How Much Did the Original Game Boy Cost?
By the Price Time Machine team · Updated
The Game Boy launch price was $89.95 when it launched in North America on July 31, 1989, with Tetris in the box. Adjusted for inflation, that is about $243.63 in September 2026 money, roughly 2.7 times the original price.
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Game Boy at a glance
- US launch price
- $89.95
- In today’s money
- ≈ $243.63July 1989 to September 2026 (CPI-U, BLS)
- US release date
- July 31, 1989
- Where it was designed
- Kyoto, JapanDesigned by Gunpei Yokoi and Nintendo R&D1 in Kyoto, Japan.
- Category
- Gaming & tech
- Price source
- en.wikipedia.org
Today’s price is the US launch price adjusted for US inflation with the Consumer Price Index (CPI-U) from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, comparing the launch month with the latest published month. It updates automatically as new figures come out.
Why the Game Boy was so cheap
Nintendo deliberately chose simple, proven parts: a green-tinted black-and-white screen and an 8-bit processor. Rival handhelds had colour screens but cost more and ran through batteries quickly. The Game Boy ran for hours on four AA batteries.
Nintendo had wanted it to cost ¥10,000 in Japan, but the screen made that impossible, and it launched there at ¥12,500. In America it was backed by a $20 million marketing campaign aimed at making it the must-have holiday present.
The Game Boy launch price in today’s money
Inflation means a dollar buys less today than it did in 1989. Using the US Consumer Price Index, the original Game Boy launch price of $89.95 works out at about $243.63 in September 2026 money, around 2.7 times the original figure. That is what the same amount of spending power would cost now, not what the Game Boy sells for second-hand.
When was the Game Boy released?
- Japan: April 21, 1989
- North America: July 31, 1989
- Europe: September 28, 1990
Where was the Game Boy designed?
It was designed in Kyoto, Japan, by Nintendo Research & Development 1, the team led by Gunpei Yokoi with Satoru Okada. Yokoi had also created the Game & Watch handhelds, and his philosophy was to use mature, low-cost technology in new ways.
Game Boy facts you might not know
- Bundling Tetris helped the Game Boy appeal to adults as well as children.
- The Game Link Cable let two players connect their consoles, which later made trading Pokémon possible.
- The Game Boy and Game Boy Color sold an estimated 118.69 million units together.
- The smaller Game Boy Pocket followed in 1996 for $69.99.
Frequently asked questions
How much was a Game Boy in 1989?
The Game Boy cost $89.95 in North America when it launched on July 31, 1989, and came with Tetris.
How much is $89.95 from 1989 in today’s money?
Adjusted for US inflation, the Game Boy’s launch price is about $243.63 in September 2026 money.
How many Game Boys were sold?
The Game Boy and Game Boy Color sold an estimated 118.69 million units combined.
Want to compare the Game Boy launch price with other launch prices? See what the Nintendo 64 launch cost, browse more famous launch prices, or play this question in Price Time Machine.
Sources
Launch prices and dates are checked against the sources below. Today’s price is calculated from official US inflation data and updates automatically when new figures are published.