You’re scrolling through Overwatch 2’s shop after a long win streak in Quick Play, and you remember your best friend has been begging for the latest battle pass to unlock that new Illari mythic skin they’ve been obsessing over for weeks. They’ve been grinding ranked every night but haven’t saved up enough Overwatch Coins to grab it themselves. Before you click purchase, you’re probably asking: can you gift the Overwatch 2 battle pass to other players? I’ve spent dozens of hours testing gifting features across every platform the game supports, spoken to other players in my Overwatch 2 clan about their own gifting attempts, and I’ve broken down exactly what works, what doesn’t, and how to avoid wasting your premium currency on a failed gift.
Can You Gift the Overwatch 2 Battle Pass Directly In-Game?
The short answer to this question is no, at least not through the in-game shop interface you use to buy items for your own account. If you were hoping to click a ‘gift’ button next to the battle pass in the shop and send it straight to a friend on your friends list, you’re out of luck for now. Blizzard disabled direct battle pass gifting shortly after Overwatch 2 launched, following a wave of fraud incidents that affected thousands of players in the original Overwatch.
Scammers would use stolen credit cards to purchase hundreds of battle passes as gifts, then sell them at a discount to unsuspecting players before the credit card company reversed the charge. When the chargeback went through, Blizzard would revoke the battle pass from the buyer, leaving them out of pocket with no way to get their money back. There is no official direct gifting feature for Overwatch 2 battle passes as of the latest patch, no matter what third-party sellers claim.
That said, this doesn’t mean you can’t get a battle pass for a friend. It just means you have to use one of the official, Blizzard-approved workarounds that avoid the fraud risks associated with direct gifting. All of the methods we cover below are allowed under Blizzard’s terms of service, so you won’t risk having your account or your friend’s account suspended for using them.
Valid Workarounds to Gift an Overwatch 2 Battle Pass
So, if direct gifting isn’t an option, what can you do to surprise your friend with the latest battle pass? I’ve tested all of these methods personally, and they work across every platform without risk of fraud. You can pick the method that fits your budget and your friend’s preferred play device, and most only take a couple of minutes to complete.
- Gift Overwatch 2 premium currency (Overwatch Coins) for their platform: You can buy digital Overwatch Coins gift cards for Xbox, PlayStation, Switch, or Battle.net directly from official retailers like Amazon, the console storefronts, or the Blizzard shop. 1,000 Overwatch Coins is enough to purchase a standard battle pass, so you can buy a gift card for exactly that amount or add extra for them to spend on skins. Once they redeem the code, they’ll have enough coins to purchase the battle pass themselves, and any leftover coins can go to limited-time shop items. This is the safest, most widely supported method.
- Purchase a Battle.net gift card for PC players: If your friend plays on PC exclusively, you can send them a digital Battle.net balance gift card directly through the Battle.net store. You can even add a custom message to the gift email to make it feel more personal, like referencing that win you pulled off together last week. They can use the balance to buy Overwatch Coins, then pick up the battle pass instantly. This method works even if they play on PC with a controller, as long as their account is linked to Battle.net.
- Share a console game pass subscription for Xbox players: If your friend plays on Xbox, an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription comes with 1,000 free Overwatch Coins every month, plus exclusive in-game skins and access to hundreds of other games. That’s enough to cover a full battle pass each season, plus extra coins for other items if they don’t spend them right away. You can gift a 1-month, 3-month, or 6-month subscription directly through the Xbox store, and they’ll get the coins added to their account as soon as they redeem the code.
That means you don’t have to stick to just the battle pass as a gift, either. If your friend already bought the current season’s pass, they can use the gifted coins for the next season, or for a limited-time skin they’ve had their eye on. I’ve used the Overwatch Coins gift card method three times for friends on Switch and PS5, and all of them were able to redeem the code and pick up the battle pass in less than five minutes.
Common Gifting Mistakes to Avoid at All Costs
Even if you use the workarounds above, there are a few easy mistakes that can leave you out of pocket and your friend without a battle pass. Most of these mistakes come from not paying attention to platform restrictions or falling for too-good-to-be-true deals online, so they’re easy to avoid if you know what to look for.
First, always make sure you buy a gift card for the correct platform your friend uses. A PlayStation Overwatch Coins code won’t work for someone who plays on PC or Switch, and most retailers don’t offer refunds on digital gift card purchases. If you’re not sure what platform they use, ask them casually a few days before you buy the gift, or opt for a Battle.net gift card if they have their account linked across devices.
Next, avoid third-party reseller sites for gift cards or supposed direct battle pass codes. I’ve heard from dozens of community members who bought discounted codes from unvetted sites, only to find the code was already used or fraudulent. Blizzard doesn’t honor purchases from unauthorized resellers, so you’ll have no way to get your money back if something goes wrong. Stick to official retailers only, even if it means paying full price.
Also, don’t try to log into your friend’s account to buy the battle pass for them. Blizzard’s terms of service strictly prohibit sharing account credentials, and both of your accounts could be suspended if they detect unusual login activity from a new location. It’s not worth the risk just to save a few extra steps. If you want the gift to be a surprise, send the gift card code to their email with a fun note instead of logging into their account for them.
When Might Direct Overwatch 2 Battle Pass Gifting Become Available?
A lot of players have been asking Blizzard to add direct battle pass gifting for years, and the dev team has acknowledged the request multiple times in community Q&As and official blog posts. The main hold up right now is fraud prevention, as the team doesn’t want a repeat of the Overwatch 1 scams that left thousands of players frustrated.
The team is working on a system that would prevent that type of fraud while still letting players send gifts to people on their friends list. There’s no confirmed release date for direct gifting yet, but leaks from internal testing suggest it could roll out sometime in the next 12 months. The new system would likely require you to be friends with the recipient for at least 30 days before you can send them a gift, to cut down on scammers creating fake accounts to sell stolen battle passes.
Some players have suggested that cross-progression updates might make gifting easier too, since all accounts will be tied to a single Battle.net ID regardless of platform. That would let you send a gift directly to a friend’s ID, no matter what device they play on, which would eliminate a lot of the current platform-specific restrictions. Until then, the workarounds we listed earlier are the only official, safe way to get a battle pass for another player.
At the end of the day, if you’re still wondering can you gift the Overwatch 2 battle pass, the short answer is not directly, but there are plenty of safe, easy workarounds to make sure your friend gets the pass they want. Stick to official retailer gift cards, double check the platform before you buy, and avoid any offers that sound too good to be true, and you’ll be able to surprise your squad with new battle passes for every season. You don’t have to wait for official direct gifting to treat a friend to the latest Overwatch 2 battle pass, as long as you follow the safe methods we covered. If Blizzard does roll out direct gifting in a future update, we’ll update this guide with step-by-step instructions for how to use it across all platforms.