New Essential, Premium, and Ultimate tiers replace Core and Standard, with Ultimate and PC Game Pass seeing big price jumps.
Xbox has revealed a new tier system for Xbox Game Pass, introducing Essential, Premium, and Ultimate plans. The reshuffle replaces Core and Standard without raising their costs, but both Ultimate and PC Game Pass are seeing steep price increases.
Here’s the new lineup:
Essential ($9.99/month – replacing Core, no increase)
- 50+ games
- Playable on PC, console, and cloud
- Unlimited cloud gaming
- In-game perks (including Riot Games benefits)
- Online console multiplayer
- Earn up to $25 yearly in Store credit through Rewards
Premium ($14.99/month – replacing Standard, no increase)
- 200+ games
- Playable on PC, console, and cloud
- New Xbox-published games within a year (excludes Call of Duty)
- Faster cloud queue times
- In-game perks (including Riot Games benefits)
- Online console multiplayer
- Earn up to $50 yearly in Store credit through Rewards
Ultimate ($29.99/month – up 50% from $19.99)
- 400+ games
- PC, console, and cloud play
- 75+ day-one titles per year, including all Xbox-published games day one
- Ubisoft+ Classics and EA Play included; Fortnite Crew added in November (with Ultimate only)
- Top-tier cloud quality and shortest wait times
- In-game perks (including Riot Games benefits)
- Online console multiplayer
- Earn up to $100 yearly in Store credit through Rewards
PC Game Pass ($16.49/month – up 40% from $11.99, no upgrades)
- Day one releases remain
- Otherwise unchanged
Editor’s Take
This price hike undercuts the long-standing argument that digital distribution should be cheaper than physical. It also risks nudging would-be Game Pass subscribers toward building their own PCs or exploring alternatives outside Xbox’s ecosystem. For the sake of ownership and utility, I personally recommend doing so anyway.
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