Microsoft Rewards Program Is on Another Level

A couple years ago, I redeemed Microsoft Rewards points for gift cards to the Microsoft Store and was able to get an Elite Series 2 controller for free—a controller that normally costs almost $200 retail.

In terms of value programs for Xbox players, Game Pass dominates the discussion with access to hundreds of games for $10 or $15 a month. In contrast, the Microsoft Rewards program flies under the radar—but it is something everyone should be participating in on a daily basis.

Of course, Sony and Nintendo each have a rewards program as well. They aren’t quite on the same level; both in terms of what is offered, and how easy it is to complete their quests.

For example, I earned five rewards points for simply starting up the game Coffee Talk.

In connection with the Super Bowl, I earned 250 points just by playing four games of Madden NFL 23 online.

In Sims 4, you could earn 50 points just by having two “bladder fails” over the course of a week! Hilarious and amazing.

Maxing out rewards points playing Game Pass

All you have to do to earn rewards points is to play the games. To max out your rewards, you’ll want to pay attention to three different types of Game Pass quests.

Daily Quests - If you see something under the daily tab, you better get it done before it expires if you want those points. These quests are normally really easy, such as simply starting a game.

Weekly Quests - These are usually slam dunks as well. One of the quests over the past week was simply completing three daily quests. Another one was to earn an achievement in any Game Pass game.

Monthly Quests - The monthly quests tend to be cumulative. One of the quests that I am currently working on is called “Quest Completionist.” Completing 22 daily and 12 weekly quests throughout the month is worth 500 points. As long as you keep up with your daily and weekly quests, you will receive a bigger reward.

Accumulating and cashing in points

Once you earn 500 rewards points in a month, you’ll move to the second level, which gives you some nice discounts. If you have 1,600 points, you can get an Xbox gift card worth $1.25. If you save up for a while until you have 91,000 points you can get a $100 Xbox gift card.

If that seems like a lot, Microsoft awards 2,500 points as cash back for “quests” like renting or buying movies on Microsoft’s service.

Additionally, there are rotating offers that you will want to keep your eye on. For example, using the platform in February to check out organizations that support Black History Month earns you 100 reward points.

Earning points without an Xbox

Using the Xbox mobile app, you can rack up points when you participate in a poll or take a quiz on current events. If you can get a nice streak of consecutive days completing these tasks, you will also earn some nice bonuses.

There are also other activities for you to complete that change frequently depending on what is going on in the world. Recently, they had some activities for Valentine’s Day. As I was putting this story together, they had a “warpspeed quiz” where all I needed to do was answer three quick questions to earn 30 points. Making a habit of quickly checking this website every day pays off.

The Microsoft Rewards program is something everyone should be using. Spend a few moments of each day completing the quests and enjoy the real, tangible rewards you can receive as a result. The only question is, which reward will you get first?