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Hey friend, here‘s how you can get Xbox Live Gold for free in 2023

I know paying for an Xbox Live Gold subscription just to play games online and access extras can be a real drag. But don‘t worry – with some clever tricks, we can get you Xbox gaming without the ongoing costs.

In this detailed guide, I‘ll explain 10 legit ways to get free Xbox Live Gold membership codes in 2023. I‘ve used all these methods myself to avoid paying full price. So listen up Xbox friend – you‘re about to level up your savings!

Take Advantage of Free Trial Offers

The absolute easiest way to enjoy Xbox Live Gold benefits for zero dollars is to use free trials that Microsoft themselves provide.

See, the folks at Xbox are always looking for sneaky ways to get more people hooked on their subscription services. So they partner with retailers to offer quick 1-month free tastes of Xbox Live Gold.

It‘s kind of like when the neighborhood ice cream shop hands out free samples – the goal is to give you a small experience that leaves you wanting more.

Our job is to just keep collecting those free Xbox Live Gold months without actually spending any of our hard-earned cash to sign up. Here are the best places to score free trials:

Keep an Eye on the Microsoft Store

The Microsoft Store is constantly adding new Free Gold Weekend and Free Gold Month trial offers all year round.

But they don‘t exactly advertise them – you have to dig a little.

Here are the steps I use to find them:

  • Go to microsoft.com/en-us/store

  • Search for “Xbox Live Gold”

  • Scan the page for any messaging about a free trial

  • If you see it, click “Start free trial” and enter your Xbox account info

Then boom – you‘ve got 1 month of full Xbox Live Gold access for $0.00.

Just be sure to set a reminder to cancel before they start charging you!

Look for Retailer Game Bundles

Major retailers like Amazon, Best Buy and GameStop are also in on the "dosing strategy."

They partner with Xbox to offer free 1-month Gold trials when you buy certain games.

So for example, if you purchase a new copy of Madden 23 for Xbox Series X at GameStop, it may come with a free month code printed on the receipt.

Keep an eye out for these special new game bundles – they can help you stock up on free Gold months.

Pro Tip: Buy games that include free trials as gifts for friends and family. Then ask them nicely to just send you the free Gold code from inside since you bought it 😉

Play Giveaway Games

Okay, getting free Xbox stuff through giveaways does require some effort. But it works!

Here are the best ways to find and win free Xbox Live Gold codes:

  • Follow @Xbox on Twitter – They are constantly giving away 1-month and 14-day free trial codes to random followers. Turn on tweet notifications so you see them right away and can enter!

  • Enter gaming site contests – Big sites like GameSpot and IGN have Xbox giveaways all the time. Enter as many as you can -throw enough spaghetti at the wall and something will stick.

  • Look for brand promotions – Energy drinks, snack companies and movies sometimes give away Xbox content to promote stuff. Search for #giveaways on Instagram and Twitter and enter anything Xbox related.

  • Use rewards apps – Apps like Swagbucks have tons of sweepstakes with Xbox codes as prizes. You can get bonus entries to increase your chances.

  • Join Xbox FanFest – It‘s a free Xbox app that gives you access to members-only contests and content. I‘ve won $50 in Xbox gift cards from their giveaways!

Follow enough accounts, set up email alerts, and enter as many giveaways as you can. It‘s a numbers game – but you can stack up a ton of free 1-month Gold codes doing this.

Cash in Microsoft Rewards Points

Microsoft gives away Xbox stuff in exchange for…using Microsoft products. It‘s kind of genius really.

Here‘s how to use Microsoft Rewards to get free Xbox Live Gold:

Step 1: Sign up at microsoftrewards.com

Step 2: Earn points by:

  • Using Bing search engine

  • Taking surveys

  • Playing quizzes

  • Making Microsoft Store purchases

Step 3: Stack up rewards points until you have enough for a 1-month or 3-month Xbox Live Gold code

Step 4: Go to Rewards and redeem your points for a free Gold membership code!

I like to earn points doing PC and Xbox searches using Bing when I‘m bored. It adds up faster than you‘d think!

Here‘s a table showing how many points you need for different amounts of free Xbox Live Gold:

Xbox Live Gold TermPoints Needed
1 Month5,250 points
3 Months10,500 points
6 Months26,000 points
12 Months58,000 points

A little Binging & polling goes a long way!

Trade Gift Cards for Xbox Credit

Got any unused Amazon, Starbucks, Target gift cards sitting around? Turn them into Xbox Gold!

Sites like CardCash let you trade-in or sell gift cards you won‘t use for cash or store credit.

I recently traded a $25 Chili‘s gift card (that was just gathering dust) for $20 in Microsoft credit.

I used that to get a 1-month Xbox Live Gold membership for just $4 out of pocket. A $21 value for $4 – score!

You can trade gift cards for around 60-90% of face value. Not bad!

Look around for unwanted cards – your past self‘s loss can be your future gaming‘s gain.

Split Up a Family Membership

Sharing is caring when it comes to saving on Xbox Live Gold.

The Xbox Live Gold Family plan lets you share a subscription with up to 4 other friends or family for WAY cheaper.

Just $24.99 per year – or about $2 month per person!

To set it up:

  1. Form an Xbox “family group” at family.microsoft.com

  2. Have the family manager buy the Family Gold plan

  3. Assign the membership access to the other members

As long as you‘ve got 4 other people to go in on it, that comes out to less than $5 per person annually. Now that‘s a friend price!

Of course, you‘ve all got to fully trust each other since you‘re sharing an account. But for a tight circle of gaming pals, it‘s a steal.

Pounce on Discount Deals

Real friends help friends save money!

While getting Xbox Live Gold for free is ideal, taking advantage of sweet discounted deals is the next best thing.

Here are some tips for scoring Xbox Live Gold at a steep markdown:

  • Look for big sitewide sales like Black Friday, Cyber Monday and the Microsoft Store‘s annual holiday sale

  • Follow @Wario64 – he‘s a master at tweeting Xbox and gaming promos

  • Check discounts at retailers like Amazon, Best Buy, Target, and Newegg

  • Buy deeply discounted Xbox Live Gold codes from sites like Eneba, CDKeys and G2A (use at your own risk)

  • Upgrade to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate – this bundles Gold with Game Pass for just $5 more per month

Using these tricks, you can easily save $5-15 on a year of Xbox Live Gold access. That‘s pretty legit!

Do Some Side Quests

Now look, getting free Xbox stuff through survey sites and other programs is more grind than side quest.

But I promise it‘s worth it in the end!

Swagbucks, InboxDollars, MyPoints and others literally pay you to:

  • Take surveys

  • Sign up for websites

  • Play games

  • Watch videos

  • Online shop through their portals

The cash out earning potential is real if you have some time to kill.

You can easily earn a few $10 Xbox gift cards per month which really adds up.

Table time is money time with these apps!

Ask for Xbox Gift Cards

Hey, you gotta ask for what you want in this world right?

So when your next birthday or holiday comes around, be sure to populate your wish list with:

  • Xbox Live Gold subscriptions

  • Xbox Gift cards

  • Cash to put towards Xbox stuff

Most friends and family are more than happy to gift the gamer in their life some Xbox gaming juice.

The $10 and $20 digital gift cards add up fast when it‘s coming from multiple people too.

So speak up about what you want! No shame in asking for those sweet, sweet Xbox bucks.

Search on Bing

Yeah, Microsoft‘s search engine Bing kind of pales in comparison to the big G.

But Bing will pay you just to complete searches, which means more free Xbox loot.

Here‘s the deal:

  • Earn points for every search you do on Bing

  • Rack up around 100 points per day

  • Cash in for 1 month of Xbox Live Gold at 5,250 points

It only takes a couple minutes a day of half-hearted Binging to work towards free gaming subs.

I like to use it anytime I‘m searching Xbox stuff – may as well get the points!

Shop Smart with Cashback

Cashback apps like Rakuten and Ibotta reward you with actual cash for your normal spending. It‘s pretty genius.

You can score anywhere from 3-20% cashback at a ton of stores.

I use Rakuten to get 5% cashback at Best Buy for example.

I used my $10 in earnings from buying a monitor to get a 1-month Xbox Live Gold membership.

Cha-ching! 💸

These apps make it easy to turn everyday shopping into Xbox gaming fuel. Download a few like:

  • Rakuten

  • Ibotta

  • Dosh

  • Drop

Then use the free cash to buy discounted Gold subscription cards. It really adds up over time.

Leverage Credit Card Rewards

Okay okay, I know credit cards can be seriously dangerous territory if you aren‘t careful.

But as long as you 100% pay off your bill every month, the sign-up bonuses, cash back, and rewards points can score you major savings on Xbox Live Gold.

For instance:

  • Use a new card bonus to buy a new Xbox console or games

  • Cards like Chase Freedom offer 5% back quarterly on places like PayPal or streaming services – buy Xbox credit at a discount!

  • Credit card rewards points can be redeemed for Xbox digital codes

Again, please please please pay off your balances in full. The last thing I want if for you to accrue interest and debt in the name of free Xbox stuff.

But when used responsibly, credit card perks can take a nice chunk off the cost of Xbox Live Gold.

Just something to consider!

Let‘s Review the Options

Alright, we just covered a ton of legit ways to avoid paying full price for Xbox Live Gold.

Let‘s do a quick recap:

  • Take advantage of 1-month free trials

  • Enter giveaways

  • Cash in Microsoft Rewards points

  • Trade in unused gift cards

  • Split a family membership

  • Find and use discounted code deals

  • Earn free Xbox cards through survey/reward apps

  • Ask for Xbox gift cards as gifts

  • Search with Bing

  • Use cashback apps for shopping

  • Utilize credit card bonuses and rewards

Phew! As you can see, there are a ton of creative options to explore here.

The more techniques you combine, the more you can whittle down the out-of-pocket cost of Xbox Live Gold to zero, or pretty close to it.

It takes some persistence and dedication. But where there‘s a will (and some free time), there‘s a way!

Let‘s Wrap This Up

Alright my gamer friend, we‘ve covered a ton of ground here.

You now have over 10 legit ways to get free or discounted Xbox Live Gold access in 2023 and beyond.

No more throwing cash away just to play games online, get free Games with Gold and score Xbox discounts!

Try out a combination of these methods and see what works best with your lifestyle.

You can definitely slay this Xbox Live Gold membership fee dragon. I believe in you!

Now go enjoy hours of multiplayer mayhem for mere pennies on the dollar.

This is your quest – I‘ve given you the map, tips and tools. The rest is up to you.

Godspeed and happy freeloading! Let me know how it goes.

Until next time,

~ Your Xbox Insider

nv-author-image

Michael

Michael Reddy is a tech enthusiast, entertainment buff, and avid traveler who loves exploring Linux and sharing unique insights with readers.