PC Game Pass

The price on a card tells you nothing until you divide it by the months it buys. That is why you can switch the rates on and see the figure per 1 month on every variant, and sort the full prepaid listing by best rate. Right now on PC Game Pass the three month card comes out clearly ahead of the monthly one, by a wide margin. Stores change prices daily and denominations come and go, so treat this as a snapshot rather than a rule: check the rate on the live offer list before you buy.

We checked it against the catalogue: all 589 PC Game Pass games are also in Ultimate, which holds 743. The step up therefore buys you 154 extra titles, access on an Xbox console and cloud play. If you only game on a computer and have no plans to stream to a phone, the cheaper tier gives you practically the same library of games. That is a rare case where the cheaper option is not a compromise.

Codes marked as trials are meant for new subscribers and will not work on an account that has held the subscription before. Cards described as non-stackable will not add to a running subscription and require it to lapse first. Ordinary codes add time to whatever is already on the account. This is the most common cause of a failed activation, and the variant name sits in the offer description.

The Microsoft Store gives instant activation, key sellers give a lower price. Some subscription cards are tied to a region and will not work on an account registered elsewhere, which is why we only show offers available in your country. For every store we list the payment, delivery and refund terms so you can judge whether the price gap is worth the difference in service.

The Game Pass catalogue rotates and titles do leave it, usually with notice given in advance. Your saves stay on the drive, so if you buy the game later or it returns to the service, you carry on from where you stopped. Games from Microsoft owned studios stay in the subscription permanently, and that is the one category you never have to worry about.