Console prices are creeping up, but it’s not the systems, it’s the games that get you. As individual game prices inch ever closer to $100, the value to be found in mobile games becomes harder to ignore.

Mobile Games Remain Very Affordable

People established very early on in the life of smartphone app stores that there was only so much they were willing to pay upfront for mobile games. As a result, most games are cheap. When I tap the “purchase the full game” button within a game, I expect the price to be under $10, well within impulse buy range. Most are under $20.

I’m not going to discuss free-to-play games that are supported by ads and ongoing in-app purchases. The most exploitative of these have ruined the image of mobile gaming in the eyes of many console and PC gamers. Thing is, I rarely play any of those. There are more than enough premium options that I can buy outright instead. Plus, I can often get ten games that scratch that Nintendo itch for the price of one Switch 2 title.

Even Identical Mobile Ports Tend to Cost Less

You may think that mobile games are cheaper because they’re not as good, but that isn’t the reason why. You can see this in the reality that when exact ports of cross-platform titles come to Android and iOS, they tend to cost less than they do elsewhere. This can be seen in games like Morphite, which costs $8 in the Play Store but $15 on the Nintendo eShop. Consider Stardew Valley, which is $5 in the Play Store but $15 on the PlayStation Store. Then there’s Dead Cells, which is $9 in the Play Store but $25 on the Xbox Store.

It’s true that these are all ports of indie games that don’t cost $80 to begin with. Still, the fundamental question here is one of saving money. The three aforementioned games would cost me $60 altogether to experience on consoles (when not on sale) but less than $20 if I play them on my phone. And since I can connect my phone to my TV or an external monitor using Samsung DeX, the cheaper option also gives me the most flexibility over where and how I play.

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Play Pass and Apple Arcade Are Perfect for Families

I had planned to buy a Switch 2 at launch, but the announced prices have given me pause. If I were shopping only for myself, that’d be one thing. I could buy a single console, maybe just a couple of games per year, and that would be fine. It’d still be expensive, but it’d be fine. Thing is, I have kids.

Right now, my kids are accustomed to gaming on their Android tablets. Normally this would be a minefield due to all the exploitative apps aimed at kids in mobile app stores, but options like Google Play Pass and Apple Arcade are absolute steals if you’re trying to entertain a family.

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I paid $30 for a full year of Play Pass, and in exchange, the kids and I can play many of the best mobile games without spending any extra money. A bunch of games that I would otherwise not allow my kids to touch because they’re filled with microtransactions suddenly become perfectly playable with all the bonuses unlocked and the ads removed.

Your Existing Netflix Subscription Also Provides Great Games

If you have a Netflix subscription, you also have access to a library of mobile games. Netflix has been offering games for years now, and these days, it’s releasing some of the best mobile titles. We’re not talking lowest common denominator casual filler that all blur together. Netflix funded the development of Monument Valley 3 as a Netflix exclusive. Netflix brought Hades to iPhones. Netflix offers one of the best Sonic games ever made, Sonic Mania Plus.

I’ve been impressed by the company’s taste. Netflix has exposed me to games like Kentucky Route Zero and Oxenfree. These are games I absolutely recommend buying on consoles or PCs, but on phones, you can play them as part of a subscription you may already have. And there are many more where that came from.

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With Cloud Gaming, You Can Take Advantage of Steam Sales

It’s not just mobile games that cost less than their console counterparts. PC games do as well. They may share a similar MSRP, but thanks to regular Steam sales and Humble Bundle deals, you can often get titles for a fraction of the price.

Thanks to NVIDIA GeForce NOW, I haven’t lost access to my Steam games even though I no longer have a PC. When I want more of a AAA gaming experience, I buy the game wherever I can find it cheapest and stream it to my phone (GeForce NOW syncs your games from storefronts such as Steam, Xbox, and Epic). With the exception of Nintendo titles, I rarely feel like I’m missing out.

I get that the cost of game development has gone up, and companies need to turn a profit—but as an individual, I still have to stay within my budget. With the cost of so much else in our lives going up, something has to give.

I don’t want to explain to my young kids why I can’t buy them each an $80 copy of Mario Kart and Pokemon. Mobile gaming, on the other hand, helps us continue to enjoy the hobby without going into debt.