Xbox Series S and X prices jump up to 49% in UK and Europe

Microsoft has revealed the full extent of its Xbox hardware price hikes for the UK and Europe, and the numbers are brutal. Prices went live on August 1st — the same date Microsoft flagged back in June — but the company deliberately withheld the UK and European figures when it announced the changes, only revealing them last night.

Here's the full damage. In the UK, the 512GB Xbox Series S jumps from £299.99 to £429.99 (43%), the 1TB Series S from £349.99 to £519.99 (48.5%), the 1TB Series X Digital from £449.99 to £619.99, and the 1TB Series X Disc from £499.99 to £669.99 (34%). In Europe, the Series S 512GB goes from €349.99 to €499.99, and the Series X Disc tops out at €799.99, up from €599.99 — a €200 increase. At current exchange rates, that disc-drive Series X now costs just over $900, making it the single biggest price jump in dollar terms at roughly $230 more than before. For context, US buyers saw increases of $100–$150 across the range. Microsoft cited a "components crisis" — specifically that console storage and memory prices have risen more than 2.5x, with another doubling expected by fall 2027 — but stopped short of naming tariffs or any other specific cause.

The price hikes land at a particularly rough moment for Xbox. Microsoft recently announced 3,200 layoffs across its gaming division, with 1,600 cuts implemented immediately, hitting studios including Bethesda and id Software. Xbox also reported a 10% drop in revenue across content and services in its last financial quarter. The Series X launched in November 2020, meaning buyers in Europe are now being asked to pay close to €800 for hardware that is nearly six years old. The entry-level 512GB Series S — once positioned as the affordable option at €349.99 — now costs more than a Nintendo Switch 2 in both the UK and Europe.

Reaction on ResetEra has been scathing. "Final nail in the coffin," wrote one commenter; another offered the dry observation: "Great strategy, that'll definitely lead to more sales." With Game Pass still the core pitch for the Xbox ecosystem, Microsoft will be hoping players absorb the hardware sticker shock and stay in the subscription lane — but at these prices, the hardware itself looks like a very hard sell.