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Microsoft Will Put Monthly Cap on Xbox Cloud Gaming Hours for Game Pass Members in November

Microsoft Will Put Monthly Cap on Xbox Cloud Gaming Hours for Game Pass Members in November

Game Pass Ultimate members will get 15 hours of Xbox Cloud Gaming.

Written by Manas Mitul | Updated: 4 September 2026 16:30 IST

Microsoft Will Put Monthly Cap on Xbox Cloud Gaming Hours for Game Pass Members in November

Photo Credit: Microsoft

Xbox Cloud Gaming limits will go into effect in November

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Highlights

Additional Xbox Cloud Gaming hours can be purchased
Cloud Gaming comes with all Xbox Game Pass plans
Microsoft said cost of providing a cloud gaming service had grown

Microsoft is putting a monthly limit on Xbox Cloud Gaming hours for Game Pass members. The cloud gaming service, which earlier came without any usage limits, will come with a monthly cap, starting in November. Xbox cited the growing cost of providing cloud gaming services as the reason behind the move.

From November, Game Pass Ultimate members will get 15 hours of Xbox Cloud Gaming in a month. Monthly cloud gaming hours for Game Pass Premium and Essential subscribers will be capped at 10 hours and 5 hours, respectively.

Once Game Pass members exhaust their monthly cloud gaming quota, they will be able to buy additional cloud playtime through the Xbox Store. Xbox users will be also able to purchase cloud playtime hours and stream select games they own without a Game Pass subscription.

Microsoft Will Launch Disc-to-Digital Feature for Xbox Games Next Week

Xbox said available hours, purchasing options, and cloud gaming features may vary by market. The company will share details on pricing, purchasing additional hours, eligible games, market availability, and how players can check their remaining time in November.

Why is Cloud Gaming Getting a Monthly Cap?

Microsoft said it expected the monthly cloud gaming cap to impact 4 percent of Game Pass subscribers.

“We're introducing this model because the cost of providing cloud gaming grows as more people use it and play for longer,” the company said in an Xbox Wire post.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella Expects Xbox to Return to Growth by End of 2027

“Moving to monthly limits allows us to keep offering the service while continuing to invest in its reliability and performance. We understand that for some players the practical result is a higher cost.

“We'll listen closely to player feedback before and after the change takes effect and share any adjustments we make,” the Xbox parent added.

Xbox Cloud Gaming comes with a Game Pass membership, allowing subscribers on all plans to stream select titles from the Game Pass library, along with select games they own.

Xbox Insiders Can Now Stream Select Owned Games for Free With Ads

Earlier this year, Xbox also began testing a free, ad-supported tier for cloud gaming that lets Xbox Insiders stream select digital games they own without a Game Pass subscription.

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Further reading: Xbox Cloud Gaming, Cloud Gaming, Xbox, Xbox Game Pass, Game Pass, Microsoft

Manas Mitul

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In his time as a journalist, Manas Mitul has written on a wide spectrum of beats including politics, culture and sports. He enjoys reading, walking around in museums and rewatching films. Talk to Manas about football and tennis, but maybe don’t bring up his video game backlog. More