Can you download and install games while your Xbox One is off?

If you need to download a game like Fortnite on your Xbox One but don’t want to leave the console running, you have options.

You may have heard that your Xbox can supposedly download and install games while you’re not using it, but the first time you tried – you woke up to the same install percentage as the night before. What gives?

With this in mind, you might wonder, “do games still download when the Xbox One is off?”

The answer is yes, they do. But your console probably isn’t set up to allow downloads when it isn’t in use. So, let’s fix that.

Do games download when the Xbox One is off

Short Answer: Yes (but you’ll need to dive into the Settings menu to enable it)

Your Xbox One needs to be set to Instant-on to download games while it’s off. That keeps it in a low-power state, ready to switch on at a moment’s notice.

In addition, It also keeps the network connection and hard drives running.

What is Instant-on mode on Xbox One?

Xbox One’s Instant-on is a feature that allows your console to keep chugging along in the background, even while it looks like it’s taking a nap.

By enabling it, you can take advantage of its power-saving capabilities while it downloads and installs updates, games, and apps. You won’t even have to wait for it to wake up

Think of it as a power nap for your Xbox One. It’s not fully asleep, but it’s not wide awake, either. It’s just dozing off while it gets its work done.

And when you come back to it, everything is updated and ready to go. Pretty cool, right? Here’s how to enable it.

How to download games while your Xbox One is off 

You’ll first need to set your console to Instant-on mode to get your Xbox One to download games while it’s off.

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Doing this, the console is in a low-power state and keeps the network connection and hard drives running, so it can quickly switch on when needed.

Here’s how to turn it on.

That’s all you need to do. Now when you turn your Xbox One off via the controller, or it goes to sleep after inactivity, it’ll keep downloading games to install or update.

Download games while your Xbox One is off with the right settings

Once you have the correct settings, your Xbox One console will download games while it’s off. This is a great way to download your games without keeping your console on the entire time.

Just start a game download, and you can let the console go to sleep or turn it off yourself.

When you return, the game will either still be downloading or finished, so you can hop in and start gaming.

And yes, you can still play games while they’re downloading on the Xbox One, just in case you were wondering.

Are there any downsides to using Instant-On mode on Xbox One?

One of the downsides is that it does use a bit more power than just turning off your console completely.

So, if you’re worried about your energy bill, it might be a good idea to turn off Instant-On mode and manually download and install updates and games when you’re not using your Xbox.

Another thing to consider is that sometimes things can go wrong with your network connection or with the console itself while it’s in Instant-On mode.

This could result in some updates or downloads failing, which can be a real bummer. But hey, don’t let that scare you off from using Instant-On mode altogether.

As long as you keep those few things in mind, it’s a handy feature that can make your gaming experience even more enjoyable.

What do you think? Plan on using this feature on your console? Let us know down below in the comments, or carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

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