The worldwide market share of the Linux operating system has reached nearly 4.5%, suggesting an increase in user interest over other OS.
The Linux OS market share can hit 5.0% in early 2025 with the current trend
The open-source Linux operating system is seeing a rapid increase in popularity in 2024. This is the first time that Linux OS has hit a record 4.44% worldwide market share, making it the third most popular OS among all. Windows remains the number one, followed by macOS X at the second place. While several various OS make up a higher share than the Linux OS, the latter is hugely popular individually due to its incredible flexibility, security, and stability.
As per the latest stats by Statcounter, in July 2024, the total worldwide operating system market share of Linux rose roughly 0.39% in July alone, increasing the share from 4.05% to 4.44% month-on-month. This is the first time the OS has touched near the 4.5% mark and may increase gradually in the coming months. 2024 saw the first ever >4.0% market share of Linux OS in February and March but it dropped down to 3.88% in April and 3.77% in May. It jumped back to 4.05% in June and now 4.44% in July, which is about 42% higher than in July 2023.
If we go back in time, we see a continuous upward trend for Linux OS while the Windows OS is dropping in popularity significantly. While Windows OS is still the most popular and widely used operating system across desktops and mobile devices, Linux OS is expected to grow from $21.97 billion in 2024 to $99.69 billion by 2032.
Due to its flexible nature, Linux OS allows users to modify and enhance the OS according to their needs. It is now also used in popular gaming handhelds like Steam Deck, which uses Linux-based SteamOS. The ease of distribution and exceptional community support make it a user-friendly operating system for modern computers and mobile platforms.
On the other hand, Windows is losing popularity due to bloatware and hardware restrictions. Unlike Linux, Microsoft puts restrictions on using Windows 11 on a local account, making it harder to switch from Windows 10 on older hardware to Windows 11 as users cannot bypass Windows 11 TPM 2.0 requirements.
As MacOS is a significantly more expensive platform than all other OS, users are left with Linux, which is cost-effective and is improving in performance as much as the Windows OS. We have seen how the Linux drivers for NVIDIA are going head to head with proprietary drivers, making NVIDIA transition to open-source GPU kernel modules for Linux. Similarly, AMD also added support for RDNA 4 in Linux Kernel two months ago for the upcoming GPUs.
News Source: Statcounter
About the author: Sarfraz Khan is a hardware reporter with a focus on PC components and the builder community. With years of experience writing about PC hardware and laptops, his work has been featured on several reputable technology publications. Sarfraz's hands-on experience is demonstrated through his first-person accounts of using and comparing different hardware configurations, providing practical and relatable insights for everyday users. His technical analysis is respected by peers in the enthusiast community and has been cited by specialized hardware sites such as Germany's Igor's Lab.
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