New figures shared by Circana Executive Director and Video Game Industry Advisor Mat Piscatella illustrate the scale of the decline in the US physical games market, with annual physical software sales falling from 292 million units in 2009 to just 37 million units in the 12-month period ending June 2026.
Piscatella shared two charts on Bluesky to provide additional context following discussion around recent PlayStation physical software sales. One chart tracks the total number of physical video game units sold in the US each year, while the other shows how many PlayStation games sold more than 100,000 physical copies during the first half of each calendar year.
According to Circana’s Retail Tracking Service, the US physical games market peaked at 292 million units in the 12 months ending June 2009. By the 12 months ending June 2026, that figure had fallen to 37 million units, representing an almost 87% decline over 17 years.
The PlayStation chart shows a similar trend. In the first half of 2008, 100 PlayStation games sold more than 100,000 physical copies in the US. That number has steadily declined over time, reaching just seven titles during the first half of 2026.
Piscatella also revealed that while seven PlayStation games exceeded the 100,000-unit mark this year, “none of the 7 that did exceed 100k physical units in the US during the 1H reached 275k.”
Responding to claims that physical game sales remain strong in some regions, Piscatella noted that his data relates only to the US market, adding, “US =/= world. But I don’t have global physical data, so not much I can do there.”
He also pointed out that total US physical software unit sales are up 4% year to date, but explained that the growth is almost entirely being driven by Nintendo.
“But that 4% growth is because of the Switch 2 and physical sales growth on Nintendo platforms (but you know that). Other ecosystems are showing percentage drops from the teens to the mid 30s,” Piscatella wrote.
Addressing suggestions that the move towards digital distribution has benefited the industry, Piscatella said, “No. Never said it was. I’m not sure anyone believes this to be the case. Even the folks at the companies making these decisions.”
He added that many people who worked in physical retail and publishing have already lost their jobs as the market has contracted.
“Going back to NPD, this company has been tracking and reporting physical for over 30 years. Lots of people I know that did physical planning, ops and sales at pubs are already gone and those that remain think their gigs have an expiration date. It’s terrible.”
The latest Circana data highlights the continued contraction of the US physical games market. While Nintendo Switch 2 has provided a short-term boost to retail software sales in 2026, physical game purchases remain a fraction of what they were during the market’s peak in the late 2000s.
