Windows 10 editions

Windows 10 has several editions, all with varying feature sets, use cases, or intended devices. Certain editions are distributed only on devices directly from an original equipment manufacturer (OEM), while editions such as Enterprise and Education are only available through volume licensing channels. Microsoft also makes editions of Windows 10 available to device manufacturers for use on specific classes of devices, including IoT devices, and previously marketed Windows 10 Mobile for smartphones.

Baseline editions are the only editions available as standalone purchases in retail outlets. PCs often come pre-installed with one of these editions.

These editions add features to facilitate centralized control of many installations of the OS within an organization. The main avenue of acquiring them is a volume licensing contract with Microsoft.

Since 2018, OEMs can ship Windows 10 Home and Pro in a gatekeeping variant named S mode. Essentially, Microsoft discontinued Windows 10 S which restricted user to Microsoft Store apps only, and turned it into a mode . Among many blocked or limited features that Microsoft markets as security-oriented and aimed for use by schools , system settings are locked to allow only Microsoft Edge as the default web browser, itself locked to allow only Bing as its default search engine . Non-Microsoft web browsers such as Firefox can be installed, but are blocked from being set as default browsers. It does not allow to run Linux on it either . The installation of software (both Universal Windows Platform (UWP) and Windows API apps) is only possible through the Microsoft Store, and built-in and Microsoft Store-obtained command line programs or shells cannot be run in S mode . Critics have compared the S mode to Windows RT, and have suspected it to seek to compete with ChromeOS, which was confirmed by leaked Microsoft document .

The operating system may be switched out of S mode using the Microsoft Store for free. Once S Mode is turned off, it cannot be re-enabled .

These editions are licensed to OEMs only, and are primarily obtained via the purchase of hardware that includes it:

Rebranded from Microsoft's earlier operating system editions in the Windows Embedded family. Binary identical to their non-IoT counterparts with version 1809 and older, while newer versions add support for smaller storage devices. Available via OEMs and volume licensing for specific versions.

The following editions of Windows 10 were discontinued (as of Windows 10 version 21H2). For both Mobile and Mobile Enterprise, Microsoft confirmed it was exiting the consumer mobile devices market, so no successor product is available.