As we close the book on 2020, it’s always a fun time to look back and see what sold the best. If there is one story that has been told for console sales throughout the year, it’s this: Nintendo was on top. Whether it was region they were already dominating in or one they generally are weaker in, it seems the Switch has taken Nintendo to a level they have not seen since the Wii/DS days. In the US, the story is much the same, though Sony did quite well for themselves, too.
From information given by the NPD Group and transcribed by Venturebeat, the Nintendo Switch was the overall best selling system for 2020 in the United States. That includes both in units sold and overall dollar amounts. The annual dollar sales of the system was the second highest for an individual platform, with the only other being high was Nintendo’s own Wii back in 2008.
Sony ended up at #2 in two separate ways. The PS4 ended up at #2 in total units sold, which is quite impressive when you consider the time its been on the market. The PS5 was also number two in the dollar sales it managed to rake in. While Microsoft did state that the Xbox Series X/S was the most successful Xbox launch ever, there was no specific information given about where Xbox consoles placed in either category. Overall, the industry saw annual hardware dollar sales total $5.3 billion, 35% higher than 2019, and the highest since 2011.
As has been mentioned in many of these reports, there are some obvious caveats to consider, particularly that the PS4 and Xbox One are on their final legs, and all the new generation consoles saw stock issues. Had the PS5 had more stock, could it have been number in overall dollar units? It’s hard to say since we don’t know what those numbers actually are, but it probably would have been a pretty close race. But in the end, Nintendo ultimately was on the top of a mountain of what appears to have been a strong year for everyone.