The new PS5 and Xbox Series X have both been found to consume large amounts of electricity. This is according to a report by the Natural Resources Defense Council, a nonprofit environmental advocacy organization

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According to the organization's findings, annual energy costs will increase for PS5 and Xbox Series X owners over the previous generation; the NRDC estimates that Americans who own an Xbox Series X will pay more than $1 billion in cumulative electricity bills over the next five years

The Xbox Series X and PS5 consume anywhere from 160 watts to over 200 watts of power when in use, which is higher than the previous generation. This varies from title to title, as the more graphics-intensive games have higher wattages. Naturally, older generation games played using backwards compatibility can go as low as 80 watts.

There is a slight difference when comparing the PS5 to the Xbox Series X. The Xbox Series X consumes less than one watt when energy-saving mode is enabled. Unfortunately, it consumes more power in the U.S. because it ships with "Instant On" enabled. 7]

According to the NRDC, "Through 2025, this one seemingly insignificant decision by Microsoft could save the equivalent of one large coal-fired power plant (500 MW) of electricity per year."

According to the NRDC, "Microsoft's decision to enable the "instant on" mode will save the equivalent of one large coal-fired power plant (500 MW) of electricity per year.

(The NRDC does not specify how many Xbox Series X units would need to be sold in the US to reach that level of energy consumption.)

Xbox users would see greater environmental benefits if they switched to energy-saving mode, but doing so would add 10 seconds to the load time when booting the system, according to the NRDC.

Interestingly, streaming content via Netflix or Amazon Prime on a PS5 or Xbox Series X can consume 10 to 25 times more power than using other streaming devices such as Amazon Fire Stick

This is a significant increase in power consumption.

This is because both Sony and Microsoft allow users to quickly switch between streaming and gaming content. This means that while watching Netflix, the game must continue to run in the background.

The NRDC stated that it had "repeatedly" asked both companies to include low-power chips dedicated to video playback, but they seemed to have been ignored.

As for power consumption, the Xbox Series S consumed the least power when streaming content at 31-41 watts; the Xbox Series X came in second at 40-53 watts; the PS5 was the lowest at 68-70 watts. And the PS5 consumed the most power at 68-70 watts.

The NRDC is advocating that Microsoft, at least, send an update to make the Xbox Series X and S energy saving mode the default, as it already is in Europe.

Doing so could potentially save 4 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity in the United States. Of course, consumers could also revert to "instant on" in the settings menu if they so choose.

The NRDC was quick to point to Microsoft's January 2020 statement regarding its commitment to go carbon negative by 2030. This commitment will not only save Xbox owners $500 million in utility costs, but also prevent 3 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions.

The report praised Sony's Rest Mode, in which the console consumed less than one watt in standby mode. However, boot time from rest mode is longer on the PS5, at 10-15 seconds. The PS5 also ships with a rechargeable controller, which eliminates the need to change batteries.

However, the PS5 could be improved to power down faster after the user finishes streaming a movie; the Xbox is smart enough to power down as soon as the movie is over.

The PS5, on the other hand, stays on for at least an hour before going into a low power state; the NRDC encourages Sony to find a solution.