Top cloud gaming services compared

Our top picks

1. 1. PlayStation Direct

   PlayStation Direct takes the fourth slot in this ranking because it is the member that streams into a console as well as a browser. Sony Interactive Entertainment LLC sells it from the United Kingdom and has been in the console business since 1994, and the plan bundles game library, cloud gaming and online multiplayer under the same subscription with a ceiling of full HD. Help runs through help centre and community, which is thin beside the members above it.

   • Price model: Subscription
   • Markets: AT, BE, FR, and 8 more
   • Legal entity: Sony Interactive Entertainment LLC

   Pros

   • Games, add-ons and downloads all come from the platform holder's own store, so a purchase lands on the account you already sign in with.
   • A purchase is ready when you switch the console on, so nothing is posted and no key has to be typed in.
   • If something you buy is faulty, the company says it will always try to get it fixed or replaced.
   • The membership is a subscription that covers game library, cloud gaming and online multiplayer.
   • The region is shown on the store, so you can check which market a purchase belongs to before you pay.

   Cons

   • A code redeems only against an account registered in the same country as the store it came from, and the region is shown, so a shopper buying for a player elsewhere has to match the market first.
   • The membership is a subscription whose fee is charged automatically, so a plan you have finished with keeps billing until you turn it off.
   • Games sit alongside add-ons and more in the same store, so a reader after one title works through the extras as well.
   • Cloud streaming runs at full HD but asks for a set minimum internet speed, so a slow line makes streaming the weakest part of the membership.

2. X2. Xbox

   Microsoft Corporation runs it from the United States.

   • Plan price per month: $9.99
   • Free trial length: 14 days
   • Games in the library (games): 50 to 500

   Pros

   • The Essential plan costs $9.99 a month once the 14 trial ends, so the recurring figure is easy to predict
   • The library covers 50 to 500 games, with new titles added each month
   • Cloud streaming reaches a PC, a console or a browser, so a game can follow you away from the machine under your television
   • Digital gift cards are delivered by email, so you can top up an account or send one as a present
   • Support reaches you by email, a published phone number or a help centre, so an account or billing question can get an answer

   Cons

   • The plan is a recurring charge at $9.99 a month, so the cost comes back even in months you do not play
   • The library size of 50 to 500 games depends on the tier you pick, so the figure you read varies by plan

3. 3. Shadow

   Shadow sits fifth in this ranking on price rather than breadth of service, and that is the honest trade it offers. What it sells is cloud gaming, so the stream comes without a library bundled beside it, which is where it parts company with PlayStation Direct above it. The other limit is support: help runs through help centre and community, with no phone or email route listed. AirGPU, the member below it, matches the resolution on fewer screens.

   • Plan price per month: €25.99
   • Maximum resolution: 4k
   • Markets: US, CA, FR, and 11 more

4. 4. AirGPU

   Stackprint dba airgpu runs it from the Netherlands, with the company founded in 2021. The service is deliberately narrow: PC and mobile pick up the stream, what it sells is cloud gaming and online multiplayer, and the picture runs to 4k. Support comes through email, help centre and community, which pairs email with a help centre and community boards but no phone line. Set against Shadow, the member ranked above it, AirGPU reaches fewer screens and matches Shadow on resolution, so the choice turns on where you play rather than how sharp it looks.

   • Free trial length: 0 days
   • Maximum resolution: 4k
   • Legal entity: Stackprint dba airgpu

   Pros

   • Sessions stream to PCs and phones, so you play on hardware you already own instead of buying a new console or gaming rig.
   • The same remote machines take GPU-heavy workloads, so creative jobs and games share the same setup.
   • Streaming runs through Parsec or Moonlight, so a television or monitor in the room makes a good screen.
   • A named Dutch company, Stackprint dba airgpu, publishes an address, business number and VAT number, so a real party answers for the service.

   Cons

   • Support runs on email, help centre and community, so help arrives in writing and no phone line sits in the mix.
   • The company has traded since 2021, so its record of uptime and account support is a short one.
   • Anti-cheat narrows cloud gaming and online multiplayer in practice, because some titles use software that blocks cloud PCs and a game you had planned for can refuse to start.

Top cloud gaming services compared by country

• Canada
• France
• Germany
• Italy
• Spain
• United Kingdom
• United States

The data behind this ranking

All data and the CSV