Summary created by Smart Answers AI
In summary:
- PCWorld reports that Microsoft has extended Windows 10 Extended Security Updates until October 2027, giving personal device users an additional year of free support.
- This extension matters as Windows 11’s strict hardware requirements leave many older PCs incompatible, while users express concerns about AI features and telemetry.
- The policy change reflects Microsoft’s softer stance as Windows 10 maintains significant market share, providing more transition time for security updates.
Microsoft has pushed back its deadline to transition away from Windows 10, offering users an additional year of Extended Security Updates until 2027.
Is it a consequence of rising prices? Or a softening of Microsoft’s stance toward Windows 11? It could be that Microsoft is feeling sympathetic to the additional costs users must face in upgrading to a “new” Windows PC. Microsoft made the changes to its policy on the same day that it raised the prices on its Xbox consoles between $100 to $150 depending on the version.
“This extension provides customers with more time to transition to a new Windows 11 PC while continuing to receive critical security updates,” Microsoft said, in an addendum to a June 24, 2025 blog post (referred to by Bleeping Computer) and authored by Yusuf Mehdi, the chief marketing officer of Microsoft’s consumer business.
“This post has been updated to reflect that the Windows 10 Extended Security Updates (ESU) program for personal use devices is being provided for an additional year, with coverage now available through Oct. 12, 2027,” the post added.
Interestingly, Windows 11 does not require a “new” PC; it simply requires the user to agree to a free upgrade to Windows 11, which then loads on to the user’s PC and replaces the Windows 10 installation already in place. Windows 11 has more stringent hardware requirements, however, which makes many older PCs incompatible. Microsoft also highlighted the extension as one which applied to “personal” devices, rather than corporate PCs. Still, Microsoft has pledged to make its Windows 11 program less annoying, and to keep customers in mind,
The Extended Security Updates program allows users to keep using Windows 10 for an extended period of time, even as Microsoft pours more resources into Windows 11 and its 25H2 and 26H2 updates. However, Microsoft’s “updates” to Windows 10 will cease in August 2026 for all consumer customers. After that, Microsoft will simply patch Windows 10 with security fixes to keep users secure.
Why stick with Windows 10? Familiarity. A substantial portion of the Windows user base remains suspicious of the AI, telemetry, and other changes that Microsoft made from Windows 10 to 11. Since January, Windows 10’s market share within the United States has dipped from 35 percent to 23 percent, according to StatCounter.
Users can enroll in the ESU program simply by backing up their settings to the cloud via Windows 10, by “paying” 1,000 Microsoft Rewards points, or by paying $30 in hard cash.