Windows 10 is the most popular Windows desktop operating system, accounting for a market share of around 54 percent as of March 2025. The share of devices running the older Windows 7 OS has slipped over the past year, with the newer Windows 43 running on around 31 percent of devices. A global dominance in computer operating systems Microsoft’s Windows is the most widely used computer (desktop, tablet, and console) operating system (OS) in the world with more than 68 percent of the market share. It's closest competitors — Apple's macOS and iOS — hold a combined less than 20 percent of the market. Despite its dominance in the computer OS market, Microsoft has been unable to have the same impact on the mobile OS market, where Google’s Android and Apple’s iOS split the market with a combined share of over 99 percent. Operating systems   Operating systems are the underlying platforms connecting computer hardware and software. They provide users with the graphical interface that enables them to issue commands and perform tasks on electronic devices. Almost every device today — from smartphones and desktop computers, to graphical calculators — requires an operating system to function.

As of December 2024, Windows 10 was the most popular version of the operating system on desktop devices in Finland. The latest Windows version, Windows 11, ranked second with a market share of over 22.98 percent.

As of October 2024, Windows 10 was the most popular version of the operating system on desktop devices in Hungary, accounting for over 71 percent of the market. Windows 11 ranked second with a market share of 26 percent.

Microsoft's Windows was the dominant desktop operating system (OS) worldwide as of March 2025, with a market share of around 72 percent. Apple’s Mac operating system has gained market share over the years, growing to command around a fifth of the market. Linux and Google's Chrome OS have retained small but stable market shares in recent years. Different versions of Microsoft Windows From its initial release in 1985, Microsoft Windows has gone through endless mutations. Notable versions include Windows 95, Windows XP, and Windows 7. Windows 11 is the newest addition to the family, being able to run on PCs, tablets and embedded devices. In 2022, approximately 65 million PCs were shipped with Windows operating systems installed. Apple’s Mac operating system With an equally long history, Apple’s Mac operating system (macOS, previously Mac OS X and OS X) has also evolved through numerous releases. The most recent version, macOS Ventura, is the nineteenth release of macOS. A older version of macOS, Catalina, is currently the most popular macOS, now run on 87.4 percent of Apple computers as of January 2023. macOS runs on Apple’s Mac computers, including the MacBook, which is Apple’s laptop PC product including the MacBook Pro and MacBook Air, and the iMac – Apple’s desktop computer.

Microsoft's Windows was the dominant desktop operating system (OS) worldwide as of February 2024, with a market share of around 72 percent. Apple’s Mac operating system has gained market share over the years, growing to command around a fifth of the market. Linux and Google's Chrome OS have retained small but stable market shares in recent years. Different versions of Microsoft Windows From its initial release in 1985, Microsoft Windows has gone through endless mutations. Notable versions include Windows 95, Windows XP, and Windows 7. Windows 11 is the newest addition to the family, being able to run on PCs, tablets and embedded devices. In 2022, approximately 65 million PCs were shipped with Windows operating systems installed. Apple’s Mac operating system With an equally long history, Apple’s Mac operating system (macOS, previously Mac OS X and OS X) has also evolved through numerous releases. The most recent version, macOS Ventura, is the nineteenth release of macOS. A older version of macOS, Catalina, is currently the most popular macOS, now run on 87.4 percent of Apple computers as of January 2023. macOS runs on Apple’s Mac computers, including the MacBook, which is Apple’s laptop PC product including the MacBook Pro and MacBook Air, and the iMac – Apple’s desktop computer.

The Server Operating System Market report segments the industry into By Component (Software, Service), By Type (Windows, Linux, UNIX, Other Types), By Virtualization (Virtual Server, Physical Server), By Deployment Mode (Cloud, On-premise), By Enterprise Size (Large Enterprises, and more), By Industry Vertical, and Geography (North America, Europe, Asia, Australia and New Zealand, Latin America, Middle East and Africa).

According to the source, Windows 7 has been present over all the researched years from 2011 to 2019, with an eventual market share in 2019 of roughly 70 percent. Windows XP has been declining over the years, mainly due to the fact that Windows XP does not receive support from Microsoft anymore. Surprisingly it still held a little bit of market share in 2019 with two percent in total.

The size and share of this market is categorized based on Type (Android Version, iPhone/iPad Version, Windows/Linux/Mac Version) and Application (Personal Bible Study, Sermon Preparation, Others) and geographical regions (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, South America, Middle-East and Africa).

With a market share of more than 44 percent, Windows was the most popular operating system across desktop, tablet, and mobile platforms in Japan in January 2024. It was followed by iOS, which accounted for about one-fourth of the market.

This statistic shows the market share held by Windows phone in the global smartphone operating systems market from the first quarter of 2011 to the fourth quarter of 2016. In the first quarter of 2012, Windows Mobile had a global smartphone OS market share of 2.0 percent. By the end of 2013, they had increased market share to 3 percent.

Windows operating system - additional information

Microsoft is one of the most longstanding tech companies in the world, and has unquestionably contributed to the advancement of communication technologies. The company was one of the first to develop mobile operating systems for handheld portable devices in the mid-1990s.

Their first mobile OS prototype, unveiled in 1996, was the Windows CE. In 2000, Microsoft launched PocketPC 2000, later renamed Windows Mobile, which became one of the most successful mobile OS of the early 2000s. However, Symbian, an operating system used by mobile phone brands, such as Motorola, Samsung, Sony, and Nokia, quickly became more popular. In 2007, Symbian was the leading smartphone operating system, with a 63 percent share of the global market, while Windows Mobile came in a distant second, with only 12 percent market share.

In 2010, Microsoft launched another mobile OS, Windows Phone, which replaced previous versions. Despite the introduction of a new model, Microsoft saw its smartphone market share constantly decline over the years, reaching one of the lowest figures to date in 2015. Symbian, a market leader until 2010, also lost space in the operating system market, while Google’s Android steadily gained market share over the years. In 2015, Android accounted for around 80 percent of the market. Forecasts are pessimistic regarding Microsoft’s performance on this market in the coming years. In 2015, Microsoft held about 1.9 percent of the smartphone market share. By 2020, the Windows Phone is projected to account for 0.4 of all smartphone shipments worldwide.

Microsoft also extended its operating system to the tablet OS market, accounting for seven percent of the market in the beginning of 2015. The operating system is forecast to gain space in the market, and increase its share to nearly 18 percent by 2019. Android is also the leading operating system in the tablet market, and is projected to hold 56 percent of the share.

Microsoft's Windows was the leading computer operating system in the United States as of January 2025, with a market share of roughly 63 percent. Apple's macOS commanded a market share of over 21 percent, a decline compared to the previous year.

In March 2025, the operating system Windows had a market share of over 66 percent. The second-largest share was held by MacOSX with around 23 percent. Globally, Windows was the leading desktop operating system.

Android maintained its position as the leading mobile operating system worldwide in the first quarter of 2025 with a market share of about 71.88 percent. Android's closest rival, Apple's iOS, had a market share of approximately 27.65 percent during the same period. The leading mobile operating systems Both unveiled in 2007, Google’s Android and Apple’s iOS have evolved through incremental updates introducing new features and capabilities. The latest version of iOS, iOS 18, was released in September 2024, while the most recent Android iteration, Android 15, was made available in September 2023. A key difference between the two systems concerns hardware - iOS is only available on Apple devices, whereas Android ships with devices from a range of manufacturers such as Samsung, Google and OnePlus. In addition, Apple has had far greater success in bringing its users up to date. As of February 2024, 66 percent of iOS users had iOS 17 installed, while in the same month only 13 percent of Android users ran the latest version. The rise of the smartphone From around 2010, the touchscreen smartphone revolution had a major impact on sales of basic feature phones, as the sales of smartphones increased from 139 million units in 2008 to 1.39 billion units in 2023. In 2020, smartphone sales decreased to 1.38 billion units due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Apple, Samsung, and lately also Xiaomi, were the big winners in this shift towards smartphones, with BlackBerry and Nokia among those unable to capitalize.

Around ten percent of Absolute-enabled Windows 10 enterprise devices are running the two most recent versions: Version 1903 and 1909. The majority (33.4 percent) of Windows 10 enterprise devices are running Version 1809 from November 2018.

Apple and Microsoft command over a 90 percent share of the desktop operating system market in the United Kingdom (UK), as of 2024. Microsoft’s product, Windows, held 68.24 percent of the market, while Apple’s macOS held 23.65 percent. Browsers and search engines used on desktops Desktop searches made up 49 percent of search engine activity as of April 2023, ahead of the 46 percent held by mobile phones. Google is not only the preferred search engine for 86.3 percent of UK desktop users, it is also the developer of Chrome, the preferred browser for 59 percent of internet users in the UK. Share of households with home computers steady The share of households with home computers in the UK has remained steady since 2015-16, with 88 percent of households owning such a machine according to the UK Office for National Statistics. The average weekly retail sales value of computers and telecommunications in the UK amounted to 96.8 million British pounds in October 2023.

With a market share of almost 71.9 percent, Windows was the most popular desktop operating system in Japan in January 2024. It was followed by OS X, which accounted for a market share of 14.8 percent.

In 2019, the Windows operating system was used on 72.1 percent of servers worldwide, whilst the Linux operating system accounted for 13.6 percent of servers. Compared to 2018, both companies experienced an increase to their overall market share.

Google Apps is poised to dominate the global office-productivity software market as of February 2025, capturing a 45 percent share. Microsoft Office 365 is expected to hold 29 percent, while other competitors will account for the remaining 26 percent. This shift reflects the growing importance of cloud-based productivity tools in modern workplaces, as businesses and individuals increasingly rely on collaborative, web-accessible software solutions. Cloud infrastructure fuels productivity software growth The rise of cloud-based productivity suites is closely tied to the expansion of cloud infrastructure services. Amazon Web Services leads the cloud market with a 31 percent share, followed by Microsoft Azure at 24 percent and Google Cloud at 11 percent. These robust cloud platforms provide the foundation for scalable, accessible productivity tools that can be used across various devices and locations. The cloud infrastructure market's growth parallels the increasing adoption of software-as-a-service (SaaS) solutions, which remain the largest segment in cloud computing. Unified communications reshape the workplace As remote and hybrid work models become more prevalent, unified communications and collaboration tools are gaining prominence. Microsoft currently leads this market with a 45 percent share, leveraging its strong position in both productivity software and cloud services. The integration of various communication tools, including video conferencing software like Zoom, which is experiencing a steady growth after the peak increase in 2022, is reshaping how organizations operate. This trend is likely to continue influencing the productivity software landscape, as businesses seek comprehensive solutions that enhance virtual collaboration and streamline communication across diverse work environments.

Apple's mobile operating system, iOS, led in the ranking of mobile operating systems in Sweden by market share. Apple accounted for nearly 60 percent of the total market share, whereas Android followed with around 40 percent. All other mobile operating systems each had a share of less than one percent. Sweden’s leading operating system in general, however, is Windows with a minimal lead with its 34.55 percent market share over iOS which is ranked second, with 28.17 percent. What operating systems Swedes use?     Swedish mobile users of different ages were asked what operating system their main phone had in 2017. The younger representatives, aged between 18 and 34, tended to be more keen on iOS. In contrast, people in all age groups over 35, preferred Android that year. Operational systems in Europe The market shares of mobile operating systems varied significantly between 2010 and 2020. iOS led in the ranking in 2010, followed by Blackberry, while Android and Windows Phone had less than ten percent each that year. However, Android’s market share increased drastically between 2010 and 2014, and has been having the highest market share among the mobile operating systems in Europe from 2013 onwards.

This statistic shows a forecast for the global market share held by tablet operating systems from 2013 to 2020. Android is expected to account for 61.06 percent of global tablet shipments in 2017. As of 2014, Android's most popular platform version was KitKat.

Tablet computer OS market - additional information

During the 1990s, various early versions of touch-screen display computers were launched to limited commercial success. Such devices, as the PalmPilot, the GRiDPad or the Apple Newton, were the precursors of today’s tablet computers. The launch of Apple’s iPad in April 2010 dramatically changed the market in terms of technology and consumer expectations, making tablets a mainstream product. As of 2014, an estimated 20 percent of the global population owned a tablet.

Although it was the most successful device on the tablet market when it came out, the iPad, with its own operating system, the iOS, has been losing ground in front of its competitors. As of 2015, Apple’s tablet device holds a 23.5 percent market share and has registered a slight decrease in global sales, from 26 million units in the first fiscal quarter of 2014 to 21 million units sold in its first fiscal quarter of 2015. This might be due to a sharp increase in the market size, with countless new models available to customers.

Furthermore, the iOS’ lower share on the tablet operating system market is its restriction to Apple devices alone, such as the iPhone, iPad or Apple Watch, requiring specifically designed apps and programs. On the other hand, iOS’ main competitor, Google’s Android, owes its success to its strong collaboration with many mobile device manufacturers and high adaptability to various types of hardware. In fact, as of the second quarter of 2015, the so called “white box” or “no name” tablet manufacturers, which use Android as their OS, were dominating the market. In 2016, Android is projected to hold more than 60 percent of the tablet OS market share and over 80 percent of new smartphones were Android-operated devices. Microsoft’s Windows mobile OS is coming in a distant third on the tablet operating system market, but its share is expected to increase in the upcoming years.