Starfield finally landed on PlayStation 5 last week, and guess what? It shot straight to the top as the best-selling game in the US. Even with a bumpy PS5 port that had fans raising eyebrows, Bethesda’s space epic managed to pull off a solid win. This is the first time Starfield has led the US sales charts since its big debut back in September 2023.
PS5 Launch and New Updates Gave Starfield a Serious Boost
The April 7 PS5 release was a big deal, especially since it came with two hefty updates: the free Free Lanes update and the paid Terran Armada expansion. Free Lanes adds fresh weapons, quests, and a new vehicle to spice up space travel, while Terran Armada throws players into a fight against a threatening armada with even more ships and gear.
Todd Howard, Bethesda’s big boss, said these updates are mainly for players who already love Starfield. “If you love Starfield, we think you’re going to love this,” he told Kinda Funny. But the real game-changer here is the PS5 launch itself, which brought the game to a much bigger audience.
Sales Numbers Tell the Story: PS5 Versions Dominated
According to data from Circana and analyst Mat Piscatella, Starfield topped physical and digital full game sales in the US for the week ending April 11. That’s impressive considering it had been nearly seven months since it last led the charts. PS5 sales made up about 95% of the new full game sales that week.
Starfield was the best-selling video game of the week in tracked physical & digital US full game dollar sales during the week ending April 11th. It's the first time Starfield has led the weekly US best-selling titles chart since week ending Sept 2, 2023. Source: Circana Retail Tracking Service
— Mat Piscatella (@matpiscatella.bsky.social) April 20, 2026 at 8:58 PMRhys Elliott from Alinea Analytics estimates that the PS5 launch week saw around 140,000 copies sold. That might seem modest compared to the initial launch, which had over six million players across platforms, but it’s still a strong showing for a game that’s also on Xbox Game Pass.
Player Interest Spiked Across Platforms
Starfield’s player numbers jumped too. On Steam, it moved from 140th to 26th place during PS5 launch week. On Xbox, it climbed from 56th to 18th. It debuted at 61st on PlayStation 5. These jumps show that the PS5 launch and updates reignited interest, even if the port had its share of rough patches.
What’s Next for Starfield? A Steady Climb or Something Bigger?
While the PS5 port wasn’t flawless, Bethesda’s ability to drive sales despite this hiccup is a positive sign. Piscatella calls it a “solid debut” for the PS5 version, but also notes that we’ll have to watch how well Starfield holds up in the weeks to come.
Rumors are swirling about a potential Nintendo Switch 2 release, which could give the game another boost. But Todd Howard cautions that Starfield isn’t likely to reinvent itself to win over those who didn’t connect with it initially. If you liked it, these updates and new platforms are great news. If not, you might still be waiting for Bethesda’s next big thing.
So, despite a rocky start on PS5, Starfield proving it can still shine in sales charts tells us one thing: the space adventure isn’t done making waves just yet.
