Restocks in the First Week of 2022
Target is building up PlayStation 5 inventory. Walmart is coming due! There will be others, too. Read this article to prepare!
The First Week of January
Things are already looking promising for console-seekers in the US. Last year, January was mostly dry for PlayStation 5 & Xbox Series X - this year it’s different. Target is getting ready for what could be one of their biggest PS5 restocks yet. Walmart is also due for another sale, for both PlayStation 5 & Series X consoles.
Be SURE you’re following me on Twitter for news and INSTANT restock alerts. Have notifications turned on and when there’s a retail restock, I will Tweet with direct links to purchase.
All retailer links are provided in a separate article linked at the bottom of this page!
This article provides an overview for Target & Walmart restocks, tips to give you a better chance at a successful checkout with each of those retailers, and a short reflection about the current state of Xbox Series X availability.
PlayStation 5 Restock This Week - Target
Multiple Target stores are building up a considerable amount of inventory. Even smaller stores may have 50+ consoles. Target Superstores in some regions will have 100+ this week! What does that mean? A restock is going to happen, very soon! So as always, make sure you’re following me on Twitter for instant restock alerts!
A quick, detailed overview of Target restocks:
They restock PlayStation 5 ONLINE, for In-Store Pickup. No shipping!
Restock Timeframe: between 6-9AM Eastern. More often than not, they restock within the 7-8AM ET hour.
The most common restock days: any day Wednesday-Friday, but this can vary! I will Tweet when the restock begins, on ANY date!
The links that direct you to the pages will NOT show consoles until a restock is likely to take place! I Tweet an alert when the consoles appear on the website.
You will likely have to add the PS5 to your cart over & over. You will have to tap/click the “Place Order” button REPEATEDLY to check out.
You can use either the app or PC/website! Many prefer the website but both work. Expect to hit “Place Order” multiple times, whichever application you use - ignore when it says unavailable, just keep trying while the restock is live!
If stock runs out at your Home Store, switch between local stores or enter a Zip Code for a neighboring town if needed! As long as you can drive to pick it up, you can place the order.
That’s a lot of information - but it gives you a good idea of what to expect, and how to increase your odds of successfully placing an order when the online restock starts!
No restock is a guarantee - but it’s guaranteed there WILL be more PS5 retail drops!
Walmart: Coming Due for PS5 and Series X
Walmart hasn’t restocked PlayStation 5 / Xbox Series X consoles since Mid-December. They sold consoles weekly, leading up to that. For the first week of January, it seems Walmart is coming due for more console sales.
Walmart has also been fulfilling many of the console orders from the December restocks over the past week. When they start to catch up on orders, that’s a fair indicator they may be ready to sell stock again.
A quick, detailed overview of Walmart restocks:
They restock online for shipping! So no pickup, in this case!
Restock Timeframe: Common times for Walmart have been 12PM ET and 3PM ET. They could choose either! But these are two of the most frequent hours they choose.
The most common restock days: Walmart often restocks on Monday, Wednesday or Thursday.
Walmart can have a Walmart+ member restock - they can also do a public restock. I’ll let you know in advance: if it’s a member restock there will be a banner indicating that. A Walmart+ membership is $12.99/month or $98/year. There are other benefits to being a member, so make use of it if you sign up!
Walmart now uses a QUEUE system. I’ll provide the console links before the restock, once the restock times are listed on the console pages. Important tips regarding the queue listed below! Read carefully.
Using the PlayStation 5 / Xbox Series X links I provide, I suggest you start to REFRESH your page 30 seconds to one minute BEFORE the restock is scheduled to begin. In one of those refreshes, you will see the QUEUE pop up - with expected wait times provided.
Once you have a wait time, do NOT refresh the page. Just wait. And do NOT have more than one tab in the same browser queued for the exact same console. You can queue for both disc & digital PS5 if available - but NOT two tabs with disc PS5.
There is a common error with the queue that doesn’t have a universal solution: wait times can get stuck. If your queue gets stuck at a specific time, you have options available.
The safest suggestion is to simply wait. BUT. A risky, but potentially useful alternative is to open a separate tab to go to the Walmart Homepage. This CAN give you the option to add to cart, if you’ve been stuck at 1 or 10 minutes in the queue (for example).
But, just as many times that I’ve seen this work, I’ve seen it reset a queue that was stuck at 1 minute back to 10 minutes. So you can try this at your own risk! Again, it can work - but if you want the safest option, you can wait and hope the wait time that is stuck eventually starts to decrease.
Retailer systems for managing console and other in-demand item restocks are FAR from perfect. But reading about them and preparing to the best of your ability will always improve your odds of success!
As with any and all restocks, be sure to have an account set up for the major retailers and have your login & payment information SAVED.
And of course, if you want to be notified the moment a console restock begins - be sure you’re following me on Twitter!
Notes on Xbox Series X Availability
Xbox Series X is becoming more available than it’s ever been. Part of the reason why? The resell value is tanking. This can continue as long as retail restocks keep happening! If you look at StockX (a known resell site, like eBay) - the cost of selling a Series X on the platform after fees results in a break-even payout, or a loss.
(Image below: StockX payout for Xbox Series X as of 1/2/2022)
This is very good news for anybody trying to get a Series X for gaming! What this means is there will generally be LESS competition between you and resellers when the Xbox Series X restocks on retail sites! When there’s less competition, your odds of success improve immediately.
Consider trying for a bit longer if you want an Xbox Series X! If retail drops continue as they have, you can get one. You may not even have to buy a bundle! Also, be SURE to check Target stores regularly because they are able to sell them in person, when they have stock.
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