How to Earn and Redeem Microsoft Rewards Using Bing (2026 Guide)

Microsoft Rewards is a legitimate points program that pays you—in gift cards, subscriptions, and donations—for using Bing and other Microsoft products. With consistent daily use, you can realistically earn $5–$10 worth of rewards every month for about 10 minutes of effort per day. Here’s exactly how the program works in 2026, including the recent tier overhaul and the end of direct Game Pass redemptions.

At a Glance: What You Can Earn Daily

Activity	Points	Notes
Bing PC search	Up to 150 pts	30 searches × 5 pts
Bing mobile search	Up to 100 pts	20 searches × 5 pts
Microsoft Edge bonus	Up to 20 pts	4 searches × 5 pts in Edge
Daily Set (quiz/trivia)	15–30 pts	Resets daily at midnight
Bing quiz/poll activities	10–30 pts	Varies by day
Xbox weekly console bonus	Up to 260 pts/week	Game Pass Ultimate members
STAR Bonus (Level 2 only)	Up to 2,000+ pts/month	New in 2026; based on natural search behavior

Step 1: Sign Up and Access the Dashboard

To get started, you need a free Microsoft account. If you don’t have one, create it at account.microsoft.com. Once you’re signed in:

Open a browser and go to rewards.bing.com
Your points balance and daily earning progress are shown at the top
The Earn tab shows all available activities today
The Redeem tab shows the full rewards catalog

You don’t need to install anything to start earning, though the Microsoft Edge browser and the Bing app on mobile will maximize your daily point total.

Step 2: Earn Points Through Bing Searches

Bing searches are the fastest and most consistent way to accumulate points.

On PC

Set Bing as your default search engine in your browser. Each search on Bing through a desktop browser earns 5 points, up to 150 points per day (30 searches). For the Edge browser bonus on top of that, use Edge specifically for at least 4 searches per day to earn an extra 20 points.

How to set Bing as default in Edge:
Go to Settings → Privacy, Search and Services → Address bar and search → Search engine used in the address bar → Bing

How to set Bing as default in Chrome:
Go to Settings → Search engine → Manage search engines → Set Bing as default

On Mobile

Download the Bing app (iOS or Android) or set Bing as your default browser search engine on your phone. Mobile searches earn up to 100 points per day (20 searches × 5 pts). Mobile and PC limits are tracked separately, so you can earn both in the same day.

Important: January 2026 Point Limit Changes

Microsoft restructured earning limits in early 2026. In several regions (Canada, Australia, and others), PC search earning was reduced to lower daily caps. US accounts remain on the legacy system for now, but a similar restructuring is expected. Check your dashboard’s daily progress bar to confirm your current limits—they may differ from what older guides describe.

Step 3: Complete the Daily Set

Every day, the Microsoft Rewards dashboard refreshes with three quick activities under Daily Set:

A trivia question (10 pts)
A quiz or poll (10 pts)
A news article click or search (10 pts)

These take under 2 minutes to complete and add 30 points per day, or roughly 900 points per month on top of your search earnings. After a March 2026 reduction from 10 pts to 5 pts per activity, Microsoft reversed the change on April 1, 2026, restoring Daily Set points to 10 pts each following user backlash.

Step 4: Understand the Tier System

Microsoft Rewards uses a two-tier system in the US (Level 1 and Level 2), with some regions transitioning to a three-tier Member/Silver/Gold structure in 2026.

Feature	Level 1	Level 2
Requirement	Default on signup	Earn 500+ pts in any month
PC search daily cap	150 pts	150 pts
Mobile search daily cap	100 pts	100 pts
Microsoft Store purchases	1 pt per $1	10 pts per $1
Exclusive discounts	No	Yes
STAR Bonus	No	Yes (up to 2,000+ pts/month)

How to reach Level 2: Earn at least 500 points in a calendar month through any combination of searches, quizzes, and other activities. Once you hit Level 2, you stay there as long as you keep earning 500+ points per month. Consistent daily searches alone are enough to maintain it.

The STAR Bonus (New in 2026)

Level 2 members in participating regions can earn a monthly lump-sum bonus—up to 2,000+ points—for “authentic” search behavior throughout the month. In practice, this means searching naturally every day rather than doing all your searches in one session. Microsoft’s own data shows that most users earn fewer than 300 points from this bonus monthly; the maximum is achievable but not typical.

Step 5: Earn Points Through Other Microsoft Activities

Beyond searches, Microsoft Rewards has several additional earning channels:

Xbox and gaming: If you have an Xbox or Game Pass Ultimate subscription, open the Rewards app on your console and complete available quests. Game Pass Ultimate members earn up to 260 points per week through the Weekly Console Bonus.

Microsoft Store shopping: Qualifying purchases at the Microsoft Store earn you 1–20 points per dollar depending on your tier and subscription level.

Punch cards and streaks: Look for punch card activities in the Earn tab. These reward consistent engagement over multiple days and can add hundreds of bonus points when completed.

Office 365 activities: Some Microsoft 365 subscribers have access to additional earning activities tied to Word, Excel, or other Office apps. Check the Earn tab while signed in.

Step 6: Redeem Your Points

Once you’ve accumulated points, head to rewards.bing.com/redeem to browse the catalog. Here’s what your points are currently worth:

Reward	Points Required
$5 Xbox gift card	~5,300 pts
$5 Amazon gift card	~5,500 pts
$10 Xbox gift card	~10,750 pts
Nonprofit donation ($1 equivalent)	~1,000 pts
Sweepstakes entry	100–500 pts each

As a general rule, 1,000 points ≈ $1 USD—though the exact conversion varies by reward type, and some gift cards cost slightly more points per dollar than others.

Xbox Game Pass: No More Direct Redemptions (as of October 2025)

As of October 1, 2025, Microsoft removed the ability to redeem points directly for Xbox Game Pass subscriptions. If you want to use Rewards for Game Pass, the current process is:

Redeem points for an Xbox gift card (e.g., $5 or $10)
Go to your Xbox account and redeem the gift card code
Apply the gift card balance toward a Game Pass subscription purchase

This extra step is inconvenient but the underlying value is the same—you’re still paying for Game Pass with earned points, just through an intermediate gift card.

How to Redeem

Go to rewards.bing.com/redeem
Browse or search for your preferred reward
Click the reward, confirm your Microsoft account, and complete the redemption
Gift card codes typically arrive via email within minutes; some take up to 5 business days

Tips to Maximize Your Monthly Points

Use both devices every day. PC and mobile limits are separate, so you can earn up to 270 points/day from searches alone (150 PC + 100 mobile + 20 Edge bonus). Over a month that’s ~8,100 points from searches.

Complete the Daily Set every day. It takes 2 minutes and adds ~900 points per month for free.

Combine PC searches with Edge. The 20-point Edge bonus requires only 4 searches in Edge—do these first before switching to another browser.

Don’t use bots or automation. Microsoft actively detects scripted searches and bot-like patterns. Accounts caught using automation are banned from redeeming points, often permanently. There’s no appeal process. Stick to natural, organic searching.

Set a daily reminder. The single biggest reason people fail to earn consistently is forgetting. A 5-minute daily habit—open Bing, search a few things, complete the Daily Set—is all it takes to earn a $10 gift card every month.

Watch the Earn tab for bonus offers. Microsoft regularly runs limited-time promotions that offer 500–1,000 bonus points for specific activities. These expire quickly and are easy to miss.

Important Rules and Expiration

Points expire if there is no earning activity on your account for 18 consecutive months. Any earning activity resets the clock.
Daily limits and available activities vary by country and region. Some rewards are US-only.
Microsoft Rewards points have no cash value—they can only be redeemed for catalog items.
As of 2026, the program is available in the US, UK, Canada, Australia, Germany, France, Japan, and several other markets.

Our Recommendation

For most users, the optimal routine takes under 10 minutes a day:

Open Bing, do a handful of natural searches on your PC (hits the daily cap automatically if you do 30)
Complete the Daily Set on rewards.bing.com
Do a few Bing searches on your phone

This earns roughly 8,000–10,000 points per month, enough for a $10 Xbox gift card every month with no additional effort. Redeem for an Amazon gift card instead if you prefer cash-equivalent value for everyday purchases.

For Xbox gamers on Game Pass Ultimate, adding the Weekly Console Bonus on your Xbox pushes the total to 12,000+ points monthly—closer to $12–$13 per month in gift cards.

The program is genuinely worthwhile as long as you don’t overthink it. Treat it as a passive benefit of using Bing for your everyday searches rather than a side hustle, and the gift cards add up without disrupting your normal routine.