PlayStation 5 Just Broke Multi-Year Nintendo Switch Hot Streak

For nearly three years, the Nintendo Switch has reigned supreme when it comes to hardware sales in the United States. As the previous generation wound down and the new generation began ramping up, the Nintendo Switch found itself on top of NPD's sale charts month after month. But, in September, that all changed when the Switch was finally unseated by a new top-seller: The PlayStation 5.

NPD's Mat Piscatella took to Twitter today to report that the PlayStation 5 was the best-selling hardware platform in the US in September, at least according to NPD's count. More specifically, Piscatella says the PS5 was the month's best-seller "in both units and dollars." As far as 2021 so far is concerned, PS5 is the best-selling console in terms of dollars, while the Nintendo Switch is the best-selling console in units.

Piscatella notes that this breaks a lengthy 33-month hot streak for the Nintendo Switch. To find the last time the Switch didn't take first place in hardware sales for the month, we need to go back to November 2018, when the PlayStation 4 led in total unit sales.

That the Switch was on top for so long is not really a huge surprise when you consider that Nintendo is the only one of the big three platform holders that did not refresh its lineup last year. While Sony and Microsoft launched new consoles at the tail end of 2020 and essentially hit the reset button on sales momentum, Nintendo stuck with the Switch and continued selling.

The fact that the PS5 came out on top in September 2021 could also indicate that stock is slowly becoming more obtainable. While we still have a long way to go before supply catches up to demand entirely, this could be a sign that supply constrictions are beginning to ease a little. We'll see what NPD says about the state of console sales during the ever-important holiday shopping season, so stay tuned for more.