Last month, Statcounter reported a notable decrease in Windows 11’s market share, and the trend continued in April 2024. After reaching its all-time high of 28.16% in February 2024, Windows 11 plummeted below the 26% mark.
According to Statcounter, in April 2024, Windows 11 lost 0.97 points, going down from 26.68% to 25.65%. All those users seemingly went for Windows 10 since the OS, which will soon turn nine, crossed the 70% mark for the first time since September 2023, gaining 0.96 points.
It is interesting to see Windows 11 losing quite a significant chunk of users in the middle of its cycle. Even Windows 8 and 8.1, universally considered not great versions of Windows, only went down after the release of their successors. True, Statcounter is not 100% accurate in its estimates, but an almost 3-point decline for a product with over 1 billion devices is too big to dismiss.
Some argue that Windows 11 still offers little to no benefits for upgrading, especially in light of Microsoft killing some of the system’s unique features, such as Windows Subsystem for Android. Add to that the ever-increasing number of ads, some of which are quite shameless, and you get an operating system that has a hard time winning hearts and minds and retaining its customers.
Later this month, Microsoft will showcase new AI features for Windows 11, which could become the first solid reason to leave Windows 10 behind. However, rumors indicate some of the most exciting parts will not be available on existing hardware. Therefore, customers who do not plan to upgrade their PCs simply have no reason to stay with Windows 11.
As for Windows 7, despite the no-support state and the continuous developer support exodus, it is still alive and kicking. Statcounter says about 3% (-0.04 points) of all Windows PCs are still powered by Windows 7, which was fully discontinued in January 2023. Some developers still release updates for Windows 7, but most mainstream apps and browsers ditched the old OS many months ago.
- Windows 10: 70.03% (+0.96 points)
- Windows 11: 25.65% (-0.97 points)
- Windows 7: 3% (-0.04 points)
- Windows 8.1: 0.53% (+0.09 points)
- Windows 8: 0.36% (+0.08 points)
You can find more information about the April 2024 report from Statcounter on the official website.