The 2025 "Household Income and Expenditure Survey Report" recently released by Japan's Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications shows that the average expenditure of Japanese families on game consoles and game software hit a record high that year. This statistic is based on a sample survey of 9,000 Japanese households with two or more persons, and lists host and software expenditures as independent statistical categories.
Data shows that the average annual expenditure of Japanese households on game consoles in 2025 will be 2,044 yen. This is the first time since 2010 that the average annual expenditure on consoles has exceeded 2,000 yen, an increase of more than three times from 616 yen in 2024. The previous record was 1,548 yen set during the epidemic lockdown period in 2020, and the 2025 data was 32% higher than that record. During the same period, the frequency of console purchases per 100 households was 0.047 times. Although it was higher than 0.021 times in 2024, it was still lower than the 0.066 times during the epidemic game boom period in 2020. The increase in purchase frequency in 2025 is relatively flat, indicating that rising console prices may be the main factor driving up total expenditures.
The main driver of record console spending in 2025 is the release of Nintendo Switch 2 on June 5. According to Nintendo’s third quarter financial report for March 2026 (released on February 3), the cumulative global sales of this console reached 17.37 million units within half a year of its launch, and the sales rate even exceeded that of the original Switch. PS5 also contributed to part of the growth. Sony's third quarter financial report for fiscal year 2025 (released on February 5) shows that PS5 sold 8 million units from October to December. Although it was 1.5 million units less than the same period last year, this console released in 2020 will still maintain stable sales in 2025.
Judging from the overall trend of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications' 2025 household survey, Japan's food expenditure increased by 5.5% year-on-year, but actual expenditure after excluding the impact of inflation fell by 1.2%, indicating that people are reducing daily expenditures against the background of rising prices. In this environment, spending on gaming hardware and software both broke records, showing that consumers are still willing to invest in gaming and entertainment even in the face of cost-of-living pressures.