Xbox Game Pass Ultimate tip: How to get 3 years of access to hundreds of games for dirt cheap
This incredible deal is still possible, but who knows how long it’ll stick around.
Currently gamers can pay just $1 for access to hundreds of titles across PC and Xbox via Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass Ultimate ( go.pcworld.com/xfaq) service— but don’t activate that insanely cheap onemonth trial just yet. You can lock in up to three years of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate with that same dollar ( go.pcworld.com/gpul) if you play your cards right.
When you activate Microsoft’s promotion, it not only begins the trial, but also converts existing Xbox Live Gold and standard Xbox Game Pass subscriptions on your account to Game Pass Ultimate (normally $15 per month) at a 1:1 rate. Any prepaid time up to the maximum of three years gets the upgrade.
If you have only three months of Xbox Live Gold or Xbox Game Pass (or a combination of the two) on your account, you’ll end up with
three months for your Game Pass Ultimate subscription, plus the additional one month from the trial tacked on. Equally, 36 months of prepaid time transforms into Xbox Game Pass Ultimate for a full three years.
Multiplatform gamers obviously gain quite a bit from this deal, as Game Pass Ultimate bundles together Xbox Live Gold, Xbox Game Pass, and Xbox Game Pass for PC ( go.pcworld.com/ gapc). You’ll get unlimited access to a full range of titles across platforms, including upcoming Halo, Gears of War, and other Microsoft first-party game releases on PC.
But even gamers who play exclusively on PC benefit: Though Xbox Game Pass for
PC only initially cost $5 per month, that price lasted only through the beta period, which ended September 16, 2020 ( go. pcworld.com/sp16).
Loading up an account with three years of Xbox Live Gold ($180) and then converting it to Game Pass Ultimate for an additional $1 essentially locks in that $5-per-month rate for three years, which outlives the beta period pricing by a long shot. (You should be able to do this conversion trick if you participated in the
Xbox Game Pass for PC beta.)
Afterward, you can still convert Xbox Live Gold and Xbox Game Pass memberships to Game Pass Ultimate, but at a prorated amount ( go.pcworld.com/xfaq).
Read on for a step-by-step guide of how
to secure this deal, which includes tips on how to maximize your savings.
CONVERT XBOX LIVE GOLD (OR XBOX GAME PASS) TO XBOX GAME PASS ULTIMATE STEP 1
Decide how long you want Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. To make the most of the deal, get as close to three years of Xbox Live Gold (or Xbox Live Gold + standard Xbox Game Pass) as possible, which is the maximum amount of time you can prepay.
Add months to an Xbox Live Gold subscription using digital subscription codes purchased from Microsoft or another retailer (Amazon [ go.pcworld.com/xbam], Newegg [ go.pcworld.com/xbnw], etc.). Increase the time on Xbox Live Gold, not standard Xbox Game Pass, because it’s the cheaper option.
Note: Microsoft discontinued selling 12-month Xbox Live Gold subscriptions on its website during the summer of 2020, but third-party retailers (like Amazon [ go.pcworld. com/glam], Target [ go. pcworld.com/gltg], etc.) still sell them for now.
Also do so in the largest increments possible—a 12-month code for Gold works out much cheaper per month than the onemonth, three-month, and six-month varieties. When purchasing codes, always remember that Microsoft’s servers won’t let you redeem a code for a duration that exceeds the 36-month cap. (Example: You’re at 34 months, but attempt to redeem a three-month code. The servers will not let you activate it.)
Warning: If you buy three 1-year subscriptions, do not turn on recurring billing while redeeming the codes. Any extra freebie months you get for doing so will make it impossible to redeem the final code.
Also note that short multiday trial codes for Xbox Live Gold won’t work for this promotion (e.g., three-day or 14-day codes).
Tips:
Don’t forget that this Game Pass Ultimate $1 promotion includes one month of service that stacks on top of whatever amount of Xbox Live Gold or Xbox Game Pass subscription time you convert. You won’t get the full month if it puts you over the 36 month cap, though.
When redeeming an Xbox Live Gold digital subscription code ( go.pcworld.com/ xbsd), agreeing to recurring billing will give you an additional one month for free. If you turn off recurring billing ( go.pcworld.com/ rcbl) before redeeming your next code, you can continue to take advantage of this bonus. (Don’t do this if you are redeeming three 1-year codes—the system will refuse to let you redeem the final code because it’ll put you over the limit.)
To verify you’ve turned off recurring billing, head to the Services & Subscriptions ( go.pcworld.com/rcbl) section of your account info. Under “Xbox Game Pass Ultimate,” you’ll see an expiration date for your subscription, and the option to the right will say “Turn on recurring billing.”
Microsoft Reward members ( go. pcworld.com/mrew) with point balances of 30,000 or more should also check to see if the 12-month option for Xbox Live Gold exists for them. Nothing’s sweeter than a free way to max out a deal.
Buying discounted codes will further your savings. Costco ( go.pcworld.com/cost) is the best for people who have a membership and need either a 12- ( go. pcworld.com/12cs) or 24-month ( go. pcworld.com/24cs) code, while Cdkeys ( go. pcworld.com/cdky) offers a modest discount available to everyone and sells 1- ( go. pcworld.com/1cdk), 3- ( go.pcworld. com/3cdk), 6- ( go.pcworld.com/6dck), and 12-month ( go.pcworld.com/12cd) codes.
Before buying any digital subscription codes, incorporate any of the above freebies or bonuses you can obtain into your calculations.
Example: You need 27 months to max out. (You already have 6 months of Xbox Live Gold and 3 months of Xbox Game Pass active on your account.) As a Costco member who also has a surplus of Microsoft Reward points, you can choose to buy a 24-month code and then use the points to obtain a single 1-month code. You will then get one bonus month by choosing recurring billing when you redeem the code, and then an additional month when at last activating the $1 Game Pass Ultimate trial.
Alternatively, you can buy two separate 12-month codes and
redeem each of them using the recurring billing trick to get two additional bonus months. The $1 Game Pass Ultimate trial will then tack on the final month needed to hit a total of 27.
STEP 2
Activate your Xbox Live Gold codes. Again, as your final reminder, if you have three 1-year subscription codes for Xbox Live, do not agree to recurring billing in order to redeem your final code.
If you are using a patchwork of different codes, triple-check your math to be sure you know how many times (if any) you need to agree to recurring billing.
Oops: Did you have three 1-year XBL Gold codes and accidentally make it impossible to redeem that final code? You can either wait a month or two before redeeming code #3, or wait to activate it after you upgrade to Game Pass Ultimate. You will then be able to redeem it on a prorated basis to extend your Ultimate subscription.
STEP 3
Activate the $1 Xbox Game Pass Ultimate trial ( go.pcworld.com/gpul). (You can also do so via the Store on an Xbox One console.)
You will have two screens to pass through. The first, shown at right, explains how the conversion works if you already have an active Xbox Live Gold or Xbox Game Pass. (Which you should, if you followed Step 2’s instructions.)
The second that follows will ask for billing information, in order to process the $1 charge for the one-month Game Pass
Ultimate trial.
You should now see “Xbox Game Pass Ultimate” listed under Services and Subscriptions on your Microsoft account page. By default, your Game Pass Ultimate subscription will be set to recurring billing. We suggest you turn this off, lest you be taken by surprise when your subscription expires (especially if that’s three years from now). You can do so by clicking on Manage just to the right of the billing information.
Outside of that, you’re set to go. Enjoy!