How to Pre-Order an Xbox Series X or Series S

The holiday season is fast approaching, and Microsoft’s upcoming Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S will both launch November 10th. Pre-orders go live September 22nd (or, tomorrow as I write this guide), and there are a few places you can secure your shiny new Xbox.

The Xbox Series X and Series S pre-orders go up September 22nd at 8am PST across various retailers.

To start, allow me to remind everyone that day-1 pre-orders tend to sell out quick. I don’t expect the Xbox pre-orders to be as messy as Sony’s PlayStation 5, nor do I anticipate the Xbox Series X or Xbox Series S to run out of inventory in literal seconds like Nvidia’s RTX 3080. That being said, the Series X and Series S will restock over the coming months leading up to launch, so if you don’t manage to lock in a pre-order September 22nd, continue to check with your preferred retailer. If my friends could grab a PlayStation 5 preorder days after the initial chaos subsided, then you should be able to pre-order an Xbox Series X or Series S well after the 22nd.

With that out of the way let’s get into the nitty-gritty. The Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S go up for preorder September 22nd. There are two ways you can secure an Xbox Series X or Series S, so for this guide we’ll stick with the more traditional method: buying it at the full MSRP of $300 for the Xbox Series S, or $500 for the Xbox Series X. There are multiple regions sales will go live in, so let’s break them down below (I’ve hyperlinked all the US retailers, for easy bookmarking).

• United States (8AM PT): Microsoft Store, Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop, Walmart, Target, Sam’s Club, Newegg, and other participating retailers*.
• Canada (8AM PT): Microsoft Store, Amazon, Walmart, Best Buy, EB Games, The Source, and other participating retailers*.
• UK (8AM BST): Microsoft Store, GAME, Amazon, Dixons, Currys PC World, Argos, John Lewis, Smyths Toys, VERY, AO, Tesco, Simply Game, Shopto and other participating retailers*.
• Australia (8AM AEST): Microsoft Store, JB Hifi, EB Games, Telstra, Harvey Norman, and other participating retailers*.
• New Zealand (8AM NZST): Microsoft Store, JB HiFi, EB Games, Spark, and other participating retailers*.
• Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (9am CEST): Microsoft Store, Amazon, MediaMarkt, GameStop, FNAC, Elkjøp/Elgiganten, and other participating retailers*.

Notice the “other participating retailers” bit I marked at the end of each? If there’s a certain retailer you prefer over those listed give them a call and see what their plans are. I know the Base Exchange for the Army and the Air Force have said they’ll have a few on offer, but I also know AAFES can barely keep mandatory uniform items in stock, so be sure to follow-up with your retailer. Some stores will allow in-person pre-orders, such as Gamestop (though they’ll determine which stores open early on a store-by-store basis), so also call ahead if you plan to place your pre-order in-person.

Best of luck with your pre-orders! Now that Microsoft straight-up owns Zenimax, and in turn Bethesda and every other developer under the publisher’s umbrella, I expect more people will be eager to grab an Xbox now than ever. Again, if at first you don’t succeed, mash your F5 key into oblivion until you do.