Xbox Live is an excellent platform that allows you to play games with friends, download game demos, access your Netflix accounts and social networks, among other multimedia features. However, when you sign up for Xbox Live, the payment is set up as an automatic renewal. This means that the money you pay for your Xbox Live subscription is automatically taken out of the payment method linked to your account with minimal notification. It could also make it easier for a company to slip by rate hikes.
If you don’t feel comfortable with letting Microsoft dip into your account so easily and want to disable the automatic renewal option for your Xbox Live account, you can do so through the Xbox Live website. The only downside is that you’ll need to remember to renew your Xbox Live membership, or your account will be deactivated and you’ll need to reactivate it.
Here are the steps to turn off Xbox Live auto-renew:
Step 1: Open your Web browser and navigate to www.xbox.com.
Step 2: Click “Sign In” in the upper right corner of the screen.
Step 3: Enter the email address associated with your Xbox Live account, and then click the green “Next” button.
Step 4: Enter the password associated with your Xbox Live account, and then click the green “Next” button. You’ll be returned to the Xbox Live home screen, where you’ll now see your gamertag and profile picture in the upper right corner of the screen.
Step 5: Click your gamertag in the upper right corner of the screen. A drop-down menu appears.
Step 6: Click “Xbox Settings” in the drop-down menu. The Xbox Settings screen appears.
Step 7: Click “Subscriptions” beneath Xbox Settings on the left side of the window. The Services and Subscriptions screen appears.
Step 8: Select “Manage” to the right of the line item in the section associated with your Xbox Live subscription. This line item will have a refresh icon to the left of it.
Step 9: Click “Turn Off Auto Renew” to the right of the line item that says Renews Automatically. A dialog box asking if you’re sure you want to disable Xbox Live auto-renew appears.
Step 10: Select “Yes, I Want to Miss Out on Free Games” in a gray box. A message appears informing you that your Xbox Live subscription will not auto-renew, along with the date that your current subscription expires.
Step 11: Click the blue “Back to Subscriptions” button to return to the Payment Settings window, where you’ll have the option to turn the Auto Renew feature back on if you ever want to.
By following these steps, you can turn off Xbox Live auto-renew and avoid unwanted charges.