Microsoft has decided to increase the costs for its popular multiplayer network, Xbox Live Gold, which grants subscribers multiplayer access on Xbox titles as well as free games every month. A one-month subscription now costs $10.00, while three-month and six-month subscriptions cost $29.99 and $59.99, respectively. Microsoft notes that this is the first time that Xbox Live Gold has received a pricing increase in over 10 years.
Here’s how the changes break down, per Microsoft:
- If you’re an existing online 12-month or 6-month Xbox Live Gold member, there’s no price change. If you choose to renew your membership, it will renew at your current price.
- The price of a 1-month Gold membership is increasing $1 USD and the price of a 3-month membership is increasing $5 USD or the equivalent amount in your local market.
- If you’d like to upgrade your Gold membership to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate your remaining Gold time will also convert directly to Ultimate (up to 36 months). For example, if you have 11 months of Xbox Live Gold now, and you upgrade to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, those 11 months convert to 11 months of Ultimate at no additional cost.
“Going forward, new pricing will be 1-month for $10.99, 3-months for $29.99, and 6-months for $59.99, or your local market equivalent,” Microsoft confirmed. “You can always visit your account to manage your membership, and prices won’t adjust until at least 45 days after you receive the messages.”