The rise and fall of streaming service prices is a rather vexatious journey we tend to follow closely. In October 2025, Xbox announced price hikes affecting all Game Pass plans, including a frustrating 50 percent increase for the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate tier. Six months laters, the company offers welcome relief to its valued customers. Starting Tuesday, April 21, the cost of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate will drop from $29.99 to $22.99 a month—a nearly 25 percent price decrease. The PC Game Pass will also drop from $16.49 to $13.99 a month.
Xbox announces the price drop just six months after hiking them by more than 50 percent. Just as the price hike was explained with upgrades to tier plans and new in-game features, there must be a reason for the 25 percent decrease. Beginning in 2026, future Call of Duty titles won’t join Game Pass Ultimate or PC Game Pass at launch. Rather, they will join about a year later during the following holiday season. Existing Call of Duty games will remain in the library as is.
The decision was met with mixed reactions from fans. Some are grateful for Xbox listening to their feedback about prices, while others are a tad disappointed about having to wait longer for new titles to be available. In the grand scheme of things, I guess it just depends what you value more: cheaper prices or quicker game drops.
Xbox Game Pass Ultimate is now available for $22.99 a month, saving subscribers $84 a year. The PC Game Pass is down to $13.99 a month.
Price Breakdown Of All Xbox Game Pass Tiers, As of April 2026
- Xbox Game Pass Ultimate – $22.99 a month (down from $29.99 a month)
- Xbox Game Pass Premium – $14.99 a month (same as the old Standard subscription)
- Xbox Game Pass Essential – $9.99 a month (same as the old Core subscription)
- PC Game Pass – $13.99 a month (down from $16.49 a month)