PlayStation Plus price increase rolling out for some players

Sony is about to raise the price of a PlayStation Plus subscription, the company announced Monday in a tweet on X. On Wednesday, in “select regions,” the price for PlayStation Plus Essential will rise by $1 to $10.99 for a one-month subscription and by $3 to $27.99 for a three-month subscription. It did not specify what the “select regions” are in the announcement. Sony did not say whether the higher PlayStation Plus tiers would be affected as well.

On the bright side, the price increase will not affect players currently with a subscription (except for those in Turkey and India). If you’re currently subscribed, your price will only be affected if “the existing subscription changes or lapses.”

Sony attributed the price increase to “ongoing market conditions.” It’s not dissimilar to the language Sony used when announcing the March price increases for PlayStation 5 consoles, which it attributed to “continued pressures in the global economic landscape.” At the time, Isabelle Tomatis, vice president of global marketing for Sony Interactive Entertainment, said, “We know that price changes impact our community, and after careful evaluation, we found this was a necessary step to ensure we can continue delivering innovative, high-quality gaming experiences to players worldwide.”

PlayStation Plus Essential is the lowest (and cheapest) tier of the subscription service. Players get online multiplayer access, monthly free games, and more. The free games for May include EA Sports FC 26, Wuchang: Fallen Feathers, and Nine Sols.

Coincidentally, the PlayStation price increase comes a month after Xbox lowered the price of a couple of Xbox Game Pass tiers. Notably, a Game Pass Ultimate monthly subscription now costs $22.99, down from $29.99. And earlier in May, Xbox also announced a cheaper “starter edition” version of Game Pass as part of its partnership with Discord.