Windows 10 gains market share again less than a year before retirement

Windows 10 gains market share again less than a year before retirement

Ten months before Windows 10’s official retirement date, the OS is still by far the most popular version of Windows, with market share even rising slightly.

62.7 percent of Windows systems worldwide run on Windows 10 and only 34.12 percent on Windows 11, according to data from Statcounter, based on December 2024. A month earlier, Windows 10’s market share was 61.83 percent; in October it was 60.95.

No more decline

October, according to the figures, was also immediately the last month in which the percentage usage of Windows 10 fell and that of Windows 11 rose. So about 10 months before Microsoft stops updates to Windows 10, more systems seem to be running on the OS instead of fewer.

Statcounter’s figures are difficult to verify, since Microsoft itself does not share official statistics. In general, though, they do show a reliable trend based on data from computers visiting any of the 1.5 million websites in the Statcounter network. These show at least that Windows 10 remains immensely popular, with little incentive to upgrade in large numbers despite the impending deadline.

Three options

On Oct. 14, 2025, Microsoft will stop updates for Windows 10. Those who want to stay safe have limited updates. Either you can update to Windows 11, but Microsoft has intentionally artificially limited that option by attaching some unique system requirements to the installation of the operating system. As a result, many older systems fall by the wayside. On Oct. 14, they turn into garbage, even though they are actually capable of running Windows 11.

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Microsoft doesn’t deny that. Somewhat ironically, and presumably in an effort to boost Windows 11 usage, Redmond announced in early December that you can effectively bypass the minimum system requirements, at your own risk. Upgrading that way is an option.

The third and final option for those who want to stay safe is to give Microsoft money. In hold for a fee, companies can buy out several years of additional support. For the first time, there is now also a formula for individuals.

Choose or lose

Over the next 10 months, consumers and businesses still using Windows 10 should consider at least one of those three options. Remaining idle is a big risk. After all, as with the retirement of Windows 7 and Windows XP, critical security updates stop. Those who continue to use such a system run an ever-increasing risk of falling victim to malware.

Belgium does perform above average. In our country, too, Windows 10 is still the largest and has stopped its decline in market share, but the difference with Windows 11 is much smaller: 50.95 percent versus 46.59 percent. That is still slightly better than the Netherlands, with 55.05 percent for Windows 10 versus 43.59 percent for Windows 11. France follows more the global trend: 61.18 percent versus 35.96 percent.