On September 19th, Microsoft announced that pricing for Xbox Series S and X consoles is going to be “updated” or increased for players exclusively in the United States. The pricing changes go into effect on October 3rd, and are due to changes in the United States’ “macroeconomic environment.”
There are five consoles being affected by price increases. Two such consoles are the Xbox Series S 512 and Xbox Series S 1TB. The Series S 512 and Series S 1TB currently cost $379.99 and $429.99 respectively. After October 3rd, both consoles will see a $20 price increase, as the Series S 512 will cost $399.99 and the Series S 1TB will cost $449.99.
Prices for the Xbox Series X consoles will also be increasing. The Xbox Series X Digital will cost an additional $50, as it currently costs $549.99 and will cost $599.99 after October 3rd.
The Xbox Series X is facing an identical $50 increase, with the prices rising from $599.99 to $649.99. Those who want to purchase the Xbox Series X 2TB Galaxy Black post-October will be forced to pay an additional $70, as the console is going from $729.99 to $799.99.
These Microsoft price hikes are following previous price increases from only four months ago. In a report from Kotaku, those attempting to buy the consoles in May were faced with over 20% price increases. The price for the Series S 512, for example, went up from $299.99 to $379.99. Other Microsoft products were affected as well, with some controllers and headsets costing anywhere from $5 to $20 more than before. In a similar vein, Microsoft announced that first-party games are set to match the $80 price tag set by some of Nintendo’s Switch 2 titles.
Microsoft currently has no official explanation for why prices are increasing. However, the fact that price changes are only impacting consumers in the United States makes it safe to say that our country’s tariffs are at least partly to blame.