- Windows 10 support ends tomorrow (October 14), but millions remain reluctant to upgrade
- Searches for Windows 10 skyrocket despite Microsoft’s efforts towards Windows 11
- Older hardware and upgrade costs keep users hooked to the aging operating system.
As we should all know, tomorrow (October 14) marks the end of life for Windows 10, unless you’re willing to pay Microsoft for extended support. This means you will no longer receive important security updates and will be at increased risk of hacks and malware.
The truth is that this won’t affect you immediately if you haven’t yet upgraded to Windows 11, switched to Linux, or purchased a Mac.
But over time, using Windows 10 will become more and more risky. A solid antivirus or anti-malware tool will still protect you against many threats, but not all.
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Microsoft has been pushing hard to get users to upgrade to Windows 11, but despite the impending shutdown, the new operating system has not seen a meteoric surge of voluntary upgrades and millions of users say they intend to continue using Windows 10.
In Statcounter’s September 2025 snapshot, Windows 11 actually lost market share for the second month in a row, falling to 48.94%.
Windows 10, which everyone should, in theory, be working to move away from, held steady at 40.5%. It could have been higher if Windows 7 had not created a surprise.
The problem is that Windows 11 has stricter hardware requirements and for older PC users it may not even be possible to run it.
There are unofficial workarounds, but few people want to cheat the system just to install a new operating system.
Microsoft’s answer to those using older hardware is simple: buy a new PC. But that’s not always realistic, especially for people on a budget or for businesses still heavily reliant on Windows 10 machines.
In recent days, searches for Windows 10 have exploded. Microsoft hopes this is because users are looking for guides to upgrade to Windows 11, but that’s not the case.
Search for it on Google and the first result is how to download Windows 10 disk image (ISO file).
Microsoft is obviously hoping that users will see a clear warning about end-of-life support and how to upgrade to Windows 11, not how to grab a Windows 10 ISO so they can install or reinstall the old system.
What if you did the same search on Bing? You will get the same story.
Once the old system reaches its end of life, this will likely change, but for now users seem more interested in hanging on than moving forward.
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