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It only costs $13 to shortcut the line on the PS5 restock at Walmart this Cyber Monday

Walmart has consoles next week, but you have to pay to beat the bots.

Russell Holly
Russell Holly is a Managing Editor on the Commerce team at CNET. He works with all of CNET to assemble top recommendations as well as helping everyone find the best way to buy anything at the best price. When not writing for CNET you can find him riding a bike, running around in Jedi robes, or contributing to WOSU public radio's Tech Tuesday segment.
Expertise 7 years experience as a smartphone reviewer and analyst, 5 years experience as a competitive cyclist Credentials
  • Author of Taking your Android Tablets to the Max
Russell Holly
2 min read
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Andrew Hoyle/CNET

Walmart's next PS5 restock is coming on Cyber Monday, which is good news for everyone who wasn't able to get one last week. If you want an actual chance at buying a new console, you'll need to do more than just show up and click a buy bottom. In an attempt to keep bots from scooping up all the consoles and ensure customers are focused on it for the holiday, Walmart created an early access paywall and is using its Walmart Plus subscription as the key to get in. 

Paying for the privilege of buying something you should be able to buy anywhere for the same price doesn't feel great. But $13 is a small price to pay if you can get a PS5 this week and increase your chances of having it before Christmas Day. If you only want Walmart Plus to get a PS5, it's not the worst idea in the world to try this out for a month and see how well it increases your chances. If you get a console and don't care about Walmart Plus for anything else, it's pretty easy to cancel, and you're only out $13. 

If you're a regular Walmart shopper, you may consider taking a look at our review of Walmart Plus and see what the regular benefits of this subscription are. If this is the store you do most of your shopping at, there's a lot to like here. It gives you access to all of Walmart's Black Friday deals four hours early, too.

And if you're opposed to paying for the privilege of buying something, respect. Keep an eye on our PS5 restock tracker for more opportunities to get a console soon.

Watch this: Track out-of-stock items with online robots