How to Get Microsoft Rewards Points

Microsoft Rewards is a free program that gives you points for things like searching with Bing (including in Microsoft Edge), finishing the daily set of quizzes on your Rewards dashboard, playing on Xbox and buying qualifying games in the Microsoft Store. Microsoft says it usually takes about 5,000 points to redeem something worth $5, so it pays off slowly but steadily if you already use these services.

Here’s how to join, every documented way to earn, and what to check when points stop adding up.

What You Need Before You Start

The only requirement is a Microsoft account, the same login you use for Outlook.com, Xbox, OneDrive or a Windows PC. There’s no fee and no commitment. If you were a Bing Rewards member years ago, Microsoft moved that account to Microsoft Rewards automatically, so try signing in before you create anything new. You may already have points waiting.

Points are tied to one account, so pick the account you’ll actually stay signed into on your PC, phone and console. If your Windows PC is signed in with a different account than the one you want to use, you can switch the Microsoft account on Windows 11 first.

You’ll also need a mobile phone or landline number. Microsoft asks for one when you join and sometimes again when you redeem. Internet calling (VoIP) numbers aren’t accepted.

How to Join Microsoft Rewards

1. Open any browser and go to rewards.bing.com.
2. Select Sign in and enter your Microsoft account email and password. If you don’t have an account, choose the option to create one for free.
3. Follow the prompts to join. Joining also signs you up for emails about Rewards offers.
4. If you’re asked to verify a phone number, enter your mobile or landline number and type the code you receive.
5. Open your Rewards dashboard. Visiting the dashboard fully activates the account so points start counting.

The dashboard shows your balance, the day’s activities, your daily search counters and the rewards you can afford.

Ways to Earn Points

Every method below only counts while you’re signed in with the Microsoft account linked to Rewards. Not every method exists in every country, so if one is missing from your dashboard, it probably isn’t offered where you live.

Search With Bing on a Computer

Searching on bing.com while signed in earns points for each search, up to a daily limit. That limit depends on your level and your country (see the levels section below), and the PC and mobile counters are tracked separately. The points breakdown on your dashboard shows where your counter stands today.

Search on Your Phone

Mobile searches have their own counter. Microsoft lists a few ways to earn on a phone: set Bing as your browser’s default search engine, search in the Bing app, use Microsoft Launcher on Android, or use the Microsoft Edge app. Not every mobile method is available in every region. On an iPhone, you can download Microsoft Edge from the App Store and sign in with your Rewards account.

Use Microsoft Edge

Edge itself earns points on desktop and mobile. Sign in to Edge with the same Microsoft account so your searches and activity are credited correctly. If Edge offers don’t appear, make sure you’re running the latest version of Microsoft Edge, since older builds can be missing newer features.

Start Searches From the Windows Search Box

Microsoft Support says web searches typed into the search box on the Windows taskbar can earn points too. Type a question into the search box, choose a web result, and it opens in Bing. Check your dashboard afterward to confirm the search was counted on your account.

Finish the Daily Set and Earn Page Activities

The dashboard shows a daily set of short activities such as quizzes, trivia and polls, plus more tasks on the Earn page. They refresh every day. Completing the daily set on consecutive days builds a streak, and a completed item shows a green checkmark. Streaks follow your device’s time zone, so finish the set before midnight on the device you normally use.

Check Email in Outlook Mobile

Microsoft’s About page says that checking three emails a day in the Outlook mobile app counts toward your daily streak. This one is easy to overlook if you mostly read mail on a computer.

Play on Xbox

Open the Rewards hub on an Xbox console, in the Xbox mobile app or in the Xbox app on a Windows PC to see gaming offers. Points for gameplay, including Game Pass Quests, are limited to players 18 and older with a Microsoft account in select markets, and each quest requires a minimum amount of playtime before it pays out.

Buy Games and Add-ons in the Microsoft Store

Qualifying purchases of games and game add-ons earn points when you’re signed in with your Rewards account. Not every purchase qualifies: Microsoft says subscriptions and gift cards are not eligible, and a purchase only counts toward one Rewards offer at a time. Microsoft’s Rewards pages also state a cap of 20,000 points per month on qualifying purchases, which resets monthly. Buying through the Store on Xbox may not earn points in every country.

Microsoft Support also lists earning personal Rewards points from a work or school account as an option.

A Realistic Daily Routine

Here’s how a typical week might look for Sam, who already uses a Windows laptop and an Android phone. In the morning she opens the dashboard and clicks through the daily set, which takes a couple of minutes. During the day she does her normal searches in Edge on the laptop and in the Bing app on her phone, without trying to hit the counters with filler searches. On weekends she plays a Game Pass title on Xbox and picks up any quest she was already close to finishing. She also keeps a Redeem-page goal so she can see how close she is.

How Levels and Daily Limits Work

Rewards has membership levels. Everyone starts at the entry level, and you move up by earning a set number of points within a month. Higher levels can earn more on Bing searches and Store purchases, and may get discounts on redemptions or exclusive offers.

Microsoft’s own pages don’t agree on the details right now. The Support articles describe an older two-level system, while the Rewards site shows a different set of level names with different thresholds and search limits. Because the numbers change, check the level panel on your own dashboard. It shows your current level, what you need to reach the next one, and your personal daily search limits for your country.

How to Redeem Your Points

Rewards appear as available once your balance covers their price. The catalog usually includes retailer gift cards, Microsoft Store and Xbox gift cards, sweepstakes entries and donations to nonprofits. Prices and stock change often, and some gift cards are only available some of the time.

1. On your Rewards dashboard, select Redeem.
2. Browse the gift cards, donations or sweepstakes tabs and select a reward to see its details.

3. Choose any options, such as the card amount, then select the button to redeem.
4. Complete phone verification if you’re asked. Turn off any VPN before you start, and use the same country or region you signed up in.
5. To find a gift card code later, open Order History, find the reward and select Order Details. Use Resend if you want the confirmation email again.

Microsoft and Xbox gift cards work differently from retailer cards. Instead of a code, the value goes straight into your Microsoft account balance as a promotional balance, which can expire under the promotion’s terms. Spend it reasonably soon.

If the redemption is blocked, Microsoft lists the usual causes: a VoIP phone number, a VPN, a wrong verification code, or a phone number already used on too many accounts (Microsoft states a maximum of six accounts per household). After too many failed verification attempts you have to wait 48 hours before trying again. You also can’t redeem while traveling in another country.

Is Microsoft Rewards Available in Your Country?

Availability varies by country and region, and so do the ways to earn, the daily limits and the rewards catalog. Some methods, such as Bing searches or Xbox Store purchases, don’t earn points everywhere. Microsoft keeps a list of countries and regions where Microsoft Rewards is available.

Your account belongs to the market you signed up in. Microsoft treats earning from outside your current market as a policy violation. If you move permanently, check the Rewards FAQ entry on changing your country rather than trying to work around it.

Why Your Points Aren’t Counting

Microsoft Support lists these reasons when searches or balances don’t update:

• Give Mode is on. With Give with Bing turned on, your search points go to a nonprofit instead of your balance, so the dashboard looks different.
• You’re signed in to a different account. Check the account in Edge, the Bing app and Windows. Browser data that isn’t syncing can cause the same symptom.
• The counter is maxed. Once your PC or mobile search counter hits its daily limit, more searches won’t count until it resets.
• You appear to be outside your market. A VPN or travel can make it look like you’re earning from another country.
• Your streak reset. This happens if the daily set wasn’t finished in time, if you used a VPN or a device set to another time zone, or if you were signed in to a different account.

If none of these fit, the Rewards Support form linked from the Microsoft Support pages is the next step.

What Not to Do

You’ll find plenty of “hacks” online: scripts that run searches for you, bots, extensions that automate the daily set, or VPN tricks to earn in another market. Microsoft says searches entered by a bot, macro or other automated means don’t earn points, and earning outside your market breaks program policy. Using them puts the whole balance at risk. The legitimate methods above are the only ones worth your time.

Keeping Google as Your Search Engine

You don’t have to switch everything to Bing. Jordan, for example, prefers Google results, so he keeps Google in his main browser and only uses the Rewards dashboard, Xbox quests and the occasional Store purchase. He earns less, but nothing about his searching changes. If you’d like the same setup, here’s how to set Google as the default search engine in Microsoft Edge. Just know that searches through Google won’t earn Bing search points.

Microsoft Rewards Questions

Do Microsoft Rewards points expire?

Yes. According to Microsoft’s redemption help page, points expire if you don’t earn or redeem anything for 12 months. Any single activity, like finishing the daily set, keeps the account active.

Can I turn points into cash?

No. Microsoft says points have no cash value. You can only exchange them for items in the Rewards catalog, such as gift cards, sweepstakes entries or donations.

Can kids join Microsoft Rewards?

Children under 13 (or the child age in their country) need a parent or guardian to give consent when the Microsoft account is created.

How do I see past sweepstakes winners?

Microsoft posts results on the winners page of the Rewards Redeem section, and each sweepstakes page lists its own terms and conditions.

What happens if I leave the program?

You can opt out from the link on Microsoft’s Rewards help page, but you lose all available points when you do. Redeem what you can first.

To get going, sign in at rewards.bing.com with the Microsoft account you use most, complete today’s daily set, and set a goal on the Redeem page so you can watch your progress add up. For a full list of methods in Microsoft’s words, see how to earn Microsoft Rewards points on Microsoft Support.