Microsoft killing support for its most popular operating system isn't working

The discrepancy between Windows 10 users and Windows 11 users is seemingly growing and not in the direction that Microsoft wants.

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According to new data from Statcounter, a renowned web analytics service that has tracking code on more than 1.5 million websites, market share figures between Windows 11 users and Windows 10 users is trending - at least in the short term - toward more Windows 10 adoption, as global desktop share between February 2024 and April 2024 dropped from 28.16% to 25.65%. On the other hand, Windows 10's market share grew from 67.26% to 70.03%.

These numbers, while not being anywhere near as accurate as what Microsoft has internally, are a good indicator for market share, and if they are close to being accurate, it means Windows 10 users aren't being convinced to upgrade to Windows 11, something that Microsoft has been pushing for a few years now, and particularly so since the company announced Windows 10 support would end on October 14, 2025.

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There are a few reasons why Windows 10 market share is seemingly growing, one being an influx of old PCs onto the second-hand market. These PCs, like millions of others around the world, don't have the hardware requirements for Windows 11, leaving users with little choice but to install a later or completely different operating system.

Another reason is the difference between Windows 10 and Windows 11, which some may say is completely aesthetic and not worth the hardware upgrade. As we nudge closer and closer to Windows 10's end-of-support, it will be interesting to see if the millions of Windows 10 users begin to jump ship or if Microsoft suddenly decides to reduce the hardware restrictions so more users are able to upgrade without having to spend money on new parts.

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If the latter doesn't occur Microsoft will be left with a large portion of its Windows users on an operating system that officially isn't receiving any new updates from its developers, leaving Windows 10 users potentially exposed through a lack of updated security.