Does my friend has to buy the game?

[Marcelo Regis]

Does my friend has to pay for the game too in order to play with me?

[Creepercharge56]

yes, there isn't split-screen.

[PianoDev25]

If they have gamepass, it’s on there (there are plenty of different ways to get yourself a free month or really cheap by the way).

If you know this friend in real life and trust them, you could also gameshare.