The Real Reason the U.S. Is First in Line for the Xbox Game Pass Price Hike

Microsoft just moved Xbox Game Pass Ultimate into the premium tier for the US and UK first, and yeah, the jump is big. If you live in those two markets, the monthly price is going from $19.99 to $29.99. The timing and rollout are a little wonky, so here is what is actually happening and why the rest of the world is on a slower clock.

The short version

• Price in the US and UK: Xbox Game Pass Ultimate is moving from $19.99/month to $29.99/month, a 50% bump.
• When you actually get charged more: New subscribers start paying the new rate on Oct 1, 2025. Existing subscribers see the higher price on Nov 4, 2025. The change is already locked into Microsoft’s billing system; the higher charges hit on those dates.
• Why not everywhere else yet: Countries like India, Germany, Ireland, Poland, and South Korea have local rules around subscription price changes. Microsoft has to work through that before flipping the switch.
• How the global rollout likely goes: Phased. Priority markets first (US/UK), then regions with trickier regulations. Microsoft has not published a global calendar, but expect other territories to follow within roughly six months after the US pricing settles — give or take, because lawyering takes time.
• Rough timing for other regions: The current chatter pegs Germany, Ireland, South Korea, Poland, and India around mid-2026. That is an estimate, not a promise, and some places could slip longer depending on local approvals.
• Heads-up policy: When Microsoft is ready to raise prices in your country, they say you will get an email about two months before it kicks in.

Why the US and UK are eating the hike first

This is pretty classic: start where the audience is large and has more disposable income, take the heat, measure the fallout, then expand. By pushing the increase in the US and UK now, Microsoft can test consumer tolerance and see the real financial impact in its strongest regions before rolling the new pricing worldwide.

There is also the boring but important part: regulation. Every country handles subscription price changes differently, and that red tape can slow things down. Some markets could take a while, maybe even longer than people expect, which is why you are seeing a staggered plan instead of one big global flip.

So when does everyone else get hit?

Microsoft has not posted an official worldwide schedule. The working assumption: a phased rollout that follows the US/UK updates once those have settled. The best-guess window floating around puts Germany, Ireland, South Korea, Poland, and India somewhere around mid-2026. Just note that these are projections, not confirmed dates. If local regulators want a slower dance, it takes longer.

What the backlash looks like

Microsoft has not shared how many people have actually canceled because of the 50% jump. There was enough churn that the subscription cancellation page reportedly crashed while hundreds of users tried to bail at once. And in an IGN poll with about 41,000 votes, 53.9% said they plan to cancel when the higher price hits. Online polls are not contracts, but that is not a great vibe check.

Is the value still there?

Depends on your backlog and your patience. The Ultimate tier still includes 400+ games in the library and day-one drops for new titles, which is the main reason many will stick around even with the steeper price. But $29.99/month puts it squarely in premium-streaming territory — and at that price, people start counting how often they are actually playing versus just keeping the lights on.