One of the most common questions in 2021 is – which is better, PS5 or Xbox Series X?
Deciding whether to buy an Xbox X or PS5 in 2021 can be challenging. Since both are incredibly powerful consoles, it is hard to dominate one over the other.
If you can’t decide whether to buy a PS5 or Xbox Series X in 2021, we will sincerely help you. But for that, you have to read this article from top to bottom. This article will show a comparison between PS5 and Xbox Series X based on technical space, price, games, design, and more.
Due to Covid-19 in 2020, neither PS5 nor Xbox Series X is too much in stock. The pandemic caused a lot of complications in the production process. On top of that, the global semiconductor shortage has begun. Thus, the production process has been greatly hampered.
But things are beginning to change as time passes. So in 2021, we expect to see more PS5 and Xbox X in the market. If you are not fully aware of PS5 and Xbox X, we will demonstrate them briefly.
About PS5 and Xbox Series X:
Both PS5 and Xbox X are powerful gaming consoles, invented for the next generation of gaming. PS5 stands for “PlayStation 5”, which is manufactured by Sony. Whereas, Microsoft produces the Xbox X gaming console. Both of these gaming consoles ensure graphically enhanced performance for ambitious gaming.
PS5 and Xbox Series X Release Date:
The PlayStation 5 was released on 12 November 2020 in a few regions. On 19 November 2020, it was released globally. A few days earlier on 10 November 2020, the Xbox Series X was released.
Games You Can Play on PS5 and Xbox Series X:
All the upcoming high-resolution games can be played on both PS5 and Xbox Series X. Both these consoles support up to 8k gaming. Top-notch games like Marvel’s Spider-Man Miles Morales, Halo Infinite, and more upcoming games can be played on any of these consoles.
On top of that, both consoles are compatible with backward gaming. Meaning, all the games from the previous generation can be played. So that’s plenty of games to play.
Technical specs are a must to mention when it comes to comparing PS5 and Xbox Series X. Judging the technical specs, you can decide which one to buy.
This table shows a comparison in technical specs between these two consoles –
Topic | PlayStation 5 | Xbox Series X |
CPU | 8-core 3.5 GHz AMD Zen | 8-core 3.5 GHz AMD Zen |
GPU | 10.3 teraflop AMD RDNA 2 | |
RAM | 16 GB GDDR6 | 16 GB GDDR6 |
Storage | 825 GB SSD | |
Max Resolution | 8K | 8K |
Frame Rate | Up to 120 fps | Up to 120 fps |
Optical Drive | 4K UHD Blu-ray (Only in standard PS5) | 4K UHD Blu-ray |
USB-C Port | Yes | No |
Storage Expansion Option | Not right now | Seagate Storage Expansion Card for Xbox Series X|S |
Backward Compatibility | All PS4 games | All Xbox One games, a few Xbox 360 and Xbox games |
Exclusive Games | The Last of Us 2, Horizon II: Forbidden West, Spider-Man: Miles Morales | Forza Motorsport 8, Halo Infinite, State of Decay 3 |
You can see that both consoles use an 8-core AMD processor. And talking about AMD processor, the new Ryzen 5000G APU has come out in the market. However, we are not certain if this great APU is going to be available for retail.
Your decision of buying either the PS5 or Xbox Series X depends on the price. The price of each of these consoles is almost the same. Take a look at this chart to get an idea –
Console | Price |
PS5 Standard Version | $499.99/£449.99 |
PS5 Digital Edition | $399.99/£359.99 |
Xbox Series X | $499/£449 |
Xbox Series S | $299.99/£249 |
Good to know:
- Microsoft has announced a subscription-based payment method for both Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S.
- This program is called Xbox All Access program, where you have to pay $34.99/£28.99 per month for the Xbox Series X and $24.99/£20.99 per month for the Xbox Series S.
- The program is valid for 2 years, offering the console and Xbox Game Pass.
– We want to announce the Xbox Series X as our winner in terms of design.
The PS5 is ironically a large console. At the same time, it is narrow which makes it really hard to place it from vertical to horizontal. The glossy front panel is prone to fingerprints.
Furthermore, the “power” and “disc eject” buttons are almost identical. So, you might get confused every time you want to turn on or turn off the console.
On the other hand, the Xbox Series X looks like a small desktop or a tiny refrigerator. This console is pretty bulky. It is a sleek black box that you can place in a moderate space.
But if you are a person who wants his gaming console to have a modern and futuristic look, then you may find the design of PS5 appealing.
Size is an important factor when you have a little space around your TV. Although neither of these consoles is massive, they are not diminutive either.
Here are the dimensions of PS5 and Xbox Series X –
Console | Width (cm) | Height (cm) | Depth (cm) | Weight (kg) |
PS5 Standard Version | 10.4 | 39 | 26 | 4.5 |
PS5 Digital Edition | 9.2 | 39 | 26 | 3.9 |
Xbox Series X | 15.1 | 30.1 | 15.1 | 4.45 |
Xbox Series S | 15.1 | 27.5 | 6.5 | 1.9 |
From the size chart, we can see that the PS5 is the tallest of all. It has more depth and width than the other consoles. Although the digital version is a bit thinner, it won’t save much space. However, we can see a major difference in weights between PS5 and PS5 Digital edition.
On the other hand, the dimension of both the Xbox Series X and Series S is less than PS5. And the Xbox Series S is even narrower and smaller than the Xbox Series X. So those who are looking for a good gaming console to place on a limited space should go for the Xbox Series S. It is comparatively lighter than the other consoles as well.
– The gaming library is fundamentally different for PS5 and Xbox Series X
Microsoft focused on optimizing the games that were available for Xbox One. So, you will find no new game titles for the Xbox X. The following games have been greatly optimized for the Xbox Series X –
- Ori
- Gears 5
- The Will of the Wisps
- Forza Horizon 4
However, it’s not like these games couldn’t be played on Xbox One or PC. So if you are looking for playing new exclusive games, you will get disappointed with Xbox Series X.
On the contrary, new game titles were being launched with the PS5. Although many games are also available for PS4, the followings are exclusive for the new PS5 console –
- Spider-Man: Miles Morales
- Sackboy: A Big Adventure
- Demon’s Souls
- Astro’s Playroom
Beyond this, both consoles are significantly compatible with the new third-party games like – Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, Cyberpunk 2077, Borderlands 3, and so on. Moreover, both systems feature excellent backward compatibility.
If we don’t restrict ourselves with what we can currently play, then arguably PS5 has the most exciting game collection.
Many prefer Xbox X over PS5 just because of Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. At $14.99/£10.99 a month, you can get to play over 100 games. You can even download these games whenever you please.
Surprisingly, many of these games will be available for download on the same day as the release date. For example, Outriders has arrived on Xbox Game Pass at its launch date.
Aside from that, Xbox Game Pass now includes EA Play, featuring 81 additional games.
Do you know?
Microsoft acquired ZeniMax Media in March 2021. ZeniMax Media has developed reputed games like Doom, Dishonored, The Evil Within, The Elder Scrolls, and so many. Because of this acquisition, you can play 20 Bethesda games on Xbox Game Pass.
Although it is not confirmed that Bethesda games will be exclusive for Xbox, you can expect to play future games in advance if you are a subscriber of Xbox Game Pass. Regarding Xbox Game Pass, Phil Spencer said –
Sony has brought the PlayStation Now cloud streaming service to counter Microsoft tactics. This service offers more than 700 PlayStation games for a fee of $9.99/£8.99 per month. Just like the Xbox Game Pass, you can download up to 300 games with PlayStation Now.
Good to know:
Sony has also introduced the PS Plus Collection for the PS5 owners. Once you sign in to your PS Plus account, you get to play 20 PS4 heavy hitters like – Battlefield 1, Fallout 4, God of War, Resident Evil 7, Bloodborne, and The Last of Us: Remastered.
You can already tell the performance of these consoles by considering their technical specs. Needless to say, both consoles are incredibly powerful for unleashing the next level of gaming.
Both Sony and Microsoft offer SSD hard drives for these latest consoles. As a result, turning these consoles on and loading games will be faster than ever. And both companies are on a long time commitment with the SSD technology. So, we can expect to find better SSDs in the future versions of these consoles.
PS5 has brought the Game Boost feature that enables playing selected PS4 and PS VR games with smoother frame rates. Along with that, experience the realistic virtual gaming with PS5 for its PlayStation VR Integration.
The PlayStation 5 presents photorealistic graphics in 4k resolution. Thanks to Unreal Engine 5, this type of graphical enhancement can be seen on the next-gen PS5 games. Here’s a demo of the PS5 photorealistic graphics in 4k gameplay –
PS5 owners can enjoy all the previous games that are available on the PS4 for PS5 backward compatibility. Furthermore, you will be able to play all the PS4 online games with your friends where they don’t have to update their consoles.
Microsoft has pushed a little further when it comes to Xbox Series X|S backward compatibility. Not only can you play all the Xbox One games but also dozens of Xbox 360 and original Xbox games. If you have the Xbox Game Pass, then you can play a stack of EA titles along with Bethesda games.
All of these games will run on the Xbox Series X with double frame rates for Microsoft’s FPS Boost technology. Due to this technology, some of the games can be played at 120fps.
And if you are still not satisfied, you should know that a list of 74 games has been included for boosting with the FPS Boost. Games including Deus Ex Mankind Divided and Assassin’s Creed Ezio Collection are now on this list. You can play these games on your Xbox Series X at 60fps.
However, issues in resolution can be seen for higher frame rates. So, you still can’t play some games with FPS Boost. For those games, it is better to turn off FPS Boost and keep the frame rates as they were on their release. To turn off FPS Boost in the game’s settings, go to –
Game > Options > Manage game and add ons > Compatibility options > FPS boost
The Xbox Series X has a processor of 12 teraflops. Meaning, it can operate 12 trillion operations in one second. This is incredible. Aside from that, it offers hardware-accelerated DirectX Ray Tracing, variable-rate shading, and a quick resume option when you are playing multiple games.
To be honest, we think both the PS5 and Xbox Series X are fantastic consoles. It is difficult to give precedence to one over the other. And the competition of the PS5 and Xbox Series X can be fierce throughout.
If you force us to declare a winner between these 2 amazing devices, we would like to give a top place for PlayStation 5. This console offers an outstanding controller that is way cooler than before. We really appreciate its fun and friendly user interface. And last but not least, it has a stronger lineup for games than the Xbox Series X.
From the design viewpoint, both consoles are unique. The PS5 is larger than the Xbox X. But, its design has become more futuristic than its predecessors. The Xbox Series X on the other hand has a boxy shape. We don’t think this type of shape will be appealing to everyone, especially when you put the console horizontally.
In the end, it is up to you to decide which console to buy. Remember, it’s only the beginning; we are expecting to see plenty of upgrades and excitement for both of these consoles in the years to come.
Frequently Asked Questions About the PS5 and Xbox Series X
1) Is PS5 better than Xbox series X?
Ans: By judging the technical specs of PS5 and Xbox Series X, we can tell the PS5 is a bit weaker than the Xbox Series X. Although both consoles have 8-core AMD CPUs, the clock speed for Xbox Series X is 3.8GHz where the PS5 has only 3.5GHz of clock speed.
In terms of power, the Xbox has 12 teraflops while the PS5 only has 10.28 teraflops. Both consoles have the same processing capabilities. However, Microsoft has slightly more sheer processing power.
2) Will the PS5 load faster than the Xbox series X?
Ans: In terms of loading games, both PS5 and Xbox Series X can load games ridiculously fast. Both consoles come with SSD hard drives. This means a faster game load and boot up. But the Xbox X comes with 1 TB of NVMe SSD, which is a bit faster than the PS5’s 825 GB of regular SSD.
3) What is the price of PS5 and Xbox Series X?
Ans: The standard version of PS5 comes at $499 while the digital edition costs $399. And the Xbox Series X has the same price as the PS5 standard variant, which is $499. To see more about the prices, we recommend checking the (PS5 vs Xbox Series X: Price) section.
4) Should I buy a PS5 now or wait?
Ans: If you already own a PS4 or a relevant gaming system, we don’t urge you to spend your money on a PS5. Due to the overwhelming demand for the PS5, its price in the market is currently high.
And it is heard that the PS5s that are currently available in the market, have vulnerabilities. This is what happened at the early stage when the PS4 was released. Although it is possible to get a new one by returning the defective one to the store, it would be wise to buy a PS5 later when the price goes down a little and the stability increases a little.
5) Will 2K21 be on PS5?
Ans: Yes, in fact, the NBA 2K21 is a launch title for both PS5 and Xbox Series X. The NBA 2K21 will be released for Xbox Series X on 10 November 2021 and for PS5 on 12 November 2021. This video is a demonstration of the NBA 2K21 and compares how the game will look on PS4 and PS5 –