UPDATE: Following the end of support for Windows 10 on October 14, 2025, gamers are rapidly transitioning to Windows 11, driving the legacy operating system’s market share to alarming lows. This shift was confirmed by Valve’s latest data from the October 2025 Steam Hardware & Software Survey, revealing that Windows 11 now commands 63.57% of all Steam users, a significant increase of 3.18 points in just one month.
In stark contrast, Windows 10’s share has dropped to 31.14%, losing 3.94 points. This decline underscores the urgency for gamers still clinging to the now-unsupported OS, as many already face issues accessing critical features. Despite these challenges, a small fraction of users—0.09%—continue to favor Windows 10, which many still regard as the best version ever released.
The overall dominance of Windows on the Steam platform remains substantial, holding a combined share of 94.84%, despite a slight decline of 0.75 points. Meanwhile, Linux and macOS hold significantly smaller shares at 3.05% and 2.11%, respectively. Within the macOS segment, versions 15.6.1 and 26 are nearly tied, with 0.51% and 0.50% shares.
Turning to hardware, the Nvidia RTX 3060 remains the most popular graphics card among Steam users, holding a 4.3% market share, albeit down 0.32 points. The laptop variant of the RTX 4060 closely follows with a 4.1% share, also declining by 0.33 points. The RTX 3050 ranks third with 2.96%, reflecting a modest increase of 0.05 points.
In terms of general hardware preferences, gamers continue to favor a setup with 16GB of RAM at 41.49%, coupled with a 6-core processor at 28.69%, 8GB of video memory at 33.46%, and a standard 1080p display.
As the gaming community adapts to these changes, the implications for future software development and user experience are significant. With Windows 10’s support officially ended, gamers must act swiftly to ensure compatibility and access to new features.
Stay tuned for further updates on this developing story.
