The best Xbox Series S deals and bundles

Given its recent price rise, you're justified in looking for Xbox Series S deals and bundles, in order to save money on your new console or at least get a game or accessory bundled along with it.

A brand-new Xbox Series S now costs $399.99 for a 512GB model, with 1TB going for $449.99. That's a jump of $20 for both models, which isn't a huge increase, but it's not the first and there's no way of knowing whether it's the last. So a bundle or deal to save you money is a great option.

Compared to the Series X, the Xbox Series S doesn't see as many bundles, purely because it's hard to offer a physical game with a console that doesn't play physical games. Instead, your best bet to save money is by refurbished devices.

It's also worth noting that there are plenty of Xbox Series X accessories currently on sale that will work just fine with Series S, which gives you plenty of options for jazzing up your console.

Xbox Series S deals in the US

Xbox Series S (Certified Refurbished) | $379.99 $329.99 at Microsoft
Save $50 - Microsoft is sticking to its $50 discount on refurbished consoles, but that recent price increase means you're now spending $329.99 on a renewed model. That's $30 more than the new price of a console just a few weeks ago.

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Xbox Series S (1TB) Refurbished | $429.99 $379.99 at Microsoft
Save $50 - The 1TB model has also seen its own price increase this month, so while Microsoft is still offering a $50 discount on renewed devices it's still up at $379.99.

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Xbox Series S deals in the UK

Xbox Series S (refurbished) | £299.99 £249.99 at Microsoft
Save £50 - If you want to stick to the original £249.99 RRP, you'll need to head over to Microsoft for a £50 saving on this refurbished model. Still, that's the best price in the UK right now.

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Xbox Series S (512GB) | £299.99 £289 at Amazon
Save £10 - Amazon is one of the few stores actually discounting the Xbox Series S this week, dropping it down to £290 for a whole £10 off...

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Xbox Series S accessory deals

Backward compatibility is a big feature of new-gen consoles. Microsoft has been banging the drum of Xbox Series X backward compatibility for some time now, and that's the case for the Series S as well.

But what does it mean? Basically, you can use your old Xbox One accessories on your Xbox Series S. That makes a huge difference in the grand scheme of things. Rather than having to buy extra controllers, accessories, or subscriptions, you'll be able to carry them over to your new console. In fact, you can use everything from Xbox One external hard drives to Xbox One headsets on Series S.

Not only that, but the best Xbox Series X accessories are also compatible with the cheaper console, which means you'll be able to use top of the range Xbox Series X headsets. Need to stock up on some Xbox essentials? You'll find the latest Xbox Series S deals on controllers, headsets, and storage below.

How to save cash on the Xbox Series S price

Microsoft has an Xbox All Access payment plan, allowing you to pick up a next-gen console for a fixed monthly fee spread over two years.

Curiously, it doesn't just get you the console. Indeed, you're also receiving 24 months of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate baked into the Xbox Series S price. Because this is Xbox's version of Netflix for gaming (it provides you with well over 100 games to play, including some new releases), you're set with things to try right away. Especially when Xbox-exclusive games like Halo Infinite appear on Game Pass at no extra cost on the day of release.

As such, Xbox All Access is a sensible way of getting yourself Xbox Series S deals. Besides saving you plenty of cash in the long run, you're getting a little bit knocked off the price as well - it's a little bit cheaper than buying the console and two years of Game Pass separately even with all the Game Pass Ultimate deals available right now.

All the same, bear in mind that you won't find Xbox All Access in many stores besides Microsoft. Walmart fills that role in the US, and Game or Smyths provide it in the UK.

Xbox Series S vs Xbox Series X: what's the difference?

This is where things get interesting - what are the Xbox Series X vs Xbox Series S differences?

For starters, it's significantly smaller than the Xbox Series X. 60% smaller, to be precise. In addition, it doesn't have a disc drive and offers less internal memory (it runs on a custom NVME 512GB SSD powered by Xbox Velocity Architecture, which is about half the size of the Series X's 1TB SSD). It can't display games in 4K resolution either.

However, that's not your cue to panic. It's capable of DirectX ray tracing, 1440p resolution, and up to 120 frames-per-second. It also offers cool next-gen features such as variable-rate shading, ultra-low latency, and blindingly fast loading times.

In short, all this means that games will run better and faster on Xbox Series S than you'll be used to on the Xbox One X or PS4 Pro.

Just remember, it won't be able to match the more expensive Xbox Series X graphically - it's simply not as powerful. Games will still look great, of course, but they're limited at 1440p. That won't matter too much if you don't have a 4K TV, but it's something to bear in mind in terms of future-proofing. And hey, if you do eventually pick up a 4K TV, the Series S supports 4K streaming media playback.

Being able to ditch native 4K means that the Series S can be much, much cheaper than the X - it doesn't need all that technical grunt. And when the result is half the price, it's hard to complain all that much. Considering how many must-have games are slated for next-gen, including Fable, being able to get in on the action for less is tempting.

Want more power? We've also put together the best Xbox Series X deals, prices, and sales from across the web. Additionally, we've just dived into whether Xbox Game Pass is worth it in 2023 as well as the best Xbox accessories that really make the most of Microsoft's gaming machine.