PlayStation has recently implemented price increases across all its subscription tiers: Essential, Extra, and Premium. This adjustment, which affects 1-month and 3-month plans, has been reflected on the PlayStation Store in Spain and other countries.
While initial reports focused on the PlayStation Plus Essential tier, it’s now confirmed that the Extra and Premium subscription prices have also been updated. Notably, the website descriptions may still show older pricing, but the actual charges at checkout reflect the new, higher rates.
PlayStation Plus Subscription Price Hikes Range from €1 to €5
In Spain, the PlayStation Plus Essential 1-month subscription now costs €9.99, an increase of €1 from the previous €8.99. The 3-month Essential plan has risen to €27.99, up from €24.99. These new prices align with PlayStation’s previously announced adjustments for Europe, the UK, and the US.
The significant news is that the price increases extend beyond the Essential tier. The PlayStation Store in Spain now shows updated prices for PS Plus Extra and Premium as well. The 1-month PS Plus Extra subscription has increased to €15.99, despite the description still listing the old recurring fee of €13.99. For the 1-month PS Plus Premium subscription, the store displays €18.99, though the text below still references the previous €16.99. These represent a €2 monthly price increase for both tiers.
Similar increases apply to the quarterly subscriptions. The 3-month PS Plus Extra plan now costs €43.99, an increase from €39.99. The 3-month PS Plus Premium subscription has risen to €54.99, while its description retains the prior recurring price of €49.99. These quarterly price hikes amount to €4 and €5 respectively.
| Plan | Previous Price | New Price | Increase |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essential 1 month | €8.99 | €9.99 | +€1 |
| Extra 1 month | €13.99 | €15.99 | +€2 |
| Premium 1 month | €16.99 | €18.99 | +€2 |
| Essential 3 months | €24.99 | €27.99 | +€3 |
| Extra 3 months | €39.99 | €43.99 | +€4 |
| Premium 3 months | €49.99 | €54.99 | +€5 |
Offsetting Hardware Revenue Decline with Software Price Increases
In percentage terms, the PlayStation Plus subscription price increases range from approximately 10% to 14%, depending on the plan. The largest relative jump is for the monthly PS Plus Extra subscription, which increased from €13.99 to €15.99, representing a rise of about 14.3%. For instance, the quarterly Premium subscription saw an increase from €49.99 to €54.99, approximately a 10% rise.
This strategy sees Sony increasing the cost of short-term plans while keeping annual plans unchanged, at least for now. In Spain, the PlayStation Store continues to list annual prices of €71.99 for Essential, €125.99 for Extra, and €151.99 for Premium. This makes the annual subscription an even more attractive “cost-effective” option compared to monthly or quarterly payments.
Sony has attributed the price hike to “current market conditions,” a generic explanation used for recent adjustments. Users with active subscriptions will not see their prices changed; the increases apply to new subscribers. Alternatively, if a subscription expires and is not renewed, the next payment will be at the new, higher rate. This approach aims to discourage users from canceling their subscriptions and encourages annual renewals. However, in countries like Turkey and India, the price increase is immediate for all existing subscribers.
The original article appeared on El Chapuzas Informático.
