Circana Report Shows Nintendo Dominating US Physical Game Sales in 2026

The U.S. physical video game market is shrinking fast, and a new Circana report highlights just how uneven the shift is across the major console brands. In 2026 so far, Nintendo has captured the majority of new physical sales, PlayStation is in second place, and Xbox is trailing by a wide margin—down to roughly a single-digit slice of the physical pie once even certain PC releases are accounted for.

What Circana’s U.S. physical sales data says (2026)

Circana’s latest monthly look at game sales in the United States provides a clear snapshot of where new physical purchases are going this year.

• Nintendo: 63% of new physical game sales this year are on Nintendo platforms (including Switch and Switch 2).
• PlayStation: 32% of new physical game sales this year are on PlayStation platforms.
• Xbox: about 5% of new physical game sales fall under Xbox platforms.

That Xbox figure is described as “almost” the remainder because the same 5% also includes some physical PC releases. When those PC editions—such as collector releases for 007 First Light and Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced—are excluded, Xbox’s share is closer to roughly 4% of the total physical market.

Why Xbox’s physical performance is so low

The report’s broader takeaway is that Xbox’s situation isn’t being treated as a mystery. Several factors are pointed to as contributors to the brand’s weaker share of physical sales.

• Game Pass behavior: widespread use of Microsoft’s subscription service is said to steer many players toward digital access on a rental/subscription basis rather than buying physical copies.
• Series X|S momentum: relatively weak sales for Xbox Series X and Series S in recent years—made worse by recent price increases—has reduced the potential base of players purchasing physical games.
• First-party cross-platform exposure: major Xbox first-party releases have also appeared on competing platforms. Examples cited include Halo: Campaign Evolved and Forza Horizon 5 being available outside of Xbox’s ecosystem.

What happens next when PlayStation leaves physical (2028)

The market pressure is expected to intensify. Sony’s plan to move away from physical retail in 2028 is described as removing roughly one-third of the physical market, which would then shift toward digital distribution.

In that scenario, Xbox is expected to follow a similar path—but the impact on Xbox’s overall position is described as likely to be marginal compared to the overall market reassignment. Nintendo remains positioned as the dominant force in physical retail, effectively preparing to hold most of the remaining physical share in the future.

How the wider market is changing: record lows and shifting spending

Circana also reports that physical software sales have hit major lows. In July 2026, new physical software sales reached their lowest historical level for that month at 85 million dollars, a number framed as continuing a pattern previewed by an equally historic low in January.

At the same time, total consumer spending on game content across formats—physical, digital, and subscriptions—fell year over year by 9% in July. The report notes that subscriptions were the only category that increased during that period, supporting the idea that physical’s share has declined alongside overall market movement.