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Subscription Price Guide

Xbox Game Pass Price History

Verified from official pricing. Last updated: Jul 2026.

Official site

As of Jul 2026, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate costs $22.99/month in the US — up 53% from $14.99 in 2021, across 3 price hikes.

Current Price
$22.99

Ultimate

Total Increase
+53%

Since 2021 ($14.99)

Number of Hikes
3

Major adjustments since 2021

Highest / Lowest
$29.99 Max (2025)
$14.99 Min (2021)

How Has Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Pricing Changed?

$14.99 2021
$14.99 2022
$16.99 2023
$19.99 2024
$29.99 2025
$22.99 2026
202120222023202420252026

When Did Xbox Game Pass Raise Prices?

Every Xbox Game Pass price change on record, 2021–2026, newest first — Old and New are the price just before and after each change, with sources linked.

Xbox Game Pass US price changes, 2021–2026
Date Plan Old Price New Price Change Source
Apr 21, 2026Ultimate$29.99$22.99-23%Xbox Wire
Apr 21, 2026PC Game Pass$16.49$13.99-15%Xbox Wire
Oct 1, 2025Ultimate$19.99$29.99+50%CNBC
Oct 1, 2025PC Game Pass$11.99$16.49+38%Pure Xbox
Jul 10, 2024Ultimate$16.99$19.99+18%Xbox Support
Jul 10, 2024PC Game Pass$9.99$11.99+20%Xbox Support
Jul 6, 2023Ultimate$14.99$16.99+13%Xbox Support
Jul 6, 2023Game Pass for ConsoleRetired$9.99$10.99+10%Xbox Support

Which Xbox Game Pass Plan Should You Get?

Current US pricing as of Jul 2026 — the chart above shows how each plan got here.

Ultimate

$22.99/mo

Best for: playing everywhere — console, PC and cloud, with day-one releases

PC Game Pass

$13.99/mo

Best for: PC-only players — the full PC catalog including day-one releases

Premium (formerly Standard)

$14.99/mo

Best for: console players — a large catalog and online play, without day-one releases

Essential (formerly Game Pass Core)

$9.99/mo

Best for: online multiplayer plus a small rotating game catalog

Xbox Game Pass Pricing FAQ

How much is Xbox Game Pass per month in 2026?
Xbox Game Pass costs $9.99 per month for Essential, $14.99 for Premium, $13.99 for PC Game Pass, and $22.99 for Ultimate in the US. Microsoft cut Ultimate from $29.99 and PC Game Pass from $16.49 on April 21, 2026, reversing most of its October 2025 increase; Essential and Premium were unchanged.
What's the difference between Game Pass Essential, Premium and Ultimate?
Essential ($9.99/month) includes online multiplayer, cloud streaming, and a curated library of around 50 games. Premium ($14.99/month) expands the library to 200-plus titles but excludes most day-one releases. Ultimate ($22.99/month) carries the full 500-plus catalog with day-one first-party releases, EA Play, Ubisoft+ Classics, Fortnite Crew, and the highest-quality cloud streaming.
Why did Xbox Game Pass Ultimate drop back to $22.99?
Microsoft cut Ultimate from $29.99 to $22.99 on April 21, 2026 after the 50% hike of October 2025 drove downgrades and cancellations. Xbox CEO Asha Sharma said Ultimate had become too expensive for too many players. In exchange, new Call of Duty games no longer join Game Pass at launch.
Is Call of Duty still on Game Pass?
Existing Call of Duty titles remain in the Game Pass library, but as of April 21, 2026, new Call of Duty releases no longer arrive on Ultimate or PC Game Pass on day one. Microsoft says future entries will be added about a year after release, around the following holiday season, as the trade-off for Ultimate's price cut to $22.99.
Do you still need Xbox Live Gold to play online?
No. Xbox Live Gold was retired on September 14, 2023 and replaced by Game Pass Core at the same $9.99 per month, which Microsoft renamed Game Pass Essential in October 2025, still $9.99. Every current Game Pass tier, from Essential through Premium and Ultimate, includes online console multiplayer.
What is the cheapest way to get Xbox Game Pass?
Game Pass Essential at $9.99 per month is the cheapest tier, with online multiplayer, a curated library of about 50 games, and cloud streaming. PC-only players get more for less with PC Game Pass at $13.99 per month, which includes a 300-plus game library and day-one Xbox first-party releases.
Does Xbox Game Pass include cloud gaming?
Yes, on every tier since the October 2025 restructuring. Streaming quality scales with the plan: Ultimate ($22.99/month) streams at up to 1440p, Premium ($14.99) at 1080p, and Essential ($9.99) at 720p. Cloud play works on consoles, PCs, phones, tablets, browsers, and supported smart TVs without downloading games.

How We Verify Xbox Game Pass Pricing

Official sources only

Every price change in the log links to Xbox Game Pass’s own pricing page, help-center documentation, or announcement — never estimates or third-party reports.

Recorded as events

Prices are stored as dated change events, and every statistic on this page is computed from that log at build time — displayed numbers can never drift from the sources.

Verified Jul 2026

This page was last checked against Xbox Game Pass’s official pricing and is re-verified whenever a change is announced.

US list prices

All prices are US list prices in USD, before taxes and fees. Promotional rates and app-store markups can differ from the prices shown here.