Microsoft's $900 25th-Anniversary Xbox Sold Out in a Minute — and Resellers Are Asking Thousands
Microsoft opened preorders for its 25th-anniversary Xbox Series X on August 26, 2026, priced at US$899.99 — the most expensive Xbox console the company has ever sold. It sold out within a minute. By the next morning, resellers were listing the console on eBay for as much as US$27,426, according to GameSpot.
The listings paint a stark picture. While some sellers posted the console at around US$2,200, others pushed prices into five-figure territory — the highest from a seller in Australia. Several completed eBay sales averaged between US$1,900 and US$2,300 per unit, suggesting buyers are willing to pay more than double the retail price on the secondary market.
Microsoft first unveiled the anniversary console and controller at the Xbox Games Showcase on June 7, 2026, promising that pricing and preorder details would follow later. A broader "Designed for Xbox" 25th Anniversary Collection of accessories and hardware became available for preorder on August 25, 2026, with the full collection launching on November 13, according to Xbox Wire. The US$899.99 MSRP is the US price; Microsoft noted that pricing varies by market.
The console is part of a wider 25th-anniversary push that includes Xbox Gear apparel, new community designs, and an Xbox FanFest tour. Microsoft has also said it is bringing classic Xbox games to PC and handheld devices as part of the celebrations.
The speed of the sellout — under sixty seconds — and the immediate flood of resale listings echo a familiar pattern in gaming hardware launches, where limited supply and high demand create an opening for scalpers, people who buy stock at retail to resell it at a markup. Microsoft acknowledged the risk in June, telling Pure Xbox that it aimed to ensure scalpers would not ruin the release.
For now, the measures Microsoft had in mind do not appear to have stopped the resale market. The gap between the US$899.99 retail price and the multi-thousand-dollar eBay asking prices is unusually wide even by console-scalping standards, though whether any of the highest-priced listings actually sell remains an open question.
Players who missed the preorder window can still watch for the November 13 launch, when the Xbox 25th Anniversary Collection officially reaches retail — assuming stock holds.
