Softonic covered Xbox Game Pass’s September Wave 2 landing this week with Black Ops 6, Minecraft Dungeons II, and a handful of smaller pickups. The Game Pass drop calendar has settled into a rhythm of two waves per month with a leaving-soon list on top, which is more churn than any Xbox app comfortably surfaces. If we live on desktop and want to know what’s in, what’s leaving, and what’s queued for the next wave without scrolling through the Xbox app, these seven Xbox Game Pass tracking apps do it better than the console UI.
What to look for in a Game Pass tracker on desktop
- Wave-level views rather than a flat catalogue. We want “Wave 1”, “Wave 2”, “Leaving soon” surfaced separately.
- Cross-tier coverage. Core, Standard, Ultimate, PC Game Pass, and EA Play catalogues all differ. A tracker worth using shows the tier per title.
- Delist and leaving-soon alerts. Nothing hurts like starting a Game Pass RPG the week before it leaves. Alerts save weekends.
- Cross-platform library folding. Best trackers can merge Game Pass with Steam, Epic, and GOG so we do not double-install.
- Price history for the “leaving soon” pickups, so we know whether buying the title cheap is a better call than sprinting to finish it.
- Cloud-play indicators, since not every Game Pass game supports xCloud, and that matters on desktop-first setups.
Quick comparison
| App | Best for | Platforms | Free plan | Paid tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GG.deals | Free wave tracker with price context | Windows, macOS, Linux (web PWA) | Full free tier | No paid tier |
| IsThereAnyDeal | Delist alerts across every store | Windows, macOS, Linux (web PWA) | Full free tier | Optional donation |
| TrueAchievements | Deep Game Pass stats and completion tracking | Windows, macOS, Linux (web PWA) | Free with account | TA Pro subscription |
| GameFabrique Pass Tracker | Simple wave calendar in a browser tab | Web / any desktop | Free | None |
| Playnite | Local unified game library across services | Windows | Free, open source | Optional cloud sync add-on |
| GameHub | Linux library that includes Game Pass metadata | Linux | Free, open source | None |
| Reroll | Wave-driven “what should I play next” picker | Windows, macOS, Linux (web PWA) | Free tier | Subscription for advanced filters |
The apps
1. GG.deals – Best for wave-level pass coverage plus price context
GG.deals is the price tracker that leaned hard into Game Pass coverage. Wave 1, Wave 2, EA Play, and PC Game Pass each get their own page with join dates, leave-by dates, and a running “leaving soon” list. Every title cross-links to its price history across every major store, so we can see whether a game about to leave is worth buying outright.
Where it falls short: No true desktop client; it is a very good web app that installs as a PWA. Alerts require an account.
Pricing:
- Free: full tracker, alerts, and wishlist
- Paid: none
Platforms: Windows, macOS, Linux via browser or PWA.
Download: gg.deals.
Bottom line: Start here. GG.deals covers the wave calendar better than any first-party tool.
2. IsThereAnyDeal – Best for delist and leaving-soon alerts
IsThereAnyDeal is the veteran price tracker on desktop, and its Game Pass integration surfaces additions and removals with per-title alerts on email or via ITAD’s browser extension. When a game hits the “leaving in 2 weeks” state, we get pinged, and we can pipe alerts into a Discord channel via community-maintained bots.
Where it falls short: UI is dense on first visit. Wave grouping is less clean than GG.deals, so this is the tool for alerts rather than browsing.
Pricing:
- Free: full tracker and alerts
- Paid: optional donation for supporter perks
Platforms: Web app; PWA on Windows, macOS, Linux.
Download: isthereanydeal.com.
Bottom line: Pair GG.deals for browsing with IsThereAnyDeal for the leaving-soon push notifications.
3. TrueAchievements – Best for Game Pass completion stats
TrueAchievements goes beyond “what’s in the catalogue” into “how long will this take me”. Every Game Pass title gets a difficulty-weighted TA score, average completion time, and a leaderboard of players who finished it. Handy for triaging a “leaving soon” list into “definitely finishable this weekend” and “not a chance”.
Where it falls short: Community and stats-focused rather than curation-first. TA Pro subscription unlocks the deeper filters.
Pricing:
- Free: full site with account
- Paid: TA Pro removes ads and unlocks power-user filters
Platforms: Web app; PWA on Windows, macOS, Linux.
Download: trueachievements.com.
Bottom line: The tracker for people who want to finish, not just start, Game Pass drops.
4. GameFabrique Pass Tracker – Best for a lightweight browser-tab tracker
GameFabrique’s Xbox Game Pass tracker is a stripped-back site: current catalogue, current waves, leaving soon, filter by tier. No account. No email. It sits in a browser tab or a pinned PWA window and updates without ceremony.
Where it falls short: No alerts. No price context. Not for power users.
Pricing: Free.
Platforms: Web app; PWA on Windows, macOS, Linux.
Download: gamefabrique.com (Xbox Game Pass section).
Bottom line: Pick GameFabrique when we want a read-only Game Pass calendar without setting up yet another account.
5. Playnite – Best for unified desktop library
Playnite is the open-source Windows launcher that stitches Xbox Game Pass, Steam, Epic, GOG, EA Play, Ubisoft Connect, and the rest into one library. The Xbox extension pulls in Game Pass titles automatically, and the Metadata plugin fills in cover art and playtime. When a wave lands, Playnite refreshes the new titles alongside our owned games.
Where it falls short: Windows only. First-time setup takes an evening. The Xbox extension needs occasional maintenance when Microsoft changes API endpoints.
Pricing: Free, open source.
Platforms: Windows.
Download: playnite.link.
Bottom line: Pick Playnite if we want Game Pass surfaced next to every other library on one launcher.
6. GameHub – Best for a Linux-friendly unified library
GameHub is the Linux answer to Playnite: one launcher across Steam, GOG, Humble, and community-maintained sources including Xbox Cloud Gaming shortcuts. Not as smooth as Playnite on Xbox metadata but the only serious game in this seat on Linux.
Where it falls short: Xbox integration is community-driven and less complete than on Windows. Development pace is slow.
Pricing: Free, open source.
Platforms: Linux.
Download: github.com/tkashkin/GameHub.
Bottom line: Pick GameHub if we run Linux and want at least a Game Pass shortcut layer alongside our owned games.
7. Reroll – Best for “what should I play from this wave?”
Reroll turns wave calendars into a picker. Set filters like “under 15 hours”, “single-player only”, “supports cloud”, and Reroll pulls a shortlist from the current Game Pass waves plus our library. Handy when the wave drops 10 games and we cannot decide.
Where it falls short: Free tier limits filter depth. Requires a Microsoft account link to pull real Game Pass status. Small team behind the app.
Pricing:
- Free: basic filters
- Paid: subscription for advanced filters and library-wide picks
Platforms: Web app; PWA on Windows, macOS, Linux.
Download: reroll.games.
Bottom line: Pick Reroll when the goal is to pick a game to play tonight rather than to plan the month.
How to pick the right one
If we want the simplest option: GG.deals in a browser tab.
If we want push alerts for leaving-soon titles: IsThereAnyDeal.
If we want data on completion time and difficulty: TrueAchievements.
If we already run a launcher and want Game Pass folded in: Playnite on Windows, GameHub on Linux.
If we want a “pick me a game right now” prompt: Reroll.
If we just want a read-only calendar with no account: GameFabrique’s Pass Tracker.
FAQ
What is the best free Xbox Game Pass tracker on desktop?
GG.deals is the best all-round free tracker; it surfaces waves clearly and cross-links to price history. IsThereAnyDeal is the best free tracker for push alerts.
How do I know when a game is leaving Xbox Game Pass?
IsThereAnyDeal, GG.deals, and TrueAchievements all publish leaving-soon dates. IsThereAnyDeal is the strongest for email or browser alerts; GG.deals shows the leaving-soon list right on the pass page.
Can I merge Xbox Game Pass into my Steam library?
Not directly, but Playnite on Windows and GameHub on Linux can present Game Pass titles inside a unified launcher with cover art and shortcuts. That is the closest we get without buying the games outright.
Which Game Pass tracker works on Linux?
GG.deals, IsThereAnyDeal, TrueAchievements, GameFabrique, and Reroll are web apps and run in any Linux browser. GameHub is the native Linux launcher with basic Game Pass integration.
What tracker do most Xbox Game Pass players use?
GG.deals and IsThereAnyDeal both come up constantly on r/XboxGamePass and r/pcgamingtechsupport. TrueAchievements dominates the completionist conversation. Playnite wins the “one launcher for everything” thread every time.
