I’m sticking with Windows 10 even after it dies in October. Here’s how

Time is running out for Windows 10

Once October 14th rolls around, Windows 10 PCs will no longer receive security updates or bug fixes, let alone new features. This means the longer you keep using it, the more prone to malware and hackers your PC will become (because they’ll exploit yet-undiscovered security flaws that won’t be patched on your PC). And if you run into system troubles with your PC, Microsoft won’t provide technical support.

Dave Parrack / Foundry

As-is, this has scared lots of users into finally taking the plunge and upgrading to Windows 11, either by initiating a Windows Update or buying a new machine with Windows 11 pre-installed. But Statcounter’s market share stats show that hundreds of millions of users are still refusing to upgrade—myself included.

I knew end of support for Windows 10 has been coming for a while, yet I didn’t care enough to upgrade and I still have no intention to upgrade. I’m sticking with Windows 10. Yes, I’m aware of the risks, but I have ways to get around them. (More on that below.)

My current PC isn’t good enough

Microsoft is desperate for holdouts such as myself to move on from Windows 10, but the numbers suggest that way too many people are outright refusing Windows 11 for various reasons.

Why am I staying on Windows 10? The biggest reason is that my PC apparently doesn’t qualify for Windows 11. I ran the Windows PC Health Check app and found that my Intel Core i3 (on my seven-year-old laptop) isn’t supported by Windows 11. To upgrade, I’d either have to buy and install a new CPU (no thanks) or buy a new PC entirely (no thanks). Why spend unnecessary money when my current PC works just fine?

Dave Parrack / Foundry

Why doesn’t my CPU qualify for Windows 11? Who knows. I doubt Microsoft even has a good answer. Maybe my laptop would choke on Windows 11 because it’s way more bloated, or maybe it’d work just as well as Windows 10 does. Maybe Microsoft just wants to give me a reason to abandon ship and buy a new laptop.

But my laptop works well! And that’s the crux of the matter for me. It’s more than capable of doing everything I need, and I’m not a Windows power user so I don’t need anything more. This feels like planned obsolescence to me… and I hate that. It’s a waste of a perfectly good laptop and I refuse to turn it into e-waste. I’m also unimpressed by Microsoft’s potential trade-in program for Windows 10 PCs.

Dave Parrack / Foundry

As for Windows 11, I just don’t care for it. I’ve used it on other people’s PCs several times and it honestly doesn’t feel like much of an upgrade. Sure, there are some noticeable improvements, but none of them are big enough and revolutionary enough to justify laying down hundreds of bucks on new hardware.

And I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the bugs and glitches that have plagued Windows 11 since 24H2! There’s no way I’d willingly subject myself to that kind of frustration.

Dave Parrack / Foundry

It also doesn’t help that, as I’ve written about before, I use a Chromebook for most of my everyday activities. Which means that my Windows 10 PC has been pushed to the sidelines a bit, only there for those times when I need it instead of my Chromebook.

Am I just getting old?

One concern that has crossed my mind is, maybe this all is just an age thing. As I approach 50, could it be I’m reaching that stage of life where I prefer to stick with familiar tech and don’t want to bother with “the next thing”? I don’t remember having these same feelings when I had to upgrade from Windows XP to Vista or from Windows 7 to 10. It very well could be (at least partly) a “me problem” here.

Still, I can’t deny that Microsoft is making me feel backed into a corner and wanting to push back, carrying on with the hardware I’ve been using for several years. I’m resentful that this multibillion-dollar company is basically forcing me to buy a new computer and switch to an inferior operating system instead of working Windows 11 into a product so good and desirable that it makes me want to switch.

Don’t get me wrong. I don’t think there’s anything bad about Windows 11. It just hasn’t given me a compelling reason to upgrade. If I could freely upgrade without needing a new PC, sure, maybe I would do it. But with it coming with a real cost, I’m choosing to stick with Windows 10.

How to stick with Windows 10 (for now)

If you’re in a similar position as me and want to keep using Windows 10 even after the end of support date passes, you have a few different options on going about it safely and securely. Whatever you do, don’t just keep using it in its unsupported state. Without a continued source of security updates, you’d just be asking for trouble.

Instead, you’ll want to sign up for Microsoft’s Extended Security Updates (ESU) program. By enrolling your PC in the ESU program, you’ll get one extra year of Windows 10 security updates.

Microsoft

There are actually three ways to join the Windows 10 ESU program. A valid Microsoft account is needed for all three options:

Option #1: Pay $30. This is a flat one-time fee that unlocks the extra year of Windows 10 security updates with no other strings attached (apart from needing a Microsoft account). Price may vary if you’re outside the US.

Option #2: Enable Windows Backup. Windows Backup is a free feature that backs up selected files, folders, and settings to OneDrive so you don’t lose them even if your PC dies, gets lost, or stolen. After activating Windows Backup, your Windows 10 PC gets extended updates.

Option #3: Spend 1,000 Microsoft Rewards points. Instead of paying $30, you can instead sign up for Microsoft Rewards and start earning points by doing things like searching on Bing, playing select games on Xbox One, buying stuff on the Microsoft Store, etc. Points can then be redeemed for extended security updates.

If any of these options sound good, you should be able to enroll your PC in the Windows 10 ESU program via a banner at the top-right corner of your Windows Update settings page.

There’s also another unofficial option

If none of Microsoft’s official ESU options seem good to you—maybe you don’t want to create a Microsoft account at all—then there’s one more thing you can try, but this path has caveats.

There’s a free third-party tool called UpDownTool that allegedly provides several more years of support for Windows 10. How does it work? By converting your PC to Windows 10 LTSC (“Long-Term Servicing Channel”), which is a special cut-down version of Windows 10 that isn’t meant for general-use PCs. Windows 10 LTSC has regular support until January 12th, 2027 as well as extended support until January 13th, 2032.

UpDownTool

UpDownTool is actually aimed at Windows 11 users who regret upgrading and want to revert back to Windows 10. However, it can still be used by people on Windows 10 (or any other version of Windows) to switch over to Windows 10 LTSC.

By switching to Windows 10 LTSC, you’ll end up with a PC that basically runs on Windows 10 except without any of the usual bloatware or any of the nagging pop-ups about upgrading to Windows 11. The caveat is that Windows 10 LTSC doesn’t get feature updates, doesn’t support the Microsoft Store, and doesn’t support apps that are regularly maintained via the Microsoft Store, such as Microsoft Edge.

Again, UpDownTool is a third-party tool that isn’t officially supported by Microsoft, so use it as your own risk if you choose this path.

It’s still Windows 10 for me

I’m most likely going to enroll my PC in the Windows 10 ESU program by activating Windows Backup before the October 14th deadline, which will keep my PC secure and protected until at least October 13th, 2026.

Beyond that, I’m undecided on how I’ll move forward. I may finally bite the bullet on a new PC that comes with Windows 11, but I’m also tempted to abandon Windows altogether in favor of ChromeOS—and if I end up doing that, Microsoft will only have itself to blame.

Further reading: The best Chromebooks that are actually great