What Happens to PCs When Microsoft Stops Supporting Windows 10

All good things must come to an end—Windows 10 included. This OS is beloved for a reason, with many users enjoying everything from the UI to its stability and reliability.

However, Windows 10 has been old news for some time now. Windows 11 has been out since October of 2021, which means Microsoft has been supporting both OSes for over two years. With all eyes set on the future, the company has an end date in sight for the outdated version of Windows. The question is: What happens when Microsoft drops support for Windows 10?

When Will Microsoft End Support for Windows 10?

The company currently plans to drop support for Windows 10 on October 14, 2025. That said, Windows 10 isn’t getting any new feature updates: Microsoft confirmed version 22H2, released October 18, 2022, was the last “new” version of Windows 10 ever: Since then, Microsoft will only issue security patches for Windows 10 to address vulnerabilities and other bugs until that October 2025 deadline.

If your system runs on Windows 10, you’ll have likely noticed that there have been no new features since October 2022. The only way to add new functionality to your PC is through third-party apps and utilities. There’s nothing necessarily wrong with that, of course: If you don’t mind missing out on new features from Windows 11, you probably are perfectly happy sticking with your current OS.

However, as soon as Microsoft pulls the plug on security updates, that’s when the trouble starts for Windows 10 users. Following the final security update, any vulnerability discovered in Windows 10 will remain unprotected in perpetuity, and that remains true as bad actors discover more and more vulnerabilities. Before you know it, there are plenty of foolproof ways to break into a machine running Windows 10, and Microsoft won’t have a solution for you—other than updating to Windows 11.

What Happens to my PC When Microsoft Stops Supporting Windows 10?

In short, nothing at first. You’ll still be able to use your PC: It’ll connect to the internet, run Microsoft 365, and do virtually everything you were able to do prior to October 2025.

However, it just isn’t safe to use, for the reasons listed above. While Microsoft won’t shut down your PC or force you to upgrade, we cannot recommend you use Windows 10 once security updates have expired.