The GTA 6 preload starts at midnight local time on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, on PS5. If you’re playing on Xbox Series X|S in the U.S., you can start downloading the game at 4 PM PT / 7 PM ET on Monday, November 9. Here’s when the Grand Theft Auto VI preload goes live in your region.
GTA 6 Preload Start Times on PS5 and Xbox
According to Rockstar Games, the GTA 6 preload starts at midnight local time on Tuesday, November 10, on PS5. That means players in New Zealand can start downloading the game hours before players in the U.S.
On Xbox Series X|S, the GTA 6 preload starts at 4 PM PT / 7 PM ET on Monday, November 9 in the U.S. That’s the same time as Rockstar’s listed global Xbox preload start of 12 AM GMT on Tuesday, November 10.
Here’s when the GTA 6 preload starts on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S in major time zones around the world. All times are local to the region listed:
How to Preload GTA 6
If you’ve digitally pre-ordered Grand Theft Auto VI, you can set your console to download it automatically. On PS5, enable auto-downloads and leave your console on or in Rest Mode.
On Xbox Series X|S, enable automatic updates and leave your console on or in Sleep mode. If you’re on PS5, PlayStation recommends clearing at least 212 GB of storage space before the download starts.
When Can You Play GTA 6?
Once you’ve preloaded GTA 6, you’ll be able to play when the game unlocks at midnight local time on Thursday, November 19, 2026. That launch time applies to both PS5 and Xbox Series X|S, even though the preload schedule is different for each console.
For the full GTA 6 release times list per region, check out our Grand Theft Auto VI launch guide which includes all time zones.
The post When Does GTA 6 Preload Start? Download Times by Region appeared first on VICE.
