Games consoles
PS5, Xbox and Switch 2 compared on what actually differs
Three makers chased different things: Sony went for raw fidelity, Microsoft for subscription reach, Nintendo for portability. Price is no longer the tiebreaker it was.
Disc vs digital
Disc editions still matter for used games, gifts, and 4K Blu-ray. Digital-only saves up front but locks you to storefront pricing — pick that path only if you rarely buy physical.
TV and friends first
Match the console to your TV’s 4K/VRR capability and where your multiplayer friends already play. Exclusives rarely outweigh a dead friends list.
Amazon UK search links are provided for current availability; no affiliate programme is currently configured, and no live price is claimed here. Affiliate disclosure.
Scroll the table sideways to see every column.
| Console | US MSRP | GPU | Storage | SSD speed | Target | Portable | UK street price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | $899.99UK RRP £789.99 | 16.7 TFLOPS | 2048GB | Not published | 4K | No | Search Amazon UK (opens in new tab) |
 | $649.99UK RRP £569.99 | 10.28 TFLOPS | 1000GB | 5.5 GB/s | 4K | No | Search Amazon UK (opens in new tab) |
 | $799.99UK RRP £669.99 | 12 TFLOPS | 1024GB | 2.4 GB/s | 4K | No | Search Amazon UK (opens in new tab) |
 | $499.99UK RRP £429.99 | 4 TFLOPS | 512GB | 2.4 GB/s | 1440p | No | Search Amazon UK (opens in new tab) |
 | $499.99UK RRP £419.99 | Not published | 256GB | Not published | 1080p handheld / 4K docked | Yes | Search Amazon UK (opens in new tab) |
 | $789.00UK RRP £649 | Not published | 512GB | Not published | 800p HDR OLED 90Hz handheld | Yes | Search Amazon UK (opens in new tab) |
 | $599.99UK RRP £499.99 | Not published | 512GB | Not published | 1080p 120Hz VRC handheld | Yes | Search Amazon UK (opens in new tab) |
 | $899.99UK RRP £759.99 | 12 TFLOPS | 1024GB | 2.4 GB/s | 4K (same hardware class as Series X) | No | Search Amazon UK (opens in new tab) |
 | $599.99UK RRP £519.99 | 10.28 TFLOPS | 1000GB | 5.5 GB/s | 4K | No | Search Amazon UK (opens in new tab) |
| $599.99UK RRP £519.99 | 4 TFLOPS | 1024GB | 2.4 GB/s | 1440p | No | Search Amazon UK (opens in new tab) |
 | $399.99~£296 indicative | Not published | 64GB | Not published | 720p handheld / 1080p docked | Yes | Search Amazon UK (opens in new tab) |
 | $249.99UK RRP £219.99 | Not published | Not verified | Not published | 1080p | Yes | Search Amazon UK (opens in new tab) |
 | $1,049.00UK RRP £879 | Not published | 512GB | Not published | Up to 4K (PC settings-dependent) | No | Search Amazon UK (opens in new tab) |
US MSRP is the manufacturer / secondary-reported RRP for the standard configuration — not a live UK street price. Use the Amazon UK buttons to check current UK availability and pricing; confirm with a retailer before buying, since this category repriced several times during 2026. The GBP figure beside each MSRP is the UK RRP where we have a manufacturer or major-press receipt; rows marked “indicative” are a static-rate conversion instead. Verified September 26, 2026. Nintendo does not publish graphics throughput for Switch 2, so that figure is shown as unpublished rather than estimated.
Head to head
Direct comparisons
Every pairing of the consoles above, generated from the same dataset.
Sony
PlayStation 5 (disc) vs PlayStation 5 Pro
Sony vs Microsoft
PlayStation 5 Pro vs Xbox Series X
Sony vs Microsoft
PlayStation 5 Pro vs Xbox Series S
Nintendo vs Sony
Nintendo Switch 2 vs PlayStation 5 Pro
Sony vs Valve
PlayStation 5 Pro vs Steam Deck OLED
Sony vs ASUS
PlayStation 5 Pro vs ROG Xbox Ally
Sony vs Microsoft
PlayStation 5 Pro vs Xbox Series X25 Limited Edition
Sony
PlayStation 5 (digital) vs PlayStation 5 Pro
Sony vs Microsoft
PlayStation 5 Pro vs Xbox Series S (1TB)
Nintendo vs Sony
Nintendo Switch (OLED) vs PlayStation 5 Pro
Sony
PlayStation Portal vs PlayStation 5 Pro
Sony vs Valve
PlayStation 5 Pro vs Steam Machine
Sony vs Microsoft
PlayStation 5 (disc) vs Xbox Series X
Sony vs Microsoft
PlayStation 5 (disc) vs Xbox Series S
Nintendo vs Sony
Nintendo Switch 2 vs PlayStation 5 (disc)
Sony vs Valve
PlayStation 5 (disc) vs Steam Deck OLED
Sony vs ASUS
PlayStation 5 (disc) vs ROG Xbox Ally
Sony vs Microsoft
PlayStation 5 (disc) vs Xbox Series X25 Limited Edition
Sony
PlayStation 5 (disc) vs PlayStation 5 (digital)
Sony vs Microsoft
PlayStation 5 (disc) vs Xbox Series S (1TB)
Nintendo vs Sony
Nintendo Switch (OLED) vs PlayStation 5 (disc)
Sony
PlayStation Portal vs PlayStation 5 (disc)
Sony vs Valve
PlayStation 5 (disc) vs Steam Machine
Microsoft
Xbox Series S vs Xbox Series X
Nintendo vs Microsoft
Nintendo Switch 2 vs Xbox Series X
Valve vs Microsoft
Steam Deck OLED vs Xbox Series X
ASUS vs Microsoft
ROG Xbox Ally vs Xbox Series X
Microsoft
Xbox Series X vs Xbox Series X25 Limited Edition
Sony vs Microsoft
PlayStation 5 (digital) vs Xbox Series X
Microsoft
Xbox Series S (1TB) vs Xbox Series X
Nintendo vs Microsoft
Nintendo Switch (OLED) vs Xbox Series X
Sony vs Microsoft
PlayStation Portal vs Xbox Series X
Valve vs Microsoft
Steam Machine vs Xbox Series X
Nintendo vs Microsoft
Nintendo Switch 2 vs Xbox Series S
Valve vs Microsoft
Steam Deck OLED vs Xbox Series S
ASUS vs Microsoft
ROG Xbox Ally vs Xbox Series S
Microsoft
Xbox Series S vs Xbox Series X25 Limited Edition
Sony vs Microsoft
PlayStation 5 (digital) vs Xbox Series S
Microsoft
Xbox Series S vs Xbox Series S (1TB)
Nintendo vs Microsoft
Nintendo Switch (OLED) vs Xbox Series S
Sony vs Microsoft
PlayStation Portal vs Xbox Series S
Valve vs Microsoft
Steam Machine vs Xbox Series S
Nintendo vs Valve
Nintendo Switch 2 vs Steam Deck OLED
Nintendo vs ASUS
Nintendo Switch 2 vs ROG Xbox Ally
Nintendo vs Microsoft
Nintendo Switch 2 vs Xbox Series X25 Limited Edition
Nintendo vs Sony
Nintendo Switch 2 vs PlayStation 5 (digital)
Nintendo vs Microsoft
Nintendo Switch 2 vs Xbox Series S (1TB)
Nintendo
Nintendo Switch 2 vs Nintendo Switch (OLED)
Nintendo vs Sony
Nintendo Switch 2 vs PlayStation Portal
Nintendo vs Valve
Nintendo Switch 2 vs Steam Machine
ASUS vs Valve
ROG Xbox Ally vs Steam Deck OLED
Valve vs Microsoft
Steam Deck OLED vs Xbox Series X25 Limited Edition
Sony vs Valve
PlayStation 5 (digital) vs Steam Deck OLED
Valve vs Microsoft
Steam Deck OLED vs Xbox Series S (1TB)
Nintendo vs Valve
Nintendo Switch (OLED) vs Steam Deck OLED
Sony vs Valve
PlayStation Portal vs Steam Deck OLED
Valve
Steam Deck OLED vs Steam Machine
ASUS vs Microsoft
ROG Xbox Ally vs Xbox Series X25 Limited Edition
Sony vs ASUS
PlayStation 5 (digital) vs ROG Xbox Ally
ASUS vs Microsoft
ROG Xbox Ally vs Xbox Series S (1TB)
Nintendo vs ASUS
Nintendo Switch (OLED) vs ROG Xbox Ally
Sony vs ASUS
PlayStation Portal vs ROG Xbox Ally
ASUS vs Valve
ROG Xbox Ally vs Steam Machine
Sony vs Microsoft
PlayStation 5 (digital) vs Xbox Series X25 Limited Edition
Microsoft
Xbox Series S (1TB) vs Xbox Series X25 Limited Edition
Nintendo vs Microsoft
Nintendo Switch (OLED) vs Xbox Series X25 Limited Edition
Sony vs Microsoft
PlayStation Portal vs Xbox Series X25 Limited Edition
Valve vs Microsoft
Steam Machine vs Xbox Series X25 Limited Edition
Sony vs Microsoft
PlayStation 5 (digital) vs Xbox Series S (1TB)
Nintendo vs Sony
Nintendo Switch (OLED) vs PlayStation 5 (digital)
Sony
PlayStation Portal vs PlayStation 5 (digital)
Sony vs Valve
PlayStation 5 (digital) vs Steam Machine
Nintendo vs Microsoft
Nintendo Switch (OLED) vs Xbox Series S (1TB)
Sony vs Microsoft
PlayStation Portal vs Xbox Series S (1TB)
Valve vs Microsoft
Steam Machine vs Xbox Series S (1TB)
Nintendo vs Sony
Nintendo Switch (OLED) vs PlayStation Portal
Nintendo vs Valve
Nintendo Switch (OLED) vs Steam Machine
Sony vs Valve
PlayStation Portal vs Steam Machine
Specs decide less than the library does
Where teraflops matter, and where they do not.
Cross-platform games look broadly similar on PS5 and Xbox Series X; the throughput gap shows up in resolution and frame-rate modes rather than in whether a game is playable. Series S trades fidelity for a lower entry price and a digital-only 1440p brief. The Xbox Series X25 Limited Edition launches 13 Nov 2026 at $899.99 (pre-orders sold out). Microsoft sunset the 2TB Galaxy Black Series X with the 1 August 2026 hike — leftover or refurbished stock only, not a current 1TB-disc substitute. For most buyers the exclusives and the people they play with decide it.
Switch 2 is not competing on the same axis at all. It trades fidelity for playing anywhere, which is either the whole point or irrelevant — there is rarely a middle position.