How to download games to Xbox One from your phone

Xbox One titles can be gigantic in size and take hours to complete downloading. Instead of waiting for the game to download when you’re ready to play, you can start downloading the game remotely on your Xbox One from a smartphone or web browser. They will automatically download to your Xbox One and be ready when you get home to play right away.

This only works with digital titles. If you have a physical game, you’ll have to insert it into an Xbox One disc before the controller starts to install it and download any required updates.

How to configure Xbox One to download games remotely

The Xbox One configuration for remote game download only works if your Xbox One is paused and is set up to update downloaded games automatically and in game mode. Instant-on. These are the default settings so everything should work. However, if you have changed these settings before then you may need to re-enable them.

If you’re not near Xbox One right now, skip this section and just use the app or website to download a game.

First you go to Settings> All Settings> System> Updates. Make sure that installed Keep my games & apps up to date has been turned on here. If not, your Xbox One won’t automatically download games or new updates.

Second, you navigate to Settings> All Settings> Power & Startup> Power mode & startup. Make sure Xbox One is set to mode Instant-on. This means the Xbox One goes to sleep while some functions remain active, including background downloads of games and updates. Don’t put it in mode Energy-saving or it will immediately power off and you will not be able to use the remote game download feature.

You should also make sure you’re signed in to Xbox One with the Microsoft account you’re planning to use on your phone. You can check this out in Settings> All Settings> Sign-in, security & passkey.

Start game download using your phone

You can download the updates from your phone using the Xbox app. This application was formerly known as Xbox Smartglass, but has now been changed to Xbox.

Download the app and sign in with the same Microsoft account you used to sign in to Xbox One. Tap the menu button in the upper left corner and click Store to view the Xbox Store.

Search for the game you want to install on Xbox One in Store. You can find a free game and tap Get it free Or buy a game here, then immediately install it on your Xbox One.

After purchasing a game or touching Get it freeYou will see a button Install on Xbox One on its Store page. Tap that button, and the app will line up to download to your Xbox One.

If you have purchased a game or downloaded for free before and want to re-download it, just search for the game on the Store and look on its own page. You will immediately see the button Install on Xbox One you touch it to start the download.

If the Xbox One is in Instant-on mode and automatically downloads updates, it will soon start downloading the game automatically. You can see the download progress on the console in Games & apps> Queue when I got back to my Xbox One.

Start game download using web browser

You can also download games from the Xbox Store website. It works just like the Xbox app for smartphones. You just need to sign in to the same Microsoft account that you use on your Xbox One.

Go to Microsoft’s Xbox Store website and sign in with your Microsoft account. Looking for a free or paid Xbox One game.

You will then see a button Install on Xbox One on the game’s website. Click on it to queue for downloads to your Xbox One. If you have purchased a game or downloaded it for free before then you will immediately see the button when viewing the game’s website.

If the Xbox One doesn’t immediately start loading the game it’s probably set to not load updates automatically or is in Energy-saving mode instead of Instant-on. It’s also possible that the Xbox One isn’t connected to the network. The game will download when you turn on your Xbox One and connect to the Internet.