2026 GBAtemp OS market share

[Flame]

In this thread, https://gbatemp.net/threads/linux-and-windows-q-a.679084/ @Uiaad goes Linux is between 3 and 6%, I mean that's right for global market share, but made me think that cant be right for GBAtemp users.

Can you only state which version of windows you're using? Which Linux distro you run. If you're using an older MacOS, why so?

 

[Flame]

I use Linux Mint as my Linux distro

 

[Hunter]

I use Mint on my two desktops and laptop, and proxmox on my home server with a few ubuntu vm's

 

[Deleted member 706757]

I'm on CachyOS

 

[SylverReZ]

I'm using Fedora as part of my main PC.

 

[Latiodile]

dualboot between windows 10 and cachy, i refuse to use windows 11 (i don't need a lecture about staying outdated, it's only for antishit games)

 

[emigre]

Fedora based systems.

Nobara is on my gaming desktop and Fedora on my Framework.

Have used Ubuntu which is blah and Mint which is cool but not for me.

Do want to try out Arch but can't really justify the time on setting up another distro when I'm really happy with Nobara and Fedora.

 

[Uiaad]

Main rig Rommie: Windows 11 - Heavily modified to remove telemetry and AI - needed for compatibility with software that, at some point in the future, will reverse engineer also compatibility with wife
Homelab Ziggy: Windows 11 again Heavily modified (as before) used to offload Linux VMs ( Fedora, Kali and Ubuntu - There are reasons)
Laptop: Kali Linux - Basically, a bugout laptop has everything I need if I were in a hospital or just need to grab a device quickly for a job, also has a portable version of Win10 IoT LTSC

 

[Fien]

Desktops for normal use are running MX Linux 23 (and 19).

There are Windows 95/ME/2000/XP/7/10 systems for the things that really needs them.

 

[Flame]

Fedora based systems.

Nobara is on my gaming desktop and Fedora on my Framework.

Have used Ubuntu which is blah and Mint which is cool but not for me.

Do want to try out Arch but can't really justify the time on setting up another distro when I'm really happy with Nobara and Fedora.

I know that feeling. I've been using debian/Ubuntu based system for so long. Every time I go to different Linux. It just doesn't feel right. I've been on Linux mint since 2018/19 as a daily driver. before that ubuntu.

Main rig Rommie: Windows 11 - Heavily modified to remove telemetry and AI - needed for compatibility with software that, at some point in the future, will reverse engineer also compatibility with wife
Homelab Ziggy: Windows 11 again Heavily modified (as before) used to offload Linux VMs ( Fedora, Kali and Ubuntu - There are reasons)
Laptop: Kali Linux - Basically, a bugout laptop has everything I need if I were in a hospital or just need to grab a device quickly for a job, also has a portable version of Win10 IoT LTSC

I have one system on Windows 11. But 4 other laptops are Linux on them.

 

[DragonMals]

Tiny11 iot LTSC on my Gaming and College laptops, and peppermintOS on an old Dell that I have and sometimes touch. if I'm ever feeling the Linux sauce, I got my ventoy backed up.

I saw there was this nice form of Debian I forgot the name of that was all green and was created to be the first distro to provide support for a new open source priccessor that's suposed to be an alternative to x86 and ARM.

Post automatically merged: Jan 23, 2026

Anyone who doesn't uses Arch goes on my nice list

 

[lwiz]

Windows and FreeBSD. Loonix just because of the Deck.

 

[Flame]

Windows and FreeBSD. Loonix just because of the Deck.

Red Star OS > Loonix

 

[Taleweaver]

Windows is work only for me. Everything else is Linux.
2 steam decks with steamos.
Now also two garbage pc's running bazzite (though truth be told: they're more for braggin rights than actually used as consoles right now)
A desktop and laptop running mint.
... Okay, and a tablet for casual gaming that sports android Linux.

 

[PityOnU]

Lol, this thread is going to be a lesson on sampling bias.

I use Mac OS for work, and mostly Windows on my personal devices. Dabbled a bit in Linux every now and then. Whatever works.

And I think that last part is the key: the answer to "Which OS should I use?" is just "Whichever lets you actually do what you want to do the fastest and most reliably."

I have a lot of background with Windows, so that will be the easiest platform for me to use 95% of the time. That being said, I'm having to spend more and more time messing with things each time I do a reinstall these days, so maybe that will eventually get to the point where it's too much of a PITA and I'll just switch to some Linux distro. Even just Windows Explorer is somehow getting more and more broken each year... But it hasn't quite crossed the threshold yet, so here I am.

 

[InsaneNutter]

I switched my main PC over to Fedora Kinoite around a month ago and have Linux full time since. I've thought about this for almost a year and finally just went for it when I had time off work over Christmas, no regrets so far. Coming from Windows KDE was very easy to adapt to. After a couple of days I felt like I was just using my PC as I normally would do.

I'm not sure yet if I'll have made my life harder using an Atomic distro, however so far I've not needed to layer any packages, everything I've needed has had a Flatpack, or I've been able to run in Toolbox. Atomic distros did seem like they would eventually be the future of Linux on the desktop when I was researching my options, so thought I might as well start with one.

My Laptop is an old Macbook Air from 2012, this has run PopOS for a few years, as Apple have long since stopped supporting it. That is now also on Fedora Kinoite. All I ever do on that is browse the web or RDP / SSH in to other servers on the Laptop, so I never really considered myself a Linux user until switching my main PC over.

 

[The Catboy]

I am honestly shocked people are still using Windows. I run SteamOS, Linux Mint, and Fedora

 

[Taleweaver]

Desktops for normal use are running MX Linux 23 (and 19).

There are Windows 95/ME/2000/XP/7/10 systems for the things that really needs them.

... What kind of thing says unironically that it needs windows millennium?

Post automatically merged: Jan 23, 2026

I am honestly shocked people are still using Windows. I run SteamOS, Linux Mint, and Fedora

I'm almost the opposite: I'm surprised how even it all is. Yes, i called those 5% statistics bullshit, but i estimated around 70-90% on windows.

 

[SylverReZ]

I'm unsure on why Windows and Linux are a draw. There's quite a few people in here who use dual-boot setups.

 

[Jayinem]

If I could keep my massive pirated PC and emulation collection I would probably switch to Linux, but then again there's no Launchbox on Linux and I use it for just about everything not just games but movies movies even apps.