For years, PlayStation Plus was one of those subscriptions players barely thought about.
A few euros here.
A few euros there.
Then suddenly, you look at your bank account and realize gaming has become a monthly bill of its own.
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Sony has officially increased the price of PS Plus Essential for new subscribers in Europe.
The monthly plan jumps from €8.99 to €9.99, while the three-month plan rises from €24.99 to €27.99.
At first glance, it doesn’t sound dramatic.
Just one extra euro.
But that’s exactly where the story gets interesting.
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The real « trick » is that Sony has left annual subscriptions untouched.
While monthly and quarterly plans are becoming more expensive, the 12-month subscription keeps the same price.
In other words, Sony isn’t simply raising prices.
It’s nudging players toward long-term commitments.
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And the difference is bigger than most people realize.
Paying Essential month by month now costs nearly €120 per year.
The annual subscription remains around €72 per year.
That’s a gap of almost €48, enough to buy a discounted AAA game during a sale.
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But there’s another detail many players missed.
Existing subscribers are largely protected.
As long as your subscription remains active and you don’t change plans, you can keep your current pricing.
The moment you let it expire, however, the old price disappears.
And getting it back won’t be an option.
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This comes at a particularly sensitive moment for PlayStation fans.
In recent months, Sony has already increased the price of the PS5 in several regions.
Meanwhile:
games are approaching $80–$90,
PlayStation Plus keeps getting more expensive,
and GTA 6 is getting closer every day.
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The gaming industry spent years convincing players that subscriptions were the future.
Now those subscriptions are starting to resemble gym memberships:
the longer you commit,
the better the deal.
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And that’s probably the biggest message hidden behind this price increase.
Sony isn’t just selling access to online gaming anymore.
It’s encouraging players to lock themselves into the PlayStation ecosystem for an entire year at a time.
Because in 2026, loyalty might be worth more to gaming companies than ever before.
