PS5 Pro vs PS5: Should You Upgrade?

Released in November 2024 after years of speculation, the PlayStation 5 Pro is the ONLY mid-cycle console refresh of the current generation, with Microsoft preferring to stick to their current lineup of the Xbox Series S and Xbox Series X.

Much like its predecessor, the PlayStation 4 Pro, the PS5 Pro comes with upgraded internals, giving it the capability of running every game that the PlayStation 5 can but in a better way. However, at $749.99 and without a physical hard drive, upgrading to the PS5 Pro if you already have a PS5, or buying one if you’re upgrading from a PlayStation 4 or a PS4 Pro, isn’t as straightforward.

Criticized for being released during a time when the PS5 itself doesn’t have as extensive of a first-party and third-party library as the PS4 and older PlayStation consoles, the PS5 Pro is a harder-to-justify upgrade or purchase over the PS5. But does that mean that it isn’t worth buying at all? Definitely not.

Whether you already have a PS5 or you’re thinking of moving on from your current console set-up, we’ll help you make a much better purchasing decision, just in time for the holiday season.

What’s the Difference Between the PS5 vs PS5 Pro?

Before we go into much detail about the differences between the PS5 and the PS5 Pro, here’s a breakdown of the specifications of each console:

PS5:

• Price: $499 MSRP
• GPU: 10.28 TFLOPS, 36 CUs @ 2.23 GHz Custom RDNA 2
• CPU: 8x Cores @ 3.5GHz Custom Zen 2
• Memory: 16GB GDDR6
• Memory Bandwidth: 448GB/s
• Storage: 825GB SSD
• Controller: DualSense
• Backward Compatibility: Yes
• PSVR Support: Yes
• Optical Drive: 4K UHD Blue-Ray Drive
• Weight: 9.9 lbs
• Dimensions: 15.3in x 4.1in x 10.2in

PS5 Pro:

• Price: $749.99 MSRP
• GPU: 16.7 TFLOPs, 60 CUs @ 3.5 GHz Custom RDNA 3
• CPU: 8 core / 16 thread AMD Zen 2
• Memory: 16GB GDDR6 / 2GB DDR5
• Memory Bandwidth: 576 GB/s
• Storage: Custom 2TB SSD
• Controller: DualSense
• Backward Compatibility: Yes
• PSVR Support: Yes
• Optical Drive: N/A
• Weight: 6.8lbs / 3.1kg
• Dimensions: 15.2in x 3.5in x 8.5in
• Upscaling: PSSR (PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution Upscaling)

Hardware-wise, the PS5 Pro represents a 20-30% upgrade over the PS5. This isn’t nearly enough to justify the higher price point, especially since most games will run at the same resolutions and framerates on the PS5 as they do on the PS5 Pro. BUT, here’s the kicker: the PS5 Pro can run the same games better, and it supports the current and future iterations of the PSSR.

As confirmed by Sony’s resident technical wizard, Mark Cenry, Sony is working closely with AMD to implement a technology similar to the AMD FidelityFX™ Super Resolution 4 (FSR 4), replacing PSSR.

So, are we saying that the PS5 Pro is worth buying because of the implementation of a feature that won’t arrive until next year? Not quite.

You see, PSSR is currently already doing wonders on the PS5 Pro. Although the public’s reaction to the initial reveal wasn’t entirely positive, sentiment regarding the PS5 Pro has improved since. The PS5 Pro can render life-like lighting, shadows, and reflections, as Sony has consistently shown off in first-party titles, including Grand Turismo 7.

Of course, the main selling point is still the PSSR. In essence, it’s a PS5 Pro-exclusive eye candy booster. It makes supported games prettier and more detailed to look at without the associated frame rate drop. It’s still technically up to the developers to use this technology in their games, but with the PS5 currently far and away the best-selling console of the current generation, more and more studios are releasing their games with PS5 Pro enhancements.

PS5 Pro vs PS5: Non-PSSR Titles

You don’t spend over $200 for a console for a single feature, especially when you’re not even getting an optical disc drive or an upgraded version of the DualSense. Luckily, existing PS4 and PS5 titles can benefit from a noticeable performance boost from the PS5 Pro simply because it’s a more powerful console.

Following its release, Sony also confirmed that more than 8,500 PS4 games will enjoy a “Game Boost” feature that lets PS5 Pro owners enjoy “faster and smoother frame rates in some of the PS4 console’s greatest games.”

Not long after, users started noticing and documenting the differences, as spotted on this Reddit thread.

And just in case you missed the spec sheet, did you see that the PS5 Pro will come with a 2TB SSD by default?

Other improvements include better Wi-Fi technology (Wi-Fi 7 vs Wi-Fi 6) and a slimmer figure with less weight compared to the launch model.

Sony is also promising that it will let PS5 Pro owners customize their consoles with official faceplates, although Sony has yet to release one, nearly a year after introducing the PS5 Pro.

Should You Upgrade to the PS5?

Unlike the PS4 Pro, upgrading to the PS5 Pro is more difficult to justify. A chunk of the improvements over the regular PS5 are trivial, and you technically don’t need one if you already have a regular PS5. The only reason why we think you should get a PS5 Pro even if you already have a PS5 is if your local video game retailer gives you a good trade-in deal, and/or you want to enjoy Grand Theft Auto 6 at its best.

Rockstar Games’ upcoming sequel is one of the most highly anticipated games of all time. According to Rockstar, they used a base PS5 to record footage for the game’s second trailer. Can you imagine how much better the game would look on the PS5 Pro?

With that said, the PS5 Pro finds itself in a unique situation where consoles haven’t dropped in pricing as they age because of circumstances beyond its control (tariffs, among other things).

So unlike the PS4 Pro, which retailed for the same price as the PS4 originally did, the PS5 Pro is significantly more expensive.

This is a problem when developers are still supporting the PS4 (Microsoft has already confirmed that the next Call of Duty will be released on the PS4). This means that support for PS5 titles will last significantly longer. So, while getting a PS5 Pro lets you enjoy today’s and tomorrow’s games at their best, you’re still playing the same games, possibly even after the next PlayStation console is released.

Besides, to get the most out of the PS5 Pro, you’d have to spend more on a TV that supports higher resolutions and smoother frame rates, which only adds to the total cost.

Why You Should Buy the Base PS5

The PS5 won’t likely go down in price. This much is clear. Unlike before, you won’t be able to get the latest console for the same cost as the launch price of the previous generation console. So if you’re upgrading from the PS4 (or older) or you’re coming from an Xbox, we recommend getting the base PS5 as soon as possible. You’re better off spending the $200 cost savings on an upcoming title like Ghost of Yotei or a fully customized DualSense controller.

The PS5 Pro just isn’t worth it unless you’re part of the population who don’t mind spending extra for admittedly miniscule but very much welcome improvements.

Yes, the PS5 Pro has better Wi-Fi, larger storage, and makes games prettier, but most casual gamers couldn’t care any less about those.

Settling the PS5 Pro vs PS5 Debate

If you still don’t have a current generation console, you’ll want to find an answer to the PS5 Pro vs PS5 question soon. Why? As we’ve already mentioned, current consoles aren’t getting cheaper by the month.

Sony’s stockpile of existing inventory means it can afford to push off price increases for much longer, but it’s only a matter of time before circumstances beyond the tech company’s control forces it to pass on the added cost of manufacturing to you, the consumer. When that happens, we can expect the PS5 and the PS5 Pro to start retailing for $599 and $799, respectively.

So while we definitely recommend thinking hard about which of the two consoles to buy, you wouldn’t want to wait too long.

This is probably the only time in gaming history when waiting a year or two means having to pay more for a current-gen console, not less.

In the PS5 Pro vs PS5 debate, you lose if you wait.

Conclusion

Unless the prices of today’s consoles start dropping and the PS5 Pro gets a significant price cut, the PS5 just offers a much better value.

Don’t forget. The PS5 is still a very capable console. It can run every game that the PS5 Pro can, often at the same resolutions.

Yes, there will be compromises, but you could easily end up spending a lot more than you expected if you want to enjoy the most that the PS5 Pro can offer.