The aging PS4 still has as many active users as the PS5

PS4 and PS5 User Engagement and Financial Performance

Active Users Parity
Despite being an older console, the PS4 still has as many active users as the newer PS5, with both consoles showing strong engagement levels.

Gameplay Hours and Usage
The PS5 leads in gameplay hours with 2.4 billion compared to the PS4's 1.4 billion, indicating higher active use despite similar numbers of active consoles.

Software Support and Sales
The PS4 continues to receive substantial software support with numerous new titles, which helps maintain its relevance alongside the PS5.

Financial Impact
The PS5 has generated significant profits and sales in its first four years, showing healthy financial performance without being negatively impacted by the PS4's ongoing popularity.

The PS4's continued popularity has not had a significant negative impact on the PS5's financial performance. In fact, the PS5 has become Sony's most profitable console generation thus far. Sony's gaming division has already earned $10 billion in profit off of $106 billion in sales across the nearly four years of the PS5 generation2. In comparison, the PS4 generated $9 billion in profit off $107 billion in sales across seven years2.

PS5 owners have spent an average of $731 each on games, services, peripherals, and add-on content, which is an increase from the $580 spent by the average PS4 owner at the same point in that console's life cycle. This per-console spending is now more concentrated on add-on content, which has seen a 176% increase between the PS4 and PS5 generations.

The PS4's longevity has also not affected the PS5's sales, as the PS5 is responsible for significantly more gameplay hours than the PS4 (2.4 billion vs. 1.4 billion). Moreover, the PS4 is still receiving plenty of software support, with many "best-selling" titles not requiring a PS5 at all.