How to Share Xbox Game Pass with Family and Friends (2026)

Short answer: to share Game Pass, make your Xbox console your home Xbox. Then anyone who signs in to that console with their own profile can use your Game Pass subscription, even when you are not signed in. On any other Xbox, your Game Pass is shared with everyone on that console while you stay signed in.

This guide shows how to share Game Pass with family and friends on Xbox, how to set your home Xbox, what is shared and what is not, and the limits you need to know. Everything comes from Xbox Support, checked in October 2026.

• At home: set your main console as your home Xbox
• Who can play: anyone who signs in to your home Xbox
• On the go: share on another Xbox while you are signed in
• Limit: one home Xbox, switch up to 5 times a year
• Not shared: some in-game currency and one-time bonuses

How Game Pass sharing works

Xbox gives Game Pass members two ways to share their subscription with friends and family (Xbox Support):

• At home: make your main Xbox your home Xbox. Anyone who signs in to that console with their profile can use your Game Pass subscription.
• On the go: sign in on any other Xbox, for example at a friend’s place, and your Game Pass subscription is shared with everyone on that console as long as you are signed in.

So one Game Pass subscription can cover the whole family on one console. Each person still plays with their own Xbox profile, so they keep their own saves, achievements and friends list.

That makes Game Pass much cheaper per person. Game Pass Ultimate costs $22.99 a month in the US; shared by four people on one home Xbox, that is under $6 each. The same subscription bought four times would cost almost $92 a month.

How to share Game Pass: set your home Xbox

Xbox’s steps to make a console your home Xbox (Xbox Support):

1. Sign in on the console with the account that has Game Pass.
2. Press the Xbox button on your controller to open the guide.
3. Select Profile & system > Settings > General > Personalization.
4. Select My home Xbox.
5. Select Make this my home Xbox.

When you add your account to a new console and do not choose “Lock it down” during setup, Xbox automatically makes that console your home Xbox. Upgraded from Xbox One to Xbox Series X|S? Make sure you set the new console as your home Xbox.

What you can share on your home Xbox

Xbox says anyone who signs in to your home Xbox can use:

• Games and downloadable content you bought from the Microsoft Store.
• Games from your Xbox Game Pass subscription.

A family member can play your games when you are not using the console: they just sign in with their own Xbox profile. Your home Xbox also lets you play your digital games offline, for example during an internet or service outage.

What you cannot share

Some account-specific items cannot always be shared, even on your home Xbox. Xbox gives these examples:

• Game-specific content bought with in-game currency, such as Minecraft Skin Mashups or Halo REQ Packs.
• In-game currency, such as Minecraft Coins.
• Some pre-order bonuses and special edition content that can only be redeemed once.

If a family member wants to buy in-game items, they should use their own account and wallet. When you share Game Pass, you share the games, not your money.

Share Game Pass on a second console

You can only have one home Xbox at a time. But Xbox says you can download, play and share your digital games on any Xbox console without switching your home Xbox. On the second console, everyone can enjoy your games as long as you are signed in and the console is online.

This is useful if you have an Xbox in the living room and another in a bedroom. Make the console the family uses most your home Xbox, and sign in on the second one when you want to share there too.

Switching your home Xbox: the 5-per-year limit

You can switch your home Xbox up to five times in any one-year period (Xbox Support). If you reach the limit, the My home Xbox screen shows the next date you can change it. Xbox says customer support cannot give you extra switches.

When you switch, your shared games are no longer available to others on your old home console unless you are signed in there and online. Offline play also moves to the new home console. Xbox never changes your home Xbox for you, but if you reset a console and remove everything, set it again.

Example: one Game Pass for a family of four

Say a parent has Game Pass Ultimate and the family has one Xbox Series X in the living room. The parent sets that console as their home Xbox. Now each child signs in with their own profile and can download and play any Game Pass game, even when the parent is at work. Everyone has their own saves and achievements, and the family pays for one subscription instead of several.

If the parent takes an Xbox Series S on holiday and signs in there, the people on that console can also play the parent’s Game Pass games while the parent stays signed in. Back home, the living room console keeps sharing as before, because it is still the home Xbox.

Share Game Pass with family: set up profiles

To share Game Pass on your home Xbox, every person signs in with their own Xbox profile, which is a free Microsoft account. Add each person to the console from the profile menu. Do not let others use your own profile: they could buy things with your payment methods or change your settings.

For children, a parent can manage their accounts, screen time and spending through Microsoft’s family settings. Game Pass sharing still works the same way: the child signs in with their own profile on the home Xbox.

What happens to Game Pass sharing when your plan ends?

Sharing only works while your Game Pass subscription is active. If it ends, nobody on your home Xbox can play the Game Pass games any more, including you. Games you bought yourself stay shared on your home Xbox. To keep everyone playing, renew before the end date or redeem a new code on the same account.

Game Pass sharing not working? Check these

• Is the console really your home Xbox? Open My home Xbox in Settings and check. After a full reset, you must set it again.
• Is your Game Pass active? Check your subscriptions on your Microsoft account.
• Did you switch home Xbox recently? Shared games then move to the new console. On the old one, you must be signed in and online.
• On a second console: you must be signed in and the console must be online.
• Is it an in-game item? In-game currency and some one-time bonuses cannot be shared.

Game Pass sharing tips for families

• Give everyone their own profile. Each person keeps their own saves and achievements, and still uses your Game Pass on the home Xbox.
• Choose the right console as home. Pick the Xbox your family uses most, because others can play there even when you are away.
• Do not share your password. Home Xbox sharing works without anyone else signing in to your account.
• Use the switch limit wisely. Five switches a year is enough for a new console, but not for moving back and forth every week.
• Check your region before you buy a code. See how to check your account region.

Which Game Pass plan is best for sharing?

Home Xbox sharing works with your Game Pass subscription on console. Game Pass Ultimate gives the biggest library to share, with 500+ games and new games on day one. Our guide to Game Pass Essential vs Premium vs Ultimate compares the plans, and Game Pass Ultimate perks lists everything Ultimate includes.

Get Game Pass Ultimate from IQSIX

IQSIX sells a 3-month Xbox Game Pass Ultimate code for US Microsoft accounts. Redeem it on the account you use on your home Xbox, and the whole family can play.

• Delivery: after your payment is confirmed, we send the code by email.
• Redeem: see how to redeem a Game Pass code.
• Payment: crypto, card, or a Remitly bank or mobile money transfer at checkout.
• Region: it is a USA code, so your Microsoft account region must be the United States.

Share Game Pass FAQ

Sources, checked 18 October 2026: Xbox Support: sharing your Game Pass subscription, How home Xbox and game sharing work and xbox.com Game Pass.