Skip to main content

Windows 10 leaps ahead of 7 among Steam gamers

Windows 10 64-bit is now used by 36.97 percent of Steam users, jumping Windows 7’s 64-bit version for the fist time. This means Windows 10 64-bit is the OS of a plurality of Steam gamers for the first time.

The stat was revealed in Steam’s March 2016 hardware and software survey, which outlines a number of stats related to gamer’s machines. For example, 4GB is the most common amount of RAM to have; 1,920 x 1,080 is the most common resolution. It’s a treasure trove of information just about any month, but this month it’s the operating system stats that stand out.

Recommended Videos

This is, in part, because of how different the stats are from the general PC-using population. NetMarketShare shows Windows 7 as being by far the most common OS on the market, with 51.89 percent in March. Windows 10 is trailing at a distant 14.15 percent.

So why are the Steam numbers so different? For one thing, PC gamers tend to be early adopters, buying the latest processors, hard drives, and especially graphics cards way before the rest of the population. Apparently that trend also extends to downloading the latest operating system.

Windows Version Share
Windows 10 64 bit 36.97%
Windows 7 64 bit 32.99%
Windows 8.1 64 bit 12.93%
Windows 7 32 bit 6.97%
Windows XP 32 bit 2.00%
Windows 8 64 bit 1.64%
Windows 10 1.31%
Windows 8.1 0.34%
Windows Vista 32 bit 0.24%
Windows 8 0.15%
Windows Vista 64 bit 0.13%

It’s also worth noting that, with a few exceptions, most gamers don’t install Steam on their work computers. Windows 10 adoptions has been slower in the enterprise market, as is typical for new operating systems. Adaptation of a free operating system is going to be faster on home computers, where individuals can make the choice to upgrade without having to run it by IT first.

Windows 10 doesn’t actually have a majority share here. The results look different if you combine 64 and 32 bit versions of the operating system: 39.96 percent of users prefer some form of Windows 7 to some form of Windows 10.

But Microsoft’s lastest OS grew by 2.97 percent last month, and there are plenty of months left in year of free upgrades.

Whatever happens, the results show that, despite some gamer’s apprehension, a number of Steam users are embracing Microsoft’s free upgrade and switching to Windows 10. Gamers have had some complaints with Windows 10, mostly related to the Windows Store, but that’s apparently not stopping Steam users from making the switch.

The numbers also outlined Mac and Linux systems, though the totals are tiny by comparison. The highest rated version of Mac OS X, by contrast, saw only a 1.31 percent user share; OS X combined for a total of 3.32 percent of Steam users. All Linux systems combined add up to 0.85 percent of Steam users, which is less than half of Windows XP.

Want to learn more? Check out the complete results here.

Justin Pot
Justin's always had a passion for trying out new software, asking questions, and explaining things – tech journalism is the…
Microsoft is axing support for its own apps on Windows 10
The Surface Laptop 7 on a table in front of a window.

Microsoft has announced that support for Microsoft 365 apps on Windows 10 will end this year on October 14, as reported by The Verge. This is also the end-of-support date for Windows 10 as a whole, but the move is still a little surprising considering that Microsoft is now offering the Windows 10 Extended Security Updates (ESU) Program.

Anyone who joins this program for $30 can continue to safely use Windows 10 for a whole extra year -- so you might think that Microsoft would let them continue to use the Office apps too. That said, it's not like the apps will disappear, they just won't receive any more updates. According to Microsoft, this could cause "performance and reliability issues over time" but whether these issues will pop up within the ESU program's duration or not is anyone's guess.

Read more
Another frustrating reason to upgrade to Windows 11
A person looking frustrated at a laptop while sitting at a table.

As if you didn't already need plenty of reasons to finally upgrade to Windows 11, here's yet another.

The latest Windows 10 update, version KB5048239, isn't just failing to install -- it's actually updating successfully over and over again. This is the update that Microsoft first released in November 2024 on 21H2 and 22H2. As TechRadar reports, the software giant is rereleasing it again this month.

Read more
The 5 Mac apps that keep me from moving to Windows
The side profile of the MacBook Pro M4.

This year will long be remembered as the year Windows PC makers fought back. Qualcomm first kicked off the AI PC era with the Snapdragon X Elite, and then Intel responded with the Lunar Lake platform.

For the first time nearly a decade, I've found myself tempted to return to Windows. But there's still one problem: the app gap.

Read more