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How to Cancel Xbox Game Pass Step-by-Step

Hey there! If you‘re looking to cancel your Xbox Game Pass membership, I‘ve got you covered. As an avid gamer and tech specialist, I‘ll be providing a complete walkthrough on how to cancel in just a few quick steps.

A Quick History First

Before jumping in, let me give you some background. Xbox Game Pass first launched in 2017 as part of Microsoft‘s big push into subscription gaming services. The idea was to provide a "Netflix for games" that gave players access to 100+ Xbox titles for one low monthly price.

Over the years, Xbox Game Pass has grown tremendously:

Year - Subscribers  
2017 - 1 million
2019 - 5 million
2022 - 25+ million

For comparison, competitor service PlayStation Plus has about 45 million subscribers as of 2022. So Xbox Game Pass is giving Sony a real run for its money!

The service has also massively expanded its game catalog since launch:

Year - # of Games
2017 - 100+ games
2022 - 400+ games

And that catalog includes smash hits like Halo Infinite, Forza Horizon 5, and Starfield the day they release at no extra cost.

There are now also various membership tiers to choose from:

Tier........Price..........Benefits
Console.....$9.99.........100+ Xbox/Cloud games
PC............$9.99.........100+ PC games 
Ultimate.....$14.99.......Console, PC & Cloud gaming

So in summary – Xbox Game Pass provides tremendous value. But you still may eventually want to cancel. Let‘s get into it…

Why Cancel Xbox Game Pass?

Before I show you how to cancel though, let‘s discuss why you might want to. A few common reasons include:

  • You need to cut back on expenses
  • You don‘t have as much time to play anymore
  • You want to try a different gaming subscription like PlayStation Plus
  • You primarily play online multiplayer games (which don‘t require Game Pass)

For example, my friend Mark canceled recently as work got busier. The vast Game Pass library was going untouched, so he unfortunately had to say goodbye to save some cash. 😢

But every situation is unique – maybe you just want to temporarily cancel and could resubscribe down the road!

Either way, let‘s get that membership canceled…

How to Cancel on Your Xbox Console

Cancelling Xbox Game Pass directly through your Xbox One or Series X/S console is quick and painless:

Step 1) Press the Xbox button on your controller to open the guide and select your profile icon in the top left:

Select profile icon

Step 2) In your profile screen, select "Subscriptions":

Choose Subscriptions

Step 3) Under "Active", select your Xbox Game Pass subscription:

Pick Game Pass Membership

Step 4) Finally, scroll down and select "Cancel subscription":

Hit Cancel Subscription Button

Following these steps will immediately cancel your membership so it does not renew at the end of the billing cycle. Nice and easy!

Cancelling Through Microsoft‘s Website

Alternatively, you can cancel your Xbox Game Pass through Microsoft‘s online account portal:

Step 1) Visit account.microsoft.com and sign-in to your Microsoft account

Step 2) Click your profile picture > Subscriptions underneath your account email

Step 3) Click "Manage" next to your Xbox Game Pass membership

Step 4) On your plan page, click the "Cancel subscription" button > Confirm cancellation

Same deal – this cancels your membership directly through Microsoft to prevent auto-renewal. I know, so easy you could train a monkey to do it! 🐒

What Happens After Cancellation?

Once canceled, here‘s what you can expect:

  • You immediately lose access to any downloaded Xbox Game Pass games
  • You can no longer download or play titles from the membership library
  • The subscription stops billing at the end of the current billing period
  • Your Xbox Live Gold or Xbox/PC Game Pass Ultimate plans will remain active unless canceled separately

For example, my buddy Rahul had played tons of Game Pass games like Ori, Hades and No Man‘s Sky over the last year. But with his cancellation, poof! – those downloaded games vanished instantly.

The good news is you can always resubscribe later to regain access if you change your mind down the road!

Common Questions

Let me wrap up by answering some frequently asked questions:

Is it easy to cancel Xbox Game Pass subscription?

Absolutely! Whether on your Xbox or Microsoft‘s site, you can cancel in just a few clicks with no penalties.

Can I cancel Xbox Game Pass anytime?

Yep! You can cancel immediately and just lose access when your billing cycle wraps up.

What happens to my downloaded Xbox Game Pass games if I cancel?

Sadly, all downloaded Game Pass games will no longer work once you cancel your membership.

Hopefully I‘ve made the cancellation process crystal clear! Let me know if any other questions come up.

Let‘s Recap

We covered a ton of ground here! To quickly recap:

  • Xbox Game Pass provides access to 400+ Xbox + PC games for a monthly fee
  • Reasons you might want to cancel include cost savings or lack of use
  • Cancelling through your Xbox console takes just 4 simple steps
  • You can also cancel via the Microsoft account website by managing your membership
  • Loss of downloaded games and billing are the main post-cancellation effects

And that‘s a wrap! Let me know if this guide to canceling Xbox Game Pass helped you out. Feel free to reach out with any other gaming questions. Game on! ✌️

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