Microsoft Layoffs 2026: Latest Cuts, Timeline & WARN Notices

On September 22, 2026, Microsoft eliminated 268 roles across its Xbox game studios. The same memo moved the next Halo game to Activision.

Two days later, a Washington filing listed the roles: artists, game designers, producers, audio designers, software engineers. 277 positions, last day November 21.

It was Microsoft's second layoff round in less than three months. The first took about 4,800 jobs.

On October 26, Microsoft offered a voluntary exit package to about 60,000 employees, roughly a quarter of its workforce.

If your badge says Microsoft, LinkedIn, GitHub or Xbox, the headlines blur together. The dates, the filings and the packages do not.

Microsoft layoffs today: latest update (October 30, 2026)

The newest move is a buyout, not a layoff. On October 26, Microsoft opened a Voluntary Exit Offer to about 60,000 employees. The latest confirmed layoff round began on September 22, and its Washington positions end on November 21. No new company-wide layoff round or Washington WARN filing was found in company posts, filings or major reporting as of October 30.

What happened since July, newest first:

• October 28: earnings call. Hood said the company's cost guidance "includes an estimate for the recently announced employee voluntary exit offer." She gave no separate figure for it (Microsoft Investor Relations).
• October 26: Voluntary Exit Offer. Chief people officer Amy Coleman announced it in a memo for employees at level 70 and below in participating teams in the US, Canada, the UK and India. About 60,000 are eligible; employees decide by early December and those who accept leave on December 31 (CNBC). Microsoft told GeekWire the offer is not a replacement for layoffs, which remain part of its approach depending on business conditions (GeekWire). Details in the buyout section.
• October 12 and 13: cuts in Israel and Kenya. About 50 Copilot Studio employees in Israel were called to pre-dismissal hearings, with about half expected to remain in roles at the R&D center (Calcalist). In Nairobi, Microsoft said it was "communicating directly with employees in Kenya about proposed changes to our engineering operations"; Capital FM reported that part of the Africa Development Centre would close (Capital FM). No headcount was published for Kenya.
• October 5: Ninja Theory layoffs reportedly begin. GamesBeat cited staff posts on social media; no headcount was given. Microsoft had opened consultation on a proposed closure of the UK studio after two agreements to hand it off fell through.
• September 24: Washington filing made public. 277 positions: 252 at the Redmond campus and 25 remote. Art, game production, game design, technical art and audio account for 77; software engineering for 60 (GeekWire).
• September 22: fewer than 600 cuts globally, about 300 in Washington. 268 were in Xbox Game Studios; the rest were in areas including cloud, AI, marketing and research (GeekWire). Xbox content chief Matt Booty wrote that the actions since July, including the studio divestitures, bring Xbox "roughly three-quarters of the way through" its restructuring (Xbox Wire).
• July 29: annual report and earnings call. Microsoft reported about 223,000 full-time employees on June 30 (Form 10-K). CFO Amy Hood said "total company headcount declined 2% year-over-year" (Microsoft Investor Relations).
• July 6: about 4,800 jobs cut, the year's largest round. Details in the next section.

On an H-1B or OPT?

If your employment at Microsoft is ending, request the actual employment end date and immigration documents from HR first. Review the I-94, approval notices and any salary-continuation or severance arrangement with immigration counsel; do not calculate from the date a payment reaches your bank. If you are weighing the Voluntary Exit Offer, take those documents to counsel before you accept: people who accept leave on December 31.

Microsoft layoffs July 2026: 4,800 jobs and an Xbox reset

Chief people officer Amy Coleman wrote that "the roles eliminated today are not being replaced by AI." She also wrote that "AI is changing how work gets done" and that "there will be more changes ahead; other parts of our business will need to make similar changes."

The Xbox plan: 3,200 roles through fiscal 2027

• Compulsion Games and Double Fine return to their management and become independent studios with their IP.
• Ninja Theory and Undead Labs had agreed terms to join new owners. In September, Xbox said both Ninja Theory agreements had fallen through and opened consultation on a proposed closure of the studio.
• Arkane in France entered a works council consultation on "potential strategic options."

The September 22 round added studio moves: the next Halo game and Rare and World's Edge go to Activision, Obsidian moves under Bethesda, and Playground and Turn 10 combine into one studio.

Microsoft layoffs timeline: 2023 to 2026

Microsoft rarely gives a headcount itself. It gave percentages in 2025, and outlets converted them to the familiar 6,000 and 9,000. Rows can overlap with each other and with the WARN table below, so they should not be added together.

The Microsoft buyouts: voluntary retirement and voluntary exit

The retirement offer is closed. In her July 6 memo, Coleman wrote that Microsoft "will continue exploring similar approaches in the future." On October 26, it announced the next one.

The October 2026 Voluntary Exit Offer

Microsoft WARN notices by state

WARN filings show where cuts land and when employment ends. They are site counts, not company totals.

Both 2026 Washington filings ran exactly 60 days: July 6 to September 4, and September 22 to November 21.

Washington (Redmond, Bellevue, Issaquah)

Other states: California, Maryland, Texas

These rows include LinkedIn and the gaming companies, which file under their own names.

Why Microsoft keeps cutting jobs

Microsoft's headcount barely moved for three years while it cut thousands of jobs. Then, in fiscal 2026, it fell.

What Microsoft's leaders said, round by round:

• 2023: Customers were trying to "optimize their digital spend to do more with less," Satya Nadella wrote, adding that Microsoft "will continue to hire in key strategic areas."
• 2025: "Our overall headcount is relatively unchanged," Nadella wrote in July. "This is the enigma of success in an industry that has no franchise value" (Microsoft).
• 2026: "We expect headcount will decrease year-over-year," Hood said in April (earnings call). President Brad Smith told GeekWire: "Microsoft can only be a strong employer if it has a successful business." GeekWire tied the July cuts to record AI infrastructure spending and a 30% stock slide over nine months.

These statements explain priorities. They do not say which teams are next.

Microsoft severance package: what each round paid

Under the reported July formula, an employee at level 63 with six years of service would get 12 weeks; at level 66 with the same tenure, 24 weeks. Level 68 and above has a separate package.

Microsoft vs LinkedIn, GitHub and Xbox: who cut what

Searches for "Microsoft layoffs" mix four employers with different filings and memos. The table keeps them apart.

What Microsoft employees are saying (unverified)

Anonymous posts move faster than filings. They are also wrong more often.

• Before July: a Blind summary from July 3 described posts pointing to a large July round, with some employees relieved the wait would end.
• On severance: a June 30 Blind post claimed most cuts would come as low ("LITE") performance ratings without severance. Some replies disputed it, and the later reported July offers included severance.
• Inside Xbox: Aftermath reported that some internal Xbox product teams lost "30-40 percent of their staff."
• In January: posts on Reddit and Blind fed the 11,000 to 22,000 rumor that Microsoft called "100 percent made up."

Laid off from Microsoft: first steps

A Microsoft notice starts several clocks at once: last day, stock vests, benefits and, for visa holders, immigration.

My role on the [team or organization] was eliminated in Microsoft's [month and year] restructuring, along with [number] others.

Before that, I [specific accomplishment, with a measured result].

I'm looking for a role where I can do more of [skill], which is why this position stands out.

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Prepared by Careery Team

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Reviewed byBogdan Serebryakov

Researching Job Market & Building AI Tools for careerists · since December 2020