Windows 11 Soars Among Gamers, While the GeForce RTX 3060 Remains the Queen on Steam

The results of the Steam Hardware & Software Survey for April 2026 highlight an increasingly polarized PC gaming ecosystem centered around the latest version of Microsoft's operating system. Windows 11 has consolidated its position as the absolute leader, reaching a 67.74% market share, with a growth of 0.89% compared to the previous month.

Windows 11 Soars, Windows 10 Enters a Stagnation Phase
This increase occurs in a context of substantial immobility for Windows 10, which stands at 25.63% without any significant changes. This data suggests that the previous operating system has now reached a definitive plateau, with a user base that shows no sign of decline but is no longer attracting new users.

Overall, the Windows universe controls 93.47% of the platform (+1.14%), leaving crumbs for competitors. Linux has experienced a decline, dropping to 4.52%, while macOS continues to occupy a marginal position at 2.01%. The adoption of Windows 11 among gamers is progressing at a significantly higher rate than the general consumer market, confirming Steam users' tendency towards software upgrades to maximize compatibility with the latest gaming technologies.

Under the hood of Valve users’ PCs, hardware hierarchies remain solid. NVIDIA dominates the graphics segment with a share of 73.21%, distancing itself from AMD (18.6%) and Intel (7.81%). The GeForce RTX 3060 remains the most used graphics card (3.99%), followed by the RTX 3050 (3.04%). However, the most interesting data concerns the rise of the newest RTX 5070, which has already captured 2.86% of market share, securing third place overall and demonstrating remarkable adoption speed for the latest architecture from the 'Team Green'.

On the processor front, Intel maintains command with 54.81% compared to 45.19% for AMD. The typical configuration of the average user is based on 6-core processors, chosen by 28.62% of gamers. Despite the availability of CPUs with significantly more cores, the mainstream market prefers balanced solutions for pure gaming. The 1920x1080 resolution remains the reference standard for 52.21% of the sample, demonstrating how the transition to 1440p or 4K is still far from being the norm for the majority of enthusiasts. Memory provision has stabilized at 16 GB of RAM (40.86%) and 8 GB of VRAM (26.76%).

It is worth noting that Valve has finally confirmed the release dates and official prices for the new Steam Controller. The company is also finalizing details regarding the price lists for the new Steam Machines, despite delays experienced in previous months due to difficulties in obtaining RAM modules. Valve seems determined to push aggressively with its proprietary hardware to strengthen an integrated ecosystem that can compete not only on the software front but also on the desktop and 'living room' experience.

Official data from the latest Steam survey can be consulted here.