Windows 11’s market share remains roughly equal to Windows 10. The official end of support has brought about few updates.
While Microsoft didn’t keep its promise about Windows 10 being the ‘last major Windows version ever,’ users seem intent on pretending that’s still the case for as long as possible. After Windows 11 overtook Windows 10 this summer as the most popular operating system, the OS continues to muddle along.
Windows 11 holds about 53.7 percent of the PC market, while Windows 10 continues to appeal to 42.7 percent of users. This emerges from Statcounter figures, which aren’t extremely accurate but nonetheless provide a good idea of the current situation.
Explainable
We don’t need to look far for possible explanations. By imposing artificially high system requirements, Microsoft has made it impossible for many users to upgrade older but perfectly functional PCs. Replacing a device is then the only option. Neither business users (such as small companies with a solid workstation that still does its job) nor consumers are eager to be forced to invest in new hardware.
Under pressure from Europe, Microsoft has also made its Extended Security Update program free for consumers for one year. EU users of Windows 10 with a Microsoft account receive an extra year of support with security updates. Companies can also benefit from ESU, though that does cost money.
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In Belgium, we see that Windows 11 adoption is significantly higher (66.97 percent versus 31.99 percent for Windows 10). Moreover, market share continues to rise. In the Netherlands, the situation is similar (71.95 percent for Windows 11).
Slower than previous versions
On a global level, Windows 11 adoption is painfully slow, especially compared to the end of support for Windows XP and Windows 7. The imposed requirement to throw functional hardware in the trash seems to noticeably hinder adoption.
We also see this in our own figures. 31 percent of IT professionals who visit ITdaily use Windows 10 with free or paid ESU. As many as nineteen percent had a Windows 10 system in use without ESU at the time of the survey, after the end of support.