Windows 11 is now the most popular OS for Steam users worldwide, though it took longer than Windows 10 did

(Image credit: Microsoft)

Originally launching back in the latter half of 2021, it has taken Windows 11 just shy of three years to become the most popular OS for Steam users globally, according to the latest Steam Hardware Survey.

In August, Windows 11 made up 49.17% of polled computers, with Windows 10 users falling to 47.09%. If you're interested in where the rest of the Microsoft OS clan line up in the stats, Windows 7 sits at 0.037% and Windows 8.1 makes up just 0.07%. The latest Steam Hardware survey shows that as new gaming PCs are purchased with Windows 11 preinstalled, the percentage of other OSes decreases to accommodate those figures.

In May 2021, Windows 10 had 92% of the market. When Windows 10 took over Windows 7, it did so at just 34% percent, which can be partially attributed to the lack of popularity of Windows 8.1, and the slow decline of Windows 7. Both Windows 7 and 8.1 make up mere fractions of percentages of the player base right now, suggesting Steam gamers were more varied in their Windows OS choice in 2016 than they are now. Despite this, Windows 10 managed to become the most popular OS on Steam in just a single year.

It's important to note, when looking at Steam Hardware Surveys that they are optional and anonymous. This means that, while they offer a good figure of what percentage of the player base uses certain machines, it's only an estimation, extrapolated out for the broader population.

Windows 11 is the most popular OS according to the survey, and given previous surveys and the slow growth of Windows 11 stats in them, this tracks with what was expected but it could change month over month.

The rest of the Steam stats are well worth digging into, too, especially to gauge extra information like PSVR2 adoption thanks to the PSVR2 PC Adapter, the increase of Simplified Chinese machines (perhaps related to the success of Black Myth: Wukong), and how much free hard drive space users have. Those with less than 10GB free at any moment are truly living life on the edge of their gaming chair.

Congratulations, Windows 11! You took your time but you're finally at the very top of the pile.

James is a more recent PC gaming convert, often admiring graphics cards, cases, and motherboards from afar. It was not until 2019, after just finishing a degree in law and media, that they decided to throw out the last few years of education, build their PC, and start writing about gaming instead. In that time, he has covered the latest doodads, contraptions, and gismos, and loved every second of it. Hey, it’s better than writing case briefs.