Ask which console holds its value better and you will get a confident answer from almost everyone, usually the one they own. The actual numbers are more interesting than the loyalty.
The numbers, first
Put the live figures side by side and the Series X comes out ahead of every PlayStation except the Pro, which is not what most people expect given how the two sold. You can check that yourself: the Xbox Series X page and the PS5 page both read from our pricing system, so the comparison is current rather than whatever was true when this was written.
The Series X is currently the strongest holder of value of any mainstream home console we buy, including consoles that cost more new.
Why, when the PS5 outsold it everywhere?
Partly supply. Far fewer Series X consoles were sold in South Africa, so the second-hand pool is much smaller, and a small pool with steady demand supports a higher price. Scarcity does not care which console reviewed better.
Partly Game Pass. The Xbox ecosystem's value proposition survives being second-hand better than a library of PlayStation disc exclusives does, because a used Series X plus a subscription is an immediately complete package rather than a console that needs a shopping list.
And partly the disc drive. South African gamers still buy and trade physical games at a much higher rate than markets with cheaper, faster internet, and every disc console is worth more here than the global averages suggest.
Where the PlayStation wins
Consistency and liquidity. There are far more PS5s in the country, so they sell faster and more predictably, and there is essentially always a buyer. If you want a quick, certain sale rather than the highest possible number, PlayStation is the easier console to move.
The PS5 range also has more rungs. Original, Slim, Digital and Pro means there is something at almost every price point, which keeps the whole family moving.
What this means if you own both
If you have a Series X gathering dust, it is currently worth an unusual amount and that is not guaranteed to last. Scarcity premiums are the first thing to disappear when a successor is announced.
If you have a PS5 gathering dust, it is worth less, but it is also the easier sale, and the depreciation curve on it is gentler month to month because it started lower.
Either way, the console you are not playing is the one to sell, and the brand argument is a distraction from that.
The short version
Right now the Xbox Series X holds its value better in South Africa, mostly because far fewer were sold here. The PS5 sells faster and more predictably. If you own one you no longer play, the brand comparison is interesting but irrelevant: the number only goes down from here on both.