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Top 10 Best-Selling Video Game Consoles of All Time

Ranked by total units sold, from the PlayStation 2 to the Xbox 360, with release year, maker and who each one is best for.

PlayStation 2160 million 2

Nintendo Switch157.2 million 3

Nintendo DS154.02 million

Quick answer

The PlayStation 2 is the best-selling video game console of all time, with 160 million units sold since its 2000 release. The Nintendo Switch is right behind it at 157.2 million and is still on sale, and the Nintendo DS is third at 154.02 million.

How it's ranked: Units sold worldwide, as listed on Wikipedia's List of best-selling game consoles. Consoles still on sale can still move up.

PlayStation 2

Sony · Home console · released 2000

160 million

The all-time sales champion, and a DVD player too.

Sony's PlayStation 2 is the best-selling console ever, with 160 million units sold. It first went on sale in Japan on March 4, 2000, reached North America on October 26 and Europe on November 24, and succeeded the original PlayStation. As a sixth-generation console it competed with Nintendo's GameCube, Sega's Dreamcast and Microsoft's Xbox, and it had a feature that helped it into living rooms well beyond gaming: a built-in DVD drive.

Best forCollectors and fans of the huge sixth-generation game library

Skip it ifYou want online play or modern HD games

Source: en.wikipedia.org › PlayStation_2

Nintendo Switch

Nintendo · Hybrid console · released 2017

157.2 million

The best seller you can still buy, and the most flexible way to play.

The Nintendo Switch has sold 157.2 million units and is still on sale, so it could still pass the PlayStation 2. It was released worldwide in most regions on March 3, 2017. The Switch is a tablet that can be docked for TV play or used as a handheld, which makes it a hybrid console. Its wireless Joy-Con controllers work as two halves of one controller or as separate controllers, and they can attach to the sides of the console for handheld play.

Best forFamilies and anyone who wants to play on the TV and on the go

Skip it ifYou want the most powerful graphics

Source: en.wikipedia.org › Nintendo_Switch

Nintendo DS

Nintendo · Handheld · released 2004

154.02 million

The best-selling handheld ever, built around two screens.

The Nintendo DS is the best-selling handheld on this list, with 154.02 million units sold. Nintendo released it worldwide between 2004 and 2005. DS stands for Dual Screen: two LCD screens work together, and the lower one is a touchscreen, all in a clamshell case. It was among the first portable consoles to support wireless local multiplayer and online play, and its main rival was Sony's PlayStation Portable.

Best forTouchscreen games and two-screen classics

Skip it ifYou need a backlit modern screen

Source: en.wikipedia.org › Nintendo_DS

Game Boy and Game Boy Color

Nintendo · Handheld · released 1989, 1998

118.69 million

The handheld that made portable gaming mainstream.

The Game Boy and Game Boy Color are counted together at 118.69 million units. The original Game Boy launched in Japan on April 21, 1989, North America on July 31, 1989 and Europe on September 28, 1990. It was Nintendo's first handheld to use ROM cartridges. Designers Gunpei Yokoi and Satoru Okada chose affordability, battery life and durability over faster chips and color, which is why the original has a monochrome screen and an 8-bit processor.

Best forRetro collectors and long battery life

Skip it ifYou want color graphics on the original model

Source: en.wikipedia.org › Game_Boy

PlayStation 4

Sony · Home console · released 2013

117.2 million

Sony's most successful console of the HD era.

The PlayStation 4 has sold 117.2 million units. It launched on November 15, 2013 in North America and November 29, 2013 in Europe, South America and Australia, and competed with the Xbox One, Wii U and Switch. Sony moved away from the PlayStation 3's complex Cell design to an AMD processor that can peak at 1.84 teraflops, and put more emphasis on sharing and social play.

Best forA low-cost way into a huge modern game library

Skip it ifYou want the newest games built for PlayStation 5

Source: en.wikipedia.org › PlayStation_4

PlayStation

Sony · Home console · released 1994

102.49 million

The console that put Sony on the map.

Sony's first console, the original PlayStation, sold 102.49 million units. It was released in Japan on December 3, 1994, North America on September 9, 1995 and Europe on September 29, 1995. It competed with the Nintendo 64 and Sega Saturn and was designed mainly by Ken Kutaragi, with 3D polygon graphics at the center of its design. Sony started the project after a failed venture with Nintendo on a CD-ROM add-on.

Best forCollectors of the first 3D generation

Skip it ifYou want modern controls and widescreen video

Source: en.wikipedia.org › PlayStation_(console)

Wii by Nintendo — Photo: Evan-Amos / public domain via Wikimedia Commons

Wii

Nintendo · Home console · released 2006

101.63 million

The console that got non-gamers playing.

The Wii sold 101.63 million units. It was released on November 19, 2006 in North America and in December 2006 in most other regions. Nintendo president Satoru Iwata aimed it at a broader audience through new ways to play rather than raw power, and its wireless Wii Remote could track motion, recognize gestures and work as a pointer. It competed with the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

Best forParty games and motion controls for the whole family

Skip it ifYou want HD graphics

Source: en.wikipedia.org › Wii

PlayStation 5

Sony · Home console · released 2020

100 million

The current PlayStation, and still climbing.

The PlayStation 5 has sold 100 million units and is still on sale. It launched on November 12, 2020 in Australia, Japan, New Zealand, North America and South Korea, and worldwide a week later, the same month as Microsoft's Xbox Series X and Series S. The base model has an Ultra HD Blu-ray disc drive; the lower-cost Digital Edition drops the drive and plays downloaded games only.

Best forThe newest PlayStation games

Skip it ifYou only play older games your current console already runs

Source: en.wikipedia.org › PlayStation_5

PlayStation 3

Sony · Home console · released 2006

87.4 million

A powerful machine that recovered from a slow start.

The PlayStation 3 sold 87.4 million units. It was first released on November 11, 2006 in Japan, followed by North America on November 17 and Europe and Australasia on March 23, 2007. It was built around the Cell processor, co-developed with IBM and Toshiba, and competed with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii.

Best forBlu-ray movies and seventh-generation exclusives

Skip it ifYou want an easy, modern online service

Source: en.wikipedia.org › PlayStation_3

Xbox 360

Microsoft · Home console · released 2005

84 million

The best-selling Xbox ever.

Microsoft's Xbox 360 sold 84 million units, the most of any Xbox. It was unveiled on May 12, 2005 and succeeded the original Xbox, competing with the PlayStation 3 and Wii in the seventh generation. Its Xbox Live service, in free and paid versions, let players play online and download games, demos, music and video.

Best forFans of the early online console era

Skip it ifYou want a console that is still supported

Source: en.wikipedia.org › Xbox_360

Questions people ask

What is the best-selling video game console of all time?

The PlayStation 2, with 160 million units sold.

Can the Nintendo Switch beat the PlayStation 2?

It might. The Switch has sold 157.2 million units and is still on sale, 2.8 million behind the PlayStation 2.

What is the best-selling handheld console?

The Nintendo DS, with 154.02 million units sold.

What is the best-selling Xbox?

The Xbox 360, with 84 million units sold.

Which company has the most consoles on this list?

Sony, with five: PlayStation 2, PlayStation 4, PlayStation, PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 3. Nintendo has four and Microsoft has one.

How we ranked

Units sold worldwide, as listed on Wikipedia's List of best-selling game consoles. Consoles still on sale can still move up. Every number on this page comes from the source linked under each pick, and every photo shows the actual product. Brands can't pay to be on this list.

List source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_best-selling_game_consoles · Updated 2026-11-11