5 Pro launches November 7, 2024, with up to 50 PS5 Pro Enhanced games. Here's a list of all the PS5 Pro Enhanced games confirmed so far.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
