Bottom line: Consumer spending on PC gaming hardware and accessories in the Usa reached $4.5 billion in 2022, an increase of 62 per centum compared to 2022 and more than double the full sales that occurred in 2022. Had inventory shortages and scalpers non been a constant in the latter one-half of 2022, consumer spending on hardware like CPUs and video cards likely would have been even higher.

Co-ordinate to The NPD Group, all hardware and accompaniment categories experienced double-digit growth final year, but information technology was PC headsets, monitors and keyboards that saw the most growth, both in terms of dollars generated and units sold.

Sales of digital PC content, meanwhile, climbed nineteen per centum to $7.5 billion, the firm noted.

Stephen Baker, NPD'due south applied science manufacture advisor, said the pandemic lockdown measures played a role in the growth seen in the segment every bit consumers looked to entertain themselves while at abode. Mat Piscatella, video game industry analyst for The NPD Grouping, echoed those sentiments.

"Over the grade of 2022, there was a significant increase in both the number of PC video game players as well equally the fourth dimension and money those players invested in PC gaming," Piscatella added.

Looking ahead, The NPD Group is expecting to encounter a plateauing of demand at elevated levels for PC gaming hardware and accessories. As such, the grouping is forecasting growth of just three pct in the segment in 2022.

Image credit Gorodenkoff, Ekkaphan Chimpalee