6 months after Windows 10 was put to pasture, over a quarter of Steam users are still on the dying OS

The Windows 10 default wallpaper, wearing a little MS Paint crown that I feel accurately describes the weight of loss we're all experiencing as a result of its eventual demise. Also, a poorly-drawn RIP. And a sad face. — (Image credit: Microsoft)

The latest Steam Hardware Survey shows Windows with a commanding 93.47% share of users on the platform, but below that muscular statistic lies a far more embarrassing one: Only 67.74% of Steam users are on Windows 11, almost five years after its initial release.

Perhaps even more surprising, six months after Windows 10's official end of life, more than a quarter of Steam users (25.53%) are still on the moribund OS, which had its own official release almost 11 years ago. I find it difficult to see this as anything but a massive blunder for the default PC operating system, though the hardware market is also contributing to Microsoft's adoption problem.

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A hardware upgrade solely to access a stagnant version of Windows is a tough ask under any conditions. It's especially onerous now: Hardware prices are skyrocketing and top of the line rigs struggle to run poorly optimized PC ports. But paradoxically, withered processors and graphics cards are able to be stretched for 10 years or more, depending on the graphical compromises you're willing to make.

I don't think the next phase of the Linux gaming renaissance is in danger of commencing any time soon, either: After cracking 5% of Steam users in March's survey, the April Steam Hardware Survey showed them dropping back to a still-impressive 4.52%—so not a catastrophe, but the numbers just aren't going to the moon (yet).

Windows is still in a tight spot, with even governments like France committing to alternatives. I see parallels to the divisive Windows Vista and 8 being followed by the unifying forces of Windows 7 and 10 respectively. Microsoft could turn things around with a crowd-pleasing Windows 12, but in the era of Copilot and Recall, I'm not convinced it still has that three-seam fastball.

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Ted has been thinking about PC games and bothering anyone who would listen with his thoughts on them ever since he booted up his sister's copy of Neverwinter Nights on the family computer. He is obsessed with all things CRPG and CRPG-adjacent, but has also covered esports, modding, and rare game collecting. When he's not playing or writing about games, you can find Ted lifting weights on his back porch. You can follow Ted on Bluesky.