List of best-selling game consoles
A home video game console is a standardized computing device tailored for video gaming that requires a computer monitor or television set as an output. Video game consoles usually weigh between 2 and 9 pounds (1–4 kg) on average, and their compact size allows them to be easily used in a variety of locations, making them portable. Handheld controllers are commonly used as input devices. Video game consoles may use one or more data storage devices, such as hard disk drives, optical discs, and memory cards for downloaded content. Dedicated consoles are a subset of game consoles that are only able to play built-in games. Video game consoles in general are also described as "dedicated" in distinction from the more versatile personal computer and other consumer electronics. Sanders Associates engineer Ralph H. Baer along with company employees Bill Harrison and Bill Rusch licensed their television gaming technology to contemporary major TV manufacturer Magnavox. This resulted in the 1972 release of the Magnavox Odyssey—the first commercially available video game console.
A handheld game console is a lightweight device with a built-in screen, controls, speakers, and has greater portability than a standard video game console. It is capable of playing multiple games unlike tabletop and handheld electronic game devices. Tabletop and handheld electronic game devices of the 1970s and early 1980s are the precursors of handheld game consoles. Mattel introduced the first handheld electronic game with the 1977 release of Auto Race. Later, several companies—including Coleco and Milton Bradley—made their own single-game, lightweight tabletop or handheld electronic game devices. The oldest handheld game console with interchangeable cartridges is the Milton Bradley Microvision from 1979. Nintendo is credited with popularizing the handheld console concept with the Game Boy's release in 1989 and continued to dominate the handheld console market into the early 2000s.
Best-selling game consoles
The following table contains video game consoles that have sold at least 1 million units worldwide either through to consumers or inside retail channels. Each console include sales from every iteration unless otherwise noted. The years correspond to when the home or handheld game console was first released (excluding test markets).
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# Background shading indicates consoles currently on the market.
Platform | Type | Firm | Released | Units sold | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
PlayStation 2 | Home | Sony | 2000 | 155 million | |
Nintendo DS | Handheld | Nintendo | 2004 | 154.02 million | |
Nintendo Switch # | Hybrid | Nintendo | 2017 | 132.46 million | |
Game Boy & Game Boy Color | Handheld | Nintendo | 1989, 1998 | 118.69 million | |
PlayStation 4 # | Home | Sony | 2013 | 117.2 million | |
PlayStation | Home | Sony | 1994 | 102.49 million | |
Wii | Home | Nintendo | 2006 | 101.63 million | |
PlayStation 3 | Home | Sony | 2006 | 87.4 million | |
Xbox 360 | Home | Microsoft | 2005 | 84 million | |
Game Boy Advance | Handheld | Nintendo | 2001 | 81.51 million | |
PlayStation Portable | Handheld | Sony | 2004 | 80–82 million (estimate) | |
Nintendo 3DS | Handheld | Nintendo | 2011 | 75.94 million | |
NES/Famicom | Home | Nintendo | 1983 | 61.91 million | |
Xbox One | Home | Microsoft | 2013 | ~58 million | |
PlayStation 5 # | Home | Sony | 2020 | 50 million | |
SNES/Super Famicom | Home | Nintendo | 1990 | 49.1 million | |
Game & Watch | Dedicated handheld | Nintendo | 1980 | 43.4 million | |
Nintendo 64 | Home | Nintendo | 1996 | 32.93 million | |
Sega Genesis/Mega Drive | Home | Sega | 1988 | 30.75 million | |
Atari 2600 | Home | Atari | 1977 | 30 million | |
Xbox | Home | Microsoft | 2001 | 24 million | |
GameCube | Home | Nintendo | 2001 | 21.74 million | |
Xbox Series X/S # | Home | Microsoft | 2020 | ~21 million | |
Quest 2 # | VR headset | Reality Labs / Meta | 2020 | ~20 million | |
Wii U | Home | Nintendo | 2012 | 13.56 million | |
V.Smile & V.Motion | Home | VTech | 2004 | 11 million | |
PlayStation Vita | Handheld | Sony | 2011 | 10–15 million (estimate) | |
Master System | Home | Sega | 1986 | 10–13 million | |
Game Gear | Handheld | Sega | 1990 | 10.62 million | |
PC Engine/TurboGrafx-16 | Home | NEC/Hudson Soft | 1987 | 10 million | |
Sega Saturn | Home | Sega | 1994 | 9.26 million | |
Dreamcast | Home | Sega | 1998 | 9.13 million | |
Master System (Brazilian variants) | Home | Tectoy | 1989 | 8 million | |
Dendy (famiclone) | Home | Micro Genius | 1992 | 6 million | |
Super NES Classic Edition | Dedicated | Nintendo | 2017 | 5.28 million | |
Famicom Disk System | Home console add-on | Nintendo | 1986 | 4.5 million | |
Advanced Pico Beena | Home | Sega | 2005 | 4.1 million | |
NES Classic Edition | Dedicated | Nintendo | 2016 | 3.56 million | |
WonderSwan | Handheld | Bandai | 1999 | 3.5 million | |
Sega Pico | Home | Sega | 1993 | 3.4 million | |
Color TV-Game | Dedicated | Nintendo | 1977 | 3 million | |
Intellivision | Home | Mattel | 1980 | 3 million | |
Mega Drive (Brazilian variants) | Home | Tectoy | 1990 | 3 million | |
N-Gage | Handheld | Nokia | 2003 | 3 million | |
Mega-CD/Sega CD | Home console add-on | Sega | 1991 | 2.24 million | |
ColecoVision | Home | Coleco | 1982 | 2 million | |
3DO Interactive Multiplayer | Home | The 3DO Company | 1993 | 2 million | |
Neo Geo Pocket (+ Color) | Handheld | SNK | 1999 | 2 million | |
Magnavox Odyssey² | Home | Magnavox/Philips | 1978 | 2 million | |
Sega SG-1000 | Home | Sega | 1983 | 2 million | |
PC Engine CD-ROM² | Home console add-on | NEC | 1988 | 1.92 million | |
Atari 7800 | Home | Atari | 1986 | 1 million | |
Atari Lynx | Handheld | Atari | 1989 | 1 million | |
Philips CD-i | Home | Philips | 1990 | 1 million | |
Telstar | Dedicated | Coleco | 1976 | 1 million | |
Atari 5200 | Home | Atari | 1982 | 1 million | |
Pegasus (famiclone) | Home | Micro Genius | 1991 | 1 million | |
Oculus Quest | VR headset | Oculus | 2019 | 317,000–1 million (estimate) |
>Final sales are greater than the reported figure. See notes.