The calculation changed on October 14, 2025, when Windows 10 left support. Before that date, staying put was a defensible preference. After it, an un-enrolled Windows 10 machine accumulates unpatched vulnerabilities every month — the full picture is in our Windows 10 end-of-support guide. So the question is no longer whether to move off Windows 10, only how: free upgrade, ESU bridge, or new machine.
The short answer
If your PC qualifies: yes, upgrade. It costs nothing, keeps your files and applications, and puts you back on an operating system that receives security fixes without an expiry date attached. If your PC does not qualify: enroll it in ESU today (free or $30 USD, covered in the guide above) and use the breathing room to plan a replacement properly.
The one group with a genuinely different calculus is businesses running specialist software — that is section 04.
Will your PC run it?
Microsoft's minimum requirements are modest on paper: a compatible 64-bit processor (1 GHz, 2+ cores), 4 GB of RAM, 64 GB of storage, a 720p display, UEFI firmware with Secure Boot, and TPM 2.0. In practice the two that disqualify machines are the processor list — which roughly translates to CPUs from 2018 onward — and TPM 2.0.
Two checks, thirty seconds each:
- Settings → Windows Update. The banner states outright whether the device is eligible.
- Microsoft's PC Health Check app. Names the exact failing requirement when a machine is refused — which matters, because…
…a surprising number of "incompatible" PCs are actually fine. TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot are frequently just disabled in firmware on machines from 2018–2020, and flipping two settings makes the same computer eligible. This is a ten-minute bench job — and exactly the kind of thing our repair desk checks before anyone spends money on a replacement.
Note for a genuinely new install: Windows 11 Home and Pro require internet and a Microsoft account during initial setup. Upgrades from Windows 10 keep your existing sign-in.
What actually changes
Less than the version number implies. The foundation is shared with Windows 10, which is why the upgrade is in-place and applications carry over. What you will notice: the Start menu moved to the centre (it can be moved back left in Settings), the right-click menu is shorter with an "advanced" second layer, window-snapping is genuinely better, and settings continue their slow migration out of Control Panel. A typical office worker is comfortable within a day; nobody needs training for this.
What you gain that is invisible: the hardware requirements everyone grumbles about — TPM 2.0, Secure Boot, virtualization-based security — exist to make whole categories of attack harder. The annoyance and the benefit are the same feature.
Three reasons to wait — briefly
- A line-of-business application that has not certified Windows 11. Dental imaging, legal practice management, accounting packages with dongles, machine controllers. If one program runs your business, its vendor's word comes first. Waiting means: confirm the certification date, enroll the machine in ESU meanwhile, and set a calendar reminder — not "wait" as a permanent policy.
- Hardware that fails eligibility. Do not force Windows 11 onto unsupported hardware with registry workarounds; unsupported installs sit outside Microsoft's update guarantee and trade a known risk for an unknown one. ESU is the honest bridge; replacement is the destination.
- Mid-project timing. Payroll week, tax season, a go-live. The upgrade keeps for a fortnight. Take the backup now, schedule the upgrade for the quiet Friday.
For a fleet, sequence instead of gambling: inventory every machine, upgrade the eligible in waves starting with the least critical, enroll the stragglers in ESU with a replacement date attached. That whole exercise is a standing item in a managed IT plan, and for a one-time pass our consulting engagement covers it fixed-fee. Take a brief.
Frequently asked questions
Yes — for any Windows 10 PC that meets the hardware requirements, the upgrade costs nothing and your files and applications carry over. The cost only appears when the hardware does not qualify and the real question becomes repair-or-replace.
Run Microsoft's PC Health Check app, or check Settings, Windows Update, which will state plainly whether the device is eligible. The usual blockers are a processor older than roughly 2018, TPM 2.0 missing or disabled in firmware, or Secure Boot turned off.
Almost always, yes — Windows 11 runs the same applications on the same foundation. The exceptions worth checking first are old line-of-business software, hardware dongles, and drivers for specialist equipment. If one program runs your business, confirm the vendor supports Windows 11 before you press go.
Typically one to two hours on a healthy machine, most of it unattended, and the PC stays usable until the final restarts. Budget a quiet afternoon, not a lost day — and take a backup first regardless.
For 10 days after upgrading, yes — Windows keeps the rollback files and offers a built-in return path in Settings. After 10 days those files are cleaned up and going back means a full reinstall, so make your judgment inside the window.