Windows still king of the hill
Steam’s April hardware and software snapshot shows Windows 11 running on 67.74% of surveyed players — a small bump of 0.89 percentage points from March. Look at the bigger picture and Windows machines now make up 93.47% of Steam’s pool, up 1.14 points month-to-month. Even Windows 10 hasn’t vanished despite its end-of-support date in October 2025; a lot of people are just sticking with what works.
Why? For most PC gamers the answer is simple: compatibility. Windows still plays nicest with game launchers, anti-cheat systems, drivers and gaming peripherals, so it’s the path of least resistance when you want to boot a game and not troubleshoot for an hour. Microsoft’s OS may get flak over design and requirements, but when a title or its anti-cheat only officially supports Windows, practicality wins out.
Linux dips, but the long game continues
Linux slipped back to 4.52% of Steam users in April after topping 5% in March — a 0.81-point fall. macOS sits around 2.01%. These numbers are from a voluntary, anonymous survey, so month-to-month swings can be noisy and shouldn’t be overinterpreted as instant doom or triumph.
That said, Linux’s recent growth hasn’t been accidental: Valve’s push with Proton, SteamOS and the Steam Deck — plus Wine improvements — have made running Windows-only games on Linux a lot less painful. Still, there’s a higher technical hurdle for the casual crowd who just want to install and play. The takeaway for gamers: Linux is a legit and growing alternative for enthusiasts and handheld users, but for the majority of Steam’s audience, Windows remains the simplest, most compatible route for gaming today.
