Windows 11 has finally become more popular than Windows 10 according to one estimate. But there's still a serious amount of work to do to persuade people to upgrade before Windows 10's "end of life" this October.

The figures come from Statcounter, which says that 51.77 percent of Windows computers are now running Windows 11, ahead of Windows 10 on 45.02 percent. The remaining three percent are running even older systems, including a tiny but measurable user base for Windows XP. (Source: statcounter.com)

Statcounter is a company that helps websites measure and analyze their traffic, so its worldwide data is extrapolated from its individual customers. That's a big enough sample group that although the precise figures aren't necessarily "correct", the overall patterns and trends are reliable.

Uptake Speeds Up

Computing notes Windows 11 has shown very slow growth before an expected jump this year. It was on 18 percent in early 2023, 28 percent by the end of the year, and 36 percent at the end of 2024. That means roughly one in seven Windows users have made the switch so far in 2025. (Source: computing.co.uk)

The problem is that the 45 percent still on Windows 10 likely represents more than half a billion users who have yet to upgrade. That appears to be a mix of people not trusting Windows 11 is worth the change, being happy with Windows 10 as it is and, perhaps most importantly, being unwilling or unable to replace existing hardware that is incompatible with Windows 11.

That's enhanced by a perception that some Windows 11 requirements, particularly a security tool called a TPM, are not genuinely necessary for the system to work properly.

Security Deadline Proves Fuzzy

The original plan was that Microsoft would no longer offer security updates and fixes for home users of Windows 10 after this October. Had that happened, half a billion potentially unprotected computers would have been an incredibly enticing target for malware creators looking for vulnerabilities.

Related: What Happens When Windows 10 Reaches End of Life?

Given Microsoft is even better placed to know how slowly Windows 10 users are making the switch, it's not surprising it first announced a paid option to get security updates for another year, before making it free of charge for people who agree to back up their user settings to the cloud.

What's Your Opinion?

Are you surprised it took so long for Windows 11 to become "number one" or did you think it would take longer? Do you think the adoption rate has peaked or will speed up? Does Microsoft risk getting to late 2026 and still having too many Windows 10 users to risk ending security patches?