Xbox Game Pass Gets New Tier Names, Price Hikes, and Added Perks in October 2025

Sagar Mankar
4 hours ago
2 min read

Microsoft has revealed a major update to Xbox Game Pass, increasing the price of its Ultimate plan to $29.99 while adding new features, benefits, and rebranded subscription tiers.

Three New Tiers

With the shakeup, Xbox Game Pass now comes in three plans:

Essential – replaces Core (remains $9.99/month).
Premium – replaces Standard (remains $14.99/month).
Ultimate – now $29.99/month, up from $19.99/month. (from £14.99 to £22.99 in U.K.)

Current subscribers will be automatically migrated: Core to Essential, Standard to Premium, and existing Ultimate members staying in Ultimate at the new price.

The PC Game Pass plan, which continues to include day-one Microsoft releases like Call of Duty, has also risen in price, now $16.49 in the U.S. (up from $11.99) and £13.49 in the UK (up from £9.99).

These new prices take effect today, October 1, for new subscribers, and November 4 for existing subscribers.

This marks the second major price hike for the Ultimate tier within just over a year. Back in July 2024, Microsoft increased the U.S. price from $16.99 to $19.99 per month and introduced a Standard tier at the old price, which excluded day-one releases.

What’s New in Ultimate?

So, how does Microsoft justify a 50% price increase? By loading Ultimate with new perks:

Day-one games: Over 75 Xbox releases per year.
Fortnite Crew included: Starting November 18, subscribers get the Fortnite Battle Pass, 1,000 V-Bucks each month, and additional in-game items (a standalone £9.99/month value in the UK).
Ubisoft+ Classics added: Games like Assassin’s Creed and Far Cry (normally £13.98/month in the UK) are bundled at no extra cost.
Cloud gaming boost: Higher-quality streaming, shorter wait times, and Xbox Cloud Gaming’s official exit from beta.

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate ad. Green blocks list features: 400+ games, cloud gaming, in-game benefits. Includes Fortnite, Ubisoft, EA logos.

Microsoft said these changes “reflect the expanded catalog, new partner benefits, and upgraded cloud gaming experience.”

What Does Premium Offer?

At $14.99 a month, Premium offers over 200 games across Xbox consoles, PC, and supported devices. Unlike Ultimate, it won’t include day-one Xbox titles like Call of Duty, but Microsoft said first-party games will still arrive within a year of launch.

Other features include:

Unlimited cloud gaming (including some owned titles).
Riot Games and Ubisoft in-game benefits.
Store rewards: Up to 50,000 points a year, double points on game purchases, and 5% back on select Game Pass titles.

Xbox Game Pass Premium ad with game images, green text boxes highlighting features like 200+ games, cloud gaming, and rewards.

Essential Remains the Entry-Level

Essential, priced at $9.99, is now more robust than the old Core plan. It includes:

A curated library of 50+ console and PC titles.
Online multiplayer.
Unlimited cloud gaming.
Annual Store rewards of up to 25,000 points and 2x points on purchases.

Games like Hades, Cities: Skylines Remastered, Stardew Valley, and Warhammer 40,000: Darktide headline its lineup.

Xbox Game Pass Essential promo with colorful game scenes. Text highlights benefits like 50+ games, PC, console, cloud play, and rewards.

A Costly Year for Xbox Fans

This isn’t the only price pressure Xbox players have faced. Microsoft briefly raised its first-party game prices to $80 before rolling them back to $70. Hardware has also become more expensive, with Xbox consoles seeing a price increase in the U.S. last month.