Saving Money on Game Pass Ultimate

While we are absolutely convinced that Game Pass is worth the investment, the costs can add up quickly. Between Netflix, HBO, Disney+, and Spotify, subscription fatigue is real, and there always comes a moment in the year when you have to decide which services to cut.

To help you manage your budget, we’ve rounded up three tips to save money on Game Pass. The first ones you can find in this article, but it gets even more interesting from now on.

The Ultimate Conversion Trick (Yes, It Still Works!)

What is the conversion trick? It used to be the absolute holy grail for Xbox gamers because you could convert cheap Xbox Game Pass Core time to Game Pass Ultimate at a flawless 1:1 ratio. When this first blew up, many thought it was an illegal exploit, but Microsoft actually officially supports it on their website.

The trick still works today, though the math has changed and it isn't an easy fix. The conversion ratio from Essential to Ultimate is now 100:45, meaning your remaining days will be cut slightly more than in half. However, if you know you want Game Pass Ultimate for the foreseeable future, this method will still save you money. But please, be careful the first time you try this trick, and do this at your own risk.

To make sure the trick succeeds, you must follow these rules:

• Let your current Ultimate subscription fully expire: This trick will not work if you have an active Ultimate subscription. If you redeem Core codes while an Ultimate subscription is still running, Microsoft converts them at a much worse retail-value rate. Your account must be completely clean of Ultimate before you start.
• The 36-month limit: Microsoft strictly limits all subscriptions to a maximum stack of 36 months, which also goes for Essential. Because of the 45% conversion ratio, converting a maxed-out Essential stack will net you roughly 16 months of Ultimate (plus 1 month for the activation code). I did mention this was not an easy fix, and you have to be good at math to get the most out of this trick.
• Buy the right Ultimate code for activation: To trigger the actual conversion, you need to redeem 1 month of Game Pass Ultimate after you have loaded all your Essential codes onto your account. When buying this final month, do not buy a "Trial" or "New Accounts Only" code, as these cannot be applied to accounts with pre-existing days. It must be a standard, regular month of Ultimate.
• Check your region: Always ensure the digital codes you buy match your account's region (e.g., look for "EU" or "Worldwide" tags).

This trick isn't limited to just Game Pass Essential either; you can use other subscriptions as a base. Here are the official conversion rates directly from Microsoft:

Upgrading to Game Pass Ultimate When you upgrade to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, any prepaid time you have on Xbox Game Pass or EA Play subscriptions will convert and apply toward Xbox Game Pass Ultimate at the current conversion ratio, up to a maximum of 36 months.

• Xbox Game Pass Essential: 45% of your remaining time converts to Ultimate (rounded up to the next full day). Example: 90 days of Essential converts to 40 days of Ultimate.
• PC Game Pass: 60% of your remaining time converts to Ultimate. Example: 90 days of PC Game Pass converts to 54 days of Ultimate.
• Xbox Game Pass Premium: 65% of your remaining time converts to Ultimate. Example: 90 days of Premium converts to 59 days of Ultimate.
• Game Pass for Console: 50% of your remaining time converts to Ultimate. Example: 90 days of Game Pass for Console converts to 45 days of Ultimate.
• EA Play: 25% of your remaining time converts to Ultimate. Example: 90 days of EA Play converts to 22 days of Ultimate.

Why does Microsoft allow this? While they haven't issued an official statement regarding this workaround, the reality is that it locks users into the Xbox ecosystem for a long time. To Microsoft, that long-term user loyalty and high subscriber count is incredibly valuable - and it effectively stops gamers from looking elsewhere to scratch their gaming itch.