Windows 11 Reaches 72.57% Share Among Windows Users

Windows 11 has achieved a dominant position in the global desktop operating system market, capturing more than 70 percent of Windows users in February 2026, according to data from web analytics firm Statcounter. The operating system saw a sharp increase of over 10 percentage points from the previous month, reaching 72.57 percent market share among Windows versions, while Windows 10 fell to 26.45 percent, a decline of nearly 9.5 points.

The surge marks a continuation of rapid growth for Windows 11 since the start of the year. In December 2025, it held 50.73 percent of the Windows market, rising to 62.41 percent in January before the latest jump. Windows 10, which commanded 44.68 percent at the end of 2025, has now lost ground equivalent to about 18 percentage points over the two-month period. Older systems like Windows 7 have nearly vanished, dropping to 0.62 percent from 3.83 percent in December, with minor shares held by Windows XP and other versions.

Statcounter's figures, derived from tracking visits to millions of websites worldwide, indicate that the shift primarily reflects users upgrading from Windows 10 to the newer system. However, the data does not directly measure the...