How to Change Ownership of an Xbox Live Account

If you’re getting ready to sell your old Xbox or pass it on to a family member or friend, you may also want them to have your old games too. While it’s easy to hand over a physical copy of a game, it’s not that simple for a digital download. With that said, you may consider changing ownership of your Xbox Live account so that the new user can access the same playable content.

Your Xbox Live account is the same as your Microsoft account and vice versa. Everything ties together, and when you upgrade your console, you can bring all of your digital assets with you, so long as you remember your account login info. For that reason, it is difficult, if not highly discouraged, to change ownership of your Xbox Live account. But, there is one way it can be done.

Change the Account Email Linked to Xbox Live

If you want to transfer ownership of your account to someone else, you essentially have to give them your account. This is great if you’re handing it over to a family member or someone you trust completely. However, it’s not so great if you’re selling your Xbox to a total stranger and you’re asking for more money to pay for the digital games that you’re also selling.

You want to change your login email to the buyer’s email and wipe out all of the payment info and personal data you have on the Xbox so that none of it is usable outside of accessing what will no longer be your account.

Microsoft calls your account email login information your “account alias,” and to change it, you need to go to your account page on a desktop.

There are several Xbox gaming consoles, all with different ways to do the same thing. So we’ll stick with the desktop version since that will work for any Xbox console and your entire Microsoft account at the same time.

1. Go to account.microsoft.com.
2. Select Your Info in the top, left-hand corner.
3. Select Manage How You Sign In To Microsoft.
4. Verify your account details, email address, and phone number.
5. Select Add Email.
6. Select Add Alias.
7. Select Verify.

You can change the phone number on the account while you’re in here, along with deleting the original email. Keep in mind that if the new email that you’re entering is already being used as an alias on another Microsoft account, it won’t work here.

You’ll need to do this in front of the person that you are selling or giving your Xbox to, as they will need to verify their email address once you enter the information. One thing that you need to do as well is get rid of all of your personal information.

Delete Your Microsoft/Xbox Payment Info

You’re basically giving your account—or selling it—to someone else. You don’t want your payment info or any other personal information left behind when they walk away for the last time. You need to make sure that you get your payment info removed as soon as possible.

1. Sign in to the Payment Options page.
2. Select your saved payment information on the next screen.
3. Select Remove.
4. Confirm.

That’s all there is to it. Once you remove your payment information from your Microsoft account, it’s removed across the board, including any Microsoft gaming consoles that you own.

With the person receiving your Xbox having control of your account with a new password, they’ll now have to enter their own payment method to continue purchasing digital content through Microsoft.

You will have effectively transferred your account by basically just giving it away. If you pick up another Xbox in the future, you will have to start an entirely new account from scratch.

Xbox Game Sharing

If you just want to share your games with one of your friends or family members, Game Sharing is a simpler process than trying to give over your account. What you’ll need to do is log into your account on their Xbox and set that Xbox as your “Home” console.

To share your games, sign into your friend/family member’s Xbox:

1. On the home screen, press the Xbox button on your controller.
2. Select Profile & System.
3. Select Settings > General.
4. Select Personalization.
5. Select My Home Xbox.

Now you can choose to make this my home Xbox. With that done, you can download any of your digital games to your friend’s Xbox, then simply remove your account info. However, if you go home and make your Xbox your “Home” Xbox again, your friend will lose the ability to play those games.

All Things Considered

There’s generally a loophole in anything when it comes to sharing and manipulating account information, even for Xbox Live. Just be careful and do it the smart way, ensuring that all of your information, especially your payment information, is removed so that your finances are secured.

Once you’ve done that, the new owner can enjoy all of the digital games and data that you left behind for them on your old account and Xbox.