Game Sub Cost

Xbox Game Pass calculator

Essential, Premium, Ultimate or PC Game Pass: enter what you play and see the cheapest option per year, games included.

Prices verified · source

Choose the country of your subscription account. Prices are local issuer prices, not currency conversions. Enter game costs in the selected currency; amounts reset when you change country. Taxes and eligibility can affect checkout totals.

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Xbox Game Pass prices

Check the listed tiers and billing terms. Use the account-country selector where available for local prices.

Xbox Game Pass · United States · USD
TierMonthly
Essential$9.99
Premium$14.99
Ultimate$22.99
PC Game Pass$13.99

What each tier includes

See what each tier includes, then choose the features you will actually use.

United States · USD

Essential

  • Online multiplayer on console
  • A smaller library of games
  • Cloud gaming for supported games, including selected owned games; currently advertised at 5 hours per month

Premium

  • Everything in Essential
  • Larger library
  • Xbox-published games within a year of launch, excluding Call of Duty; currently advertised cloud playtime of 10 hours per month

Ultimate

  • Everything in Premium
  • Eligible day-one games; future Call of Duty releases excluded
  • EA Play
  • Ubisoft+ Classics
  • Fortnite Crew
  • Currently advertised cloud playtime of 15 hours per month

PC Game Pass

  • PC library
  • Eligible day-one games; future Call of Duty releases excluded on PC
  • EA Play on PC

The examples, price-history entries and FAQ price amounts below refer to the United States. Use the selected country’s table and calculator for local costs.

Break-even, in plain numbers

Only count games available in the tier and on the devices you would use. The day-one input is for eligible releases, excluding new Call of Duty titles. Cloud playtime limits do not apply to downloaded play.

Every Game Pass tier competes with buying games. The calculator adds what you’d spend on games each tier doesn’t cover, so you compare full yearly costs.

At $22.99 a month, Ultimate costs about $276 a year. That’s roughly four $70 launch games. If you’d buy one launch game and play a handful of library games, Premium plus that one purchase is often cheaper. Buy three or more launches a year and Ultimate usually wins.

Free planning worksheets

Use these free printable worksheets to plan spending and make your next subscription decision.

First page of the gaming subscription renewal checklist

FREE PDF · 2 PAGES

Before You Renew

Check your games, billing term and sharing needs before your next renewal.

Cheapest ways to pay for Xbox Game Pass

Review billing choices and other ways to reduce the cost of the membership.

Match the tier to your platform
PC-only players save by choosing PC Game Pass over Ultimate.
Ultimate replaces other subs
Ultimate bundles EA Play and Fortnite Crew. Cancel those separately if you move to Ultimate.
Gift cards and codes
Discounted Xbox gift cards from retailers lower the effective monthly price.
Drop to Essential between big releases
If you only play the library when something new lands, switch down in quiet months.

Sharing and family rules

Check who can use the benefits and where the membership’s sharing limits apply.

Home Xbox
Other accounts on your home Xbox can use the subscription's games and online play.
PC is per account
PC Game Pass works on the subscriber's Microsoft account only.

Trials and discounts

Review trial eligibility and offers before comparing them with the regular renewal cost.

Promotional offers
Microsoft runs occasional discounted first-month offers. There's no permanent free trial.

Cancelling Xbox Game Pass

See how cancellation affects your paid period and which benefits you keep or lose.

Turn off recurring billing in your Microsoft account. Access runs until the end of the period you've paid for.

You keep

  • Games you bought
  • Saves and progress if you resubscribe

You lose

  • Library games
  • Online multiplayer on console
  • Bundled EA Play and Fortnite Crew
Full cancel and refund guide

Price history

Review documented price changes and their sources. An empty log does not mean prices have never changed.

United States · USD

  1. Ultimate · Monthly · US: $29.99 → $22.99Price cutsource
  2. PC Game Pass · Monthly · US: $16.49 → $13.99Price cutsource

FAQ

Find answers to common questions about the costs, features and assumptions covered on this page.

The examples, price-history entries and FAQ price amounts below refer to the United States. Use the selected country’s table and calculator for local costs.

How much is Game Pass in 2026?

In the US: Essential $9.99, Premium $14.99, Ultimate $22.99 and PC Game Pass $13.99 a month. Ultimate and PC Game Pass were cut on April 21, 2026.

Is Game Pass Ultimate worth it?

If you'd buy even one Xbox-published game at launch each year and use EA Play, usually yes. The calculator shows it against the other tiers.

Do I need Game Pass to play online on Xbox?

Yes, for paid games. Essential is the cheapest tier that includes online multiplayer.

Does Game Pass include new Call of Duty games?

Xbox announced that new Call of Duty titles from 2026 will join Ultimate and PC Game Pass during the following holiday season, about a year after launch, rather than on day one.

Is PC Game Pass cheaper than Ultimate?

Yes. If you only play on PC, PC Game Pass covers the same day-one PC releases for less.