Update: PS5 restock news this week has GameStop restocking the Sony console, so if follow our PS5 restock Twitter tracker Matt Swider you’ll get real-time live alerts when Sony PS5 consoles are in stock – that’s if you follow his Twitter account and turn on notifications. This past week, Matt had exclusive news reports regarding the PS5 restock at Best Buy, and thousands of his followers got the heads-up. on Thursday, September 30, GameStop is doing something similar for the $499 PS5 Disc and $399 PS5 Digital consoles. Meanwhile, TechRadar knows that Walmart and Target will continue to offer online restocks every few weeks, as they have for most of 2021, so it’s best to turn on notifications to get the first jump on the precise restock times.
Here’s how to know when the next PS5 restock will happen:
PS5 restock news today, Sunday, September 26
There was no shortage of recent PS5 restock news, with Best Buy, Sony Direct and Walmart all happening on Thursday of last week. The fact that Best Buy had an in-store restock – the first time for any major retailer – was a big deal.
You’ll notice that there was no PS5 restock at GameStop last week. That’s because GameStop is doing the same thing that Best Buy. GameStop has been amassing inventory for an in-store restock in select cities around the United States.
Right now, in 2021, it’s nearly impossible to buy the PS5 because of a global chip shortage. That’s why we’re laying out the potential PS5 restock dates and tweeting about them through our Twitter tracker.
GameStop restock in-store on Thursday
The GameStop PS5 restock is the next confirmed chance to buy PS5, as it’ll have the console for sale in stores for the first time in 2021. This is your chance to buy the Sony console in the same way Microsoft gamers could buy the Xbox Series X earlier this summer.
When it pivots back to online restocks, GameStop remains your best chance to buy a PS5 in 2021 simply because it offers bundles and has a barrier to entry through its GameStop PowerUp Rewards Pro membership that costs $15. Some people dislike this approach, but it rewards real gamers and has nearly stopped resellers – it’s hard for them to profit off of specific PS5 games on the open market when those games are readily available at MSRP.
Matt Swider usually gets confirmation of a GameStop PS5 restock date ahead of the official announcement and he shares that information on Twitter. We haven’t gotten that information just yet, but we do know that the retailer is prepping bundles for a restock that’s likely to be early next week.
Best Buy restocks may return online and in-store
Best Buy had an in-store restock on September 23, 2021, after it failed to have the console online for more than a month. It was odd because Best Buy stocked the PlayStation 5 almost weekly before that, so clearly it was changing up its strategy.
This doesn’t mean the retailer will continue to have in-store restocks of the PS5. It may do what it does with the GPU restocks: alternating between online restocks through its website and in-store restocks on select Thursday mornings.
Best Buy restock time online: The date is harder to nail down outside of the fact that it’s never in stock during the weekends or evenings. But the official restock time always falls between 9:37am EDT and 5:05am EDT, so destined for working hours in the US Eastern time zone. It’s a big window, sure, but one we can easily track on Twitter.
Target PS5 restocks every few weeks on a Friday
The last Target PS5 restock was Friday at 7:37am EDT, and if you missed it, you’re not alone. It was a small inventory drop, and only a few of our followers got it, as you’re buying online, but selecting a local store when making the purchase for a later in-store pickup.
Target PS5 restock time: While Target has shifted its PlayStation 5 restock day of the week previously, the time is consistent: in 2021, it’s always been 7am EDT to 8am EDT, with one exception: last week was a little outside that window at 8:14am EDT. Don’t pass up PS5 Disc, which is almost always in-stock first for PS5 Digital, which often goes in stock second, as PS5 Digital stock is extremely low.
Sony Direct PS5 restock surprises everyone
Update: The Sony Direct PS5 restock is finished, and while it was filled with glitches at first and not everyone could get into the waiting room, enough people got the console to call it a success during a dire month for the Sony system.
Sony Direct has had a PS5 restock twice a month for the last few months, and we’re always tipped off by Matt’s Twitter followers, a handful of whom receive the coveted Sony Direct email invite one day in advance of a ‘virtual queue.’ What’s that? It’s a lottery system that randomly selects people so that can more fairly buy the console.
There are often two virtual queues that exist, one for people who receive that Sony Direct email invite (it’s randomized among PSN users and the queue starts at 3pm EDT, so check your inbox for the email invite), and one that sometimes opens up at 5pm EDT (though the last restock there was at 6pm EDT) for everyone else if there are planned leftovers (and it’s of course much harder to be successful in the later PlayStation Direct virtual queue).
Antonline PS5 restock – one next-gen bundle a week
Antonline has been consistent with its PS5 restocks, promising – and mostly fulfilling – a next-gen console restock once per week. We say mostly because sometimes it has the Xbox Series S in there, which isn’t as difficult to find in stock compared to the PS5. Anyway, because Antonline had a PS5 Digital bundle last week, there’s no guarantee it’ll pick a Sony console this time, but it’s a next-gen console to be sure.
Keep in mind: Antonline PS5 bundles will look pricey at first, but they’re at face value for all of the games and accessories included. While consoles still sell out in about three minutes (or less), the bundles slow down resellers, who can’t easily profit off of the extras. So it’s a benefit to real gamers who want to play the bundled games.
Walmart PS5 restock – often Thursdays
Will the PS5 restock at Walmart this upcoming week? We’re always checking with our sources (we usually know a little bit in advance), but we know two things: it favors Thursdays (every Walmart PS5 restock has been on a Thursday except for one in 2021), and we know for a fact that its severely back-ordered PlayStation 5 shipments are making their way to US consumers sooner than the slated October dates (yes, not everyone has seen their ‘order processing’ status hasten, but a lot of people have).
Walmart takes a long time to ship, and if it continues to offer the console with dates in October like it did in August (a two-month gap), by the time October rolls around, it’s going to have to be promising consoles in 2022, and no one wants to see that on Black Friday. It needed to slow down the pace a bit. That’s why we giving Walmart a 50/50 shot every Thursday, and we know it’s usually at specific times: 12pm EDT, 3pm EDT or 9pm EDT.