Finding a place to buy a PS5 is difficult now, not only because of demand, but also because all the inventory seems to be bought by duffers and their bots. They can move faster than the average person, making it next to impossible to pick up a console.

While it appears that duffers are buying up all the new PS5 consoles as soon as they arrive, this may not be the case. According to new estimates, that number is about 10-15% in the US.

These numbers come from Michael Driscol of the DEV community. He surveyed aftermarket retail sites using a method designed to avoid the most obvious fake listings. That is, no listings that did not sell, sold for less than the suggested retail price, or included phrases such as "picture," "paper," or "box only," which indicate that the item is a fake listing.

Driscoll noted that VGChartz claimed that 2,067,000 PS5 consoles had been sold in the US by January 16. To put that in perspective, the data he found indicates that 7.06% of PS5s in the US were resold on eBay and StockX, with another 3-8% sold on OfferUp, Facebook Marketplace, and Craigslist

. However, we have some idea of how many consoles are being sold by duffers.

Interestingly, according to Driscol's data, 40% of sellers sold one or two PS5 consoles. Nevertheless, it appears that more than 35% of sellers are "true" duffers, selling five or more consoles. The remaining 25% are somewhere in between.

As for prices, on average, PS5 digital editions appear to sell for $799, which is 200% of the MSPR of $399. On the other hand, the more expensive disc-based $499 PS5 sells for $849, or 170% of MSRP. Nevertheless, at the peak of the post-launch period, both models were trading at about $300 above retail, meaning that aftermarket prices are coming down.

Considering how problematic the launch of the PS5 (and Xbox Series X) was, 10% seems like a pretty small number. Especially since scalping groups tend to brag about their track record and grab inventory before it becomes available.

Of course, this does not take into account consoles that have been bought by duffers and not yet sold, so there may be inventory of consoles that cannot be accounted for in this analysis.

It may still be a long time before Sony floods the market and makes the PS5 available to everyone who wants one. But the longer they wait for the duffers to get rid of their inventory, the less likely they are to make a profit.

It is worth reiterating that buying from scalpers is not a good idea. They buy up inventory because there is a demand for it, i.e., shifting consoles is a money-making opportunity for them. If people stop buying them, they will stop hoarding consoles. That's assuming they actually sent you the consoles and the listings weren't some sort of scam.

So don't buy from duffers, be patient and get your PS5 from a retailer at the standard MSRP. Check out our guide on where to buy PS5 for the latest inventory information. And for quicker alerts, check out our list of top Twitter accounts for inventory checks.