Sony
With the PlayStation 5 suddenly going up in price for a lot of people this week, it’s a good time to think about how to save money in other ways. One of the best of these is with PlayStation Plus, which not only gives you a couple of games for free every month, but also some exclusive discounts too.
PlayStation Plus members get access to hundreds of free games, which means you can try out AAA titles and Game of the Year contenders for a fraction of the usual cost. Think Uncharted. Think God of War, Ghost of Tsushima, Final Fantasy, Spider-Man and more. The list goes on, with thousands of hours of amazing experiences to be had.
Subscribers also receive other benefits like exclusive discounts and in-game content. But it’s important to note there are three membership tiers. To help you find the one that’s best for you, Max McHone — an avid PlayStation player and one of CNET’s dedicated deals writers — has broken down the features and prices of each tier below.
What is the best deal right now?
Unfortunately, there are no actual discounts available right now, but opting for a 12-month subscription saves you up to 33% compared to paying monthly. The discounted amount is based on which tier you choose, so keep that in mind.
The best PlayStation Plus deal
PS Plus Essential (12 months): $80
For the Essential plan, the regular monthly membership is $10, which works out to $120 per year. While $10 a month is reasonable, paying for multiple months upfront can help you save. If you opt for the $25 three-month membership, you’ll save $5 or $40 with an $80 one-year membership.
Sony
PlayStation Plus membership packages
Originally, Sony offered two gaming subscriptions, PlayStation Plus and PlayStation Now. But since 2023, both subscriptions have been rolled into a single service with multiple tiers. So three membership packages are available: PlayStation Essential, Extra and Premium. To help you choose, we’ve broken down the prices and what’s included for each tier below.
PS Plus Essential
At $10 a month, $25 for three months or $80 for a year, PlayStation Plus Essential isn’t very different than the previously offered PS Plus subscription. It offers all of the same features, including access to online play, two monthly games for free, cloud storage and exclusive discounts at the PlayStation Store. And if you had a PS Plus membership before the revamp, it was automatically converted to an Essential membership.
PS Plus Extra
At $15 a month, $40 for three months or $135 for a year, a mid-tier PlayStation Plus Extra subscription is somewhat similar to the Game Pass Ultimate membership offered to Xbox users. It includes all the benefits and features of an Essential membership but also provides access to a catalog of up to 400 PS4 and PS5 games. The selection includes plenty of hit titles like Ghost of Tsushima and Red Dead Redemption 2.
PS Plus Premium
A PlayStation Plus Premium membership is the highest tier available, and it costs $18 a month, $50 for three months or $160 for a full year. In addition to the benefits of Essential and Extra subscriptions, it offers access to a massive library of more than 700 games. That includes the recent PS4 and PS5 hits from the Extra subscription, but also a catalog of more than 300 classics from the PS1, PS2 and PS3 eras (similar to the previous PS Now subscription). It allows you to stream many of these classic titles, so you don’t have to worry about them eating up valuable storage space.
You also get access to time-limited game trials, so you can test new games before you commit to buying them. If you had a subscription to PS Now before the revamp went live, it was automatically converted to a PlayStation Plus Premium membership.
How we choose PlayStation Plus deals at CNET
Savings on PlayStation gaming subscriptions can be pretty tough to come by. So to help you get signed up for less, we scout the best deals being offered by Sony directly, as well as trusted third-party retailers like CDKeys. We evaluate the membership tier, subscription length and discount to help you get the best monthly price on the plan that works best for you.
