Microsoft will stop selling some Windows 10 downloads at the end of this month
After seven years of Windows 10, Microsoft is this month discontinuing sales of some Windows 10 downloads.
Also: Microsoft just added this 'top requested feature' to Windows 11
January 31 will be the last day Microsoft sells the Windows 10 Pro and Windows 10 Home downloads, filling in one more piece of the puzzle in the plan to wind down what still remains the most widely used version of Windows.
Windows 11
The move was announced on the Windows 10 home page where Windows 10 Home is available for $139 and Windows 10 Pro for $199. The change was first spotted by Tom's Hardware. There's no change to Windows 10's end-of-support date, which falls on October 14, 2025.
Microsoft states: "January 31, 2023 will be the last day this Windows 10 download is offered for sale. Windows 10 will remain supported with security updates that help protect your PC from viruses, spyware, and other malware until October 14, 2025. Windows 10 will remain supported with security updates that help protect your PC from viruses, spyware, and other malware until October 14, 2025."
Windows 11 has now been available for over a year but Windows 10 remains the most popular version. Although data varies, according to Steam's December 2022 user statistics, Windows 10 is used by 65% of its users. Some 96% of them use some version of Windows, with 28% using Windows 11, and 0.11% using Windows 7. Statcounter puts Windows 10's share of desktops at 68%, Windows 11's share at 17%, and unsupported Windows 7's at 11.2%.
Also: How to control Windows 11 with your voice
Microsoft wants consumers and businesses to upgrade to Windows 11, which is free if you have an existing Windows PC that meets its Windows 11 minimum hardware requirements.
Microsoft earlier this month issued its final patches for businesses paying for the Windows 7 Extended Security Updates (ESU) program. It encouraged businesses still running Windows 7 to purchase a new PC with Windows 11 installed or to purchase Windows 10.
Come October 14, 2025, Microsoft will no longer provide security updates, non-security updates, or assisted support for Windows 10. It's likely that some customers with Windows 10 PCs won't meet Windows 11 requirements, which could mean a share of users will continue to run Windows 10 without fixes for known vulnerabilities.