Windows 11 usage climbs to 24% in Steam's August hardware and software survey

What you need to know

• Steam has released its August 2022 hardware and software survey.
• Windows 11 usage has climbed 2.66% to hit 23.78% of all Steam users.
• Windows 10 is still by far the most popular operating system, holding 69.06% of the total share despite dropping by 4.11%.

Windows 11 has again gained some share of overall usage by Steam users, according to the August 2022 Steam hardware and software survey. Last month saw an increase of 2.66%, raising the total to 23.78%. Windows 10 still holds the title as most used operating system with 69.06%. That's down 4.11% since last month.

Just two months ago Windows 11 use climbed above 20% for the first time with a 1.65% increase for the June 2022 Steam hardware and software survey. Going from approximately one in five users to one in four users in just two months is promising. 

Windows 11 has a number of features baked in that improve gaming, including DirectStorage, DirectX12 Ultimate, and Auto HDR. Still, Windows 10 is familiar and many gamers are reluctant to switch over from what is already seen as a good thing. 

It's interesting to note that Windows 7 usage actually climbed 0.56% last month as well, hitting 2.60%. That's still more than all OSX versions combined. Considering how long it took gamers to move from Windows 7 to Windows 10, the move to Windows 11 from Windows 10 seems to be more promising.

It must be noted that Steam gathers this information on a voluntary (and anonymous) basis, so these figures must be taken with a grain of salt.