PCs Won’t Outperform Current-Gen Consoles For Same Price Anytime Soon, Say Analysts

Expert Verified By

PS5 And Xbox Series X Will Remain Value Kings!

Story Highlight
  • Analysts say that it won’t be possible to build a brand new PC for $500 that matches the PS5 or Xbox Series X this generation.
  • This is partly due to the limited VRAM available on mid-range and budget GPUs.
  • Both the PS5 and Xbox Series X offer a lot of value for their $500 price.

The debate between console and PC gaming continues to rage on, but both markets have changed drastically over the years. Console exclusives are, more often than not, released on PC today, and more and more people are opting to buy a PC.

On the other hand, PC hardware, mainly graphics cards, has become increasingly expensive. Following this trend, analysts believe it will not be possible to make a PC that beats current-generation consoles at the same price.

Why it matters: In the past, rapid advancements in PC hardware meant that gamers on the platform could match or exceed consoles for the same price a few years down the line. Unfortunately, this is not the case anymore.

Digital Foundry was recently asked about the possibility of building a brand new PC for $500 with specifications equivalent to those of the PS5 or Xbox Series X. The question also brought up the current problem of cheaper graphics cards offering 8GB of memory.

The analysts were quick to respond that the memory on budget and mid-range GPUs is a major handicap for PC gaming compared to the larger memory pool on consoles. They also addressed the increasing costs of owning a console over time.

Because of subscriptions for multiplayer gameplay and expensive controllers that can break quite often, consoles typically end up costing a lot more than MSRP throughout their entire lifespan.

This is one advantage to owning a PC, but the major difference in entry price is undeniable for the time being.

It’s not going to be any point in the near future where you get a $499 PC rivalling the GPU you get on the console side.

-Digital Foundry

PS5 Controller
The PS5 Offers A Lot of Value For Its MSRP

It goes without saying, but there is a lot of nuance to the console vs. PC debate missing in this discussion. However, for what they are worth, consoles offer the best bang-for-the-buck from a purely hardware perspective at the $500 price point.

With future titles like Death Stranding 2 and GTA 6 launching exclusively on consoles, the $500 price becomes all the more enticing.

Where do you stand on the PC vs. console debate? Let us know in the comments and on the Tech4Gamers Forums.

Was our article helpful? 👨‍💻

Thank you! Please share your positive feedback. 🔋

How could we improve this post? Please Help us. 😔

Gear Up For Latest News

Get exclusive gaming & tech news before it drops. Sign up today!

Join Our Community

Still having issues? Join the Tech4Gamers Forum for expert help and community support!

Latest News

Join Our Community

104,000FansLike
32,122FollowersFollow

Trending

Krafton Reportedly Delaying Subnautica 2 To Avoid Paying $250 Million In Developer Bonuses

A new report claims that Krafton delayed Subnautica...

Microsoft Says AI Will Replace Humans Amid Cutting Thousands of Jobs To Focus on Former

The co-founder of Microsoft, Bill Gates, recently revealed that AI will take over all jobs except those in programming.

Dragon Age: The Veilguard Wins Game of the Year at Gayming Awards 2025

Dragon Age: The Veilguard has secured Game of The Year as well as two other awards at the Gayming Awards 2025.

GTA 6 Online Aiming To Feature 96 Players Per Server, Report Claims

Rockstar insider Fravilys claims that GTA 6 Online may feature up to 96 players on each server instead of the current 32 limit.

Microsoft Reportedly Killing Xbox One Backward Compatibility With Next-Gen Console

According to an insider, Microsoft is reportedly discontinuing Xbox One backward compatibility with the next-gen console, if it is a PC.