By Chris Skeldon 
Last month, Statcounter reported a notable decline in Windows 11 market share, and this trend has continued through April 2024. After reaching an all-time high of 28.16% in February 2024, Windows 11 has fallen below the 26% mark. Interestingly, users are moving away from Windows 11 to Windows 10. But what are the reasons?
Users are fleeing from Windows 11 to Windows 10!
According to Statcounter, in April 2024, Windows 11 lost 0.97 points, falling from 26.68% to 25.65%. Apparently, all of these users chose Windows 10, as the operating system, which will soon be nine years old, crossed the 70% mark for the first time since September 2023, scoring 0.96 points.
It's interesting to see Windows 11 lose a significant portion of users midway through its cycle. Even Windows 8 and 8.1, which were universally considered not very good versions of Windows, were dropped only after later versions were released. It's true that Statcounter isn't 100% accurate in its estimates, but a nearly 3-point drop for a product with over a billion devices is too big to ignore.
Few benefits may be the reason
Some argue that Windows 11 still offers little to no upgrade benefits, especially since Microsoft has eliminated some of the system's unique features, such as the Windows subsystem for Android. Add to that the increasing number of ads, and we have an operating system that is having a hard time winning hearts and minds and keeping its customers.
Later this month, Microsoft will introduce new AI features for Windows 11, which may become the first solid reason to leave Windows 10 behind. However, rumors indicate that some of the most interesting parts will not be available on existing devices. Therefore, customers who do not plan to upgrade their PCs have no reason to continue using Windows 11.
As for Windows 7, despite its unsupported status and continued exodus of programmers from support, it is still alive and well. Statcounter says that about 3% (-0.04 points) of all Windows PCs are still equipped with Windows 7, which was discontinued entirely in January 2023. Some programmers are still releasing updates for Windows 7, but most apps have dropped On the old operating system for several months. since.
- 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)