Windows 10 quietly gets one more year of support and updates

Microsoft’s initial plan was to give consumers only one year of extended security updates, but the company is now doubling that.

Taras Buria

Neowin
@TarasBuria ·


Jun 25, 2026 11:58 EDT

· Hot!

Windows 10 reached its end of life at the end of 2025. Microsoft kicked off the Extended Security Updates program, aimed at giving regular consumers one more year of security-only updates. By doing so, Microsoft gave users more time and money to update their computers to a newer operating system or compatible hardware. Now, with the end of the Extended Security Updates program quickly approaching, Microsoft is making an important adjustment.

Users discovered that the official support article for the program now lists a new end-of-support date:

Windows 10 support has ended. You can enroll in ESU any time until the program ends on October 12, 2027. If you’re already enrolled, your coverage will automatically continue through that date—no action needed.

The Extended Security Updates program is not a new concept. It has been an official way for business consumers to continue receiving critical updates for unsupported Microsoft products for many years. However, all this time, it was a business-only, paid feature. With Windows 10, Microsoft brought ESU to regular consumers, allowing them to get security updates for Windows 10 past October 2025 essentially for free.

When Windows 10 was approaching the end of support, many guessed that Microsoft might adjust its support timelines, and this is exactly what seems to be happening. Of course, Microsoft would love everyone to switch to new computers, such as its latest Surface devices, but in the days of ever-growing hardware prices, not everyone is lucky enough to have money for a new PC. Leaving hundreds of millions of customers with a Windows version that no longer receives security updates is a major risk that Microsoft is not willing to take.

If you have a Windows 10 PC to enroll in the Extended Security Updates program, check out this guide to learn how to do so.