Logitech and Razer dominate the PC gaming mouse market — and e-sports fuels growth

Two PC gaming mice makers count for 71 percent of the market.

EEDAR’s PC Peripheral Market 2015 report looks into consumer preferences for top-tier PC gaming peripherals, and it finds that Logitech G and Razer lead the pack when it comes to gaming mice. The report shows that almost 42 percent of client-based gamers in North America in 2014 use dedicated gaming mice, and that Logitech’s G series is the most popular, counting for 40 percent of the market on its own (that’s about 5.6 million users). The Carlsbad, Calif.-based Razer follows with 31 percent of the market.

No other single peripheral brand accounted for more than 5 percent of this market.

The reasons behind the popularity of these brands are also explored in this report. Logitech’s brand topped the reports ranking of “best value” and “most affordable” in gaming peripheral brands, while Razer ranked over the competition for best aesthetics and most innovation among gaming brands. Razer’s $80 Naga Mouse was named one of the best-known products in the space.

The study also looks into consumer spending on these mice, and it finds that the most common cost came in between $50 and $74, showing that serious gamers are willing to pay for reliability and quality. The second most prevalent bracket was the $25-to-$49 segment, with booth representing 66 percent of gaming mouse ownership in North America.

E-sports attracts mice

The worldwide e-sports market is rapidly expanding, and this is fueling the growth of these gaming-specifc peripheral brands. Professional players battle online in popular games like Riot’s League of Legends or Valve’s Dota 2 for millions in prize money. For this high level of competitive play, only the best, most responsive, and most reliable input devices will do. Many of the popular gaming device brands that make these devices also support tournaments through advertising and corporate sponsorships of both events and teams.

Intelligence firm SuperData Research reports that the e-sports market makes $612 million from its 134 million viewers worldwide. They all come to watch these players win using these brands of peripherals, and are subject to the related advertising and branding, further supporting growth in this segment.