Desktop operating systems: market share in the United Kingdom (UK) 2017-2024

Apple and Microsoft command over a 90 percent share of the desktop operating system market in the United Kingdom (UK), as of 2024. Microsoft’s product, Windows, held 68.24 percent of the market, while Apple’s macOS held 23.65 percent. 

Browsers and search engines used on desktops

Desktop searches made up 49 percent of search engine activity as of April 2023, ahead of the 46 percent held by mobile phones. Google is not only the preferred search engine for 86.3 percent of UK desktop users, it is also the developer of Chrome, the preferred browser for 59 percent of internet users in the UK.

Share of households with home computers steady

The share of households with home computers in the UK has remained steady since 2015-16, with 88 percent of households owning such a machine according to the UK Office for National Statistics. The average weekly retail sales value of computers and telecommunications in the UK amounted to 96.8 million British pounds in October 2023.