Windows 11 has reached 1 billion users faster than Windows 10
Windows 11 now has 1 billion users. Microsoft reached this milestone during the recent holiday quarter, meaning Windows 11 managed to reach 1 billion users faster than Windows 10 did almost six years ago.
“Windows has reached a major milestone, 1 billion Windows 11 users,” Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said during the company’s second quarter 2026 earnings call. “Up more than 45 percent year over year.” Windows 11’s growth in the latest quarter will be tied to Microsoft’s end of support for Windows 10, which also helped boost Microsoft’s Windows OEM revenue.
Microsoft must have counted a large number of Windows 11 users throughout December, as Windows chief Pavan Davuluri revealed during Microsoft Ignite on November 19 that “nearly a billion people” were using Windows 11.
What’s interesting is that Windows 11 managed to reach 1 billion users in 1,576 days, less than the 1,706 days it took Windows 10 to reach the same milestone. Microsoft had planned to have Windows 10 running on a billion devices within three years of its release, but the deadline was extended after the cancellation of Windows Phone.
