Key information
Circana analyst Mat Piscatella reported a downturn in the United States gaming market for 2026. Total hardware spending experienced an 11% year-over-year decrease, falling from $2.856 billion in 2025 to $2.543 billion during the same period in 2026.
Despite the broader market contraction, the Nintendo Switch 2 maintained its position as the top-selling console in the United States. It led both unit sales and total dollar expenditure for the month of August 2026 and the year-to-date period.
Console hardware unit sales dropped 15% in August 2026 compared to the previous year. While PlayStation saw a 17% increase in dollar spending, Xbox Series and Nintendo Switch 2 experienced a 13% decline in revenue. Unit sales for PlayStation 5 fell 11%, while Xbox hardware plummeted 31% and Nintendo hardware dropped 15%.
Content spending trends were mixed in August 2026. While console content spending fell 7%, PC content spending rose 13% and subscriptions grew 3%. Analysts suggest the PC growth may stem from hardware price increases linked to AI data center demand rather than higher adoption rates.
