Microsoft tells Windows 10 holdouts they can keep using their PCs until 2027

Microsoft has started dispatching emails to Windows 10 users informing them of an additional year of consumer Extended Security Updates.

Microsoft notifies holdouts of the extension. The company began contacting customers after it quietly lengthened consumer ESU coverage through October 12, 2027 last month. The messages speak of "our ongoing commitment to helping customers stay secure" and note that "We understand that moving to a new PC can take time," without once naming Windows 11 or Copilot.

Several email programs have routed the notices straight to spam folders. The outreach follows the firm's decision to extend support while sidestepping any upgrade pressure.

Hardware costs and upgrade barriers persist. Windows 11's hardware requirements left millions of otherwise functional PCs ineligible for the upgrade amid soaring component prices. The extension could further delay any Windows 10-driven PC replacement wave that hardware vendors were hoping for.

Consumers receiving the email now have another year to see if hardware prices stabilize or if Microsoft extends support again. ESU for commercial purposes currently runs to 2028.

Windows 11 adoption has stalled. Microsoft does not share official figures. Statcounter data indicates Windows 11 growth has mostly stalled in recent months and now accounts for about 70 percent of the Windows device market.

A substantial number of users continue to stick with Windows 10. Many of them will have received Microsoft's acknowledgement of that fact.

The message to holdouts is clear. For Windows 10 holdouts the communication amounts to permission to keep the old PC for another year. Microsoft can try the upgrade pitch again in October 2027.