Microsoft has expanded the Xbox Game Pass family plan to six more countries. Folks in Chile, Hungary, Israel, New Zealand, South Africa and Sweden can now sign up for a membership that allows up to five friends and family members in the same country to access Game Pass Ultimate features via a single subscription. This is the first expansion of the Xbox Game Pass Friends & Family plan, which Microsoft debuted in Colombia and Ireland last summer.
There are a few things worth keeping in mind if you’re in one of those countries and you’re interested in the plan, which offers access to a library of hundreds of PC, console and cloud games and has other benefits. The primary account holder will be able to convert their existing plan based on the monetary value of the time they have left. A full month of an Ultimate subscription equates to 18 days of Xbox Game Pass Friends & Family access, for instance. People who are invited to join a group can’t convert their remaining Game Pass time, however. Those with an Xbox All Access payment plan can’t join a friends and family group.
Pricing varies by country. A good rule of thumb is that, based on the conversion rates, a regular Game Pass Ultimate subscription costs about three-fifths as much as the family plan. Given the US Game Pass Ultimate pricing, the family plan costs the equivalent of $25 per month. Split that cost between five people, and that’s just $5 per month per person for Game Pass Ultimate access — around the same price as a single full game purchase each per year.
There’s no sign of Xbox Game Pass Friends & Family plan coming to North America, the UK or elsewhere more broadly just yet. However, it’s clear that Microsoft is interested in getting as many people as possible to sign up for Game Pass in one way or another, so it’s likely the plan will expand to more territories down the line.
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