PlayStation Plus is Sony’s monthly subscription service that is required for online play on PlayStation 4 and, soon, PS5 consoles.
It also gives access to free games each month, as well as great discounts on games bought through the PlayStation Store.
In addition, from November PlayStation 5 owners will get a collection of amazing PS4 games to play at no extra cost.
So here’s everything you need to know about PS Plus, including how much it costs and all the benefits.
What is PS Plus?
PlayStation Plus is a monthly subscription service that enables online, multiplayer play for PS4 games, as well as PS5 titles from November.
It is required to play the vast majority of games online – only some free-to-play titles are exempt.
It started many years ago, with the service launching for PlayStation 3 initially. It was also available for PS Vita users, but both consoles have since been discontinued and PS Plus is no longer active on either.
As well as online play, it includes discounts, access to early trials of games, and a few other benefits. You can read about them below.
How much does PlayStation Plus cost?
PS Plus can be paid for monthly, quarterly or annually.
Monthly membership costs £6.99 / $9.99. It is £19.99 / $24.99 for 3-months, or you can pay for 12-months upfront for £49.99 / $59.99. Naturally, the latter is the most cost effective plan.
You can sign up for PS Plus either through your console, the PlayStation Store online, or purchase a voucher from a number of retailers.
What does PS Plus membership include?
There are a number of benefits included with PS Plus membership. You can read about each blow.
Online play
PlayStation Plus is a requirement for PS4 and PS5 gamers to play each other online. Only some free-to-play games are exempt – the vast majority will only give you access to online multiplayer if you have an active PS Plus subscription.
Free games
At least two PS4 games are available to download and play each month at no extra cost. They are yours to keep as long as you remain a PS Plus member. You can see the latest free games here.
We’re not yet sure whether the PS5 will get its own monthly free games, whether it will be able to access the same PS4 titles, or whether the PlayStation Plus Collection is a replacement for PS5 owners (see below).
Exclusive discounts
PS Plus members get exclusive discounts on many digital download games on the PlayStation Store. Traditionally, there are also added discounts for members on sale games during major sales periods.
Cloud storage
All PS Plus members get 100GB of cloud storage for save games, so even if you lose your save data stored on a PS4 (and, premusably, PS5), you will be able to recover it later.
Also, if you own a second PS4 and want to carry on playing the same game, you can transfer save games from machine to machine.
PlayStation Plus Collection
Unique to the PlayStation 5, the PS Plus Collection will be available from launch and comprises 18 first and third-party PS4 games to download and play from day one (through backward compatibility). They will be available at no extra cost to PS5 owners with PS Plus.
PlayStation Plus Collection game list
Here are the games available in the PlayStation Plus Collection (as of 12 November 2020):
- Batman: Arkham Knight
- Battlefield 1
- Bloodborne
- Days Gone
- Detroit: Become Human
- Final Fantasy 15
- Fallout 4
- God of War
- Infamous Second Son
- Monster Hunter World
- Mortal Kombat X
- Persona 5
- Ratchet & Clank
- The Last Guardian
- The Last of Us Remastered
- Resident Evil 7: Biohazard
- Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End
- Until Dawn
We will update this list as and when more games are announced.