Which version of Windows operating system am I running?

Find operating system info in Windows 10

To find out which version of Windows your device is running, press the Windows logo key + R, type winver in the Open box, and then select OK.

Here’s how to learn more:

Select the Start button > Settings > System > About .

Under Device specifications > System type, see if you’re running a 32-bit or 64-bit version of Windows.

Under Windows specifications, check which edition and version of Windows your device is running.

Related links

If you’re having a problem with activation, see Activate in Windows 10.

If you forgot the password you use to sign in to Windows devices or email, see How to reset your Microsoft password.

For info about updating Windows, see Windows Update: FAQ.

Find operating system info in Windows 8.1 or Windows RT 8.1

To find out which version of Windows your device is running, press the Windows logo key + R, type winver in the Open box, and then select OK.

If your device is running Windows 8.1 or Windows RT 8.1, here’s how to learn more:

If you’re using a touch device, swipe in from the right edge of the screen, tap Settings, and then tap Change PC settings. Continue to step 3.

If you’re using a mouse, point to the lower-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer up, click Settings, and then click Change PC settings.

Select PC and devices > PC info.

Under Windows you’ll see which edition and version of Windows your device is running.

Under PC > System type you’ll see if you’re running a 32-bit or 64-bit version of Windows.

Related links

If you’re having a problem with activation, see Activate Windows 7 or Windows 8.1

If you forgot the password you use to sign in to Windows devices or email, see How to reset your Microsoft password.

For info about updating Windows, see Windows Update: FAQ.

Find operating system info in Windows 7

Select the Start button, type Computer in the search box, right-click on Computer, and then select Properties.

Under Windows edition, you’ll see the version and edition of Windows that your device is running.

Support for Windows 7 ended on January 14, 2020

We recommend you move to a Windows 10 PC to continue to receive security updates from Microsoft.

Related links

If you’re having a problem with activation, see Activate Windows 7 or Windows 8.1.

If you forgot the password you use to sign in to Windows devices or email, see How to reset your Microsoft password.

For info about updating Windows, see Windows Update: FAQ.

What Version of Windows Do I Have?

How to tell which version of Windows is installed on your computer

Do you know what version of Windows you have? While you usually don’t need to know the exact version number for whatever Windows version you have installed, general information about the operating system version you’re running is very important.

Why You Should Know Which Version of Windows You Have

Everyone should know three things about the Windows version they have installed: the major version of Windows, like 10, 8, 7, etc.; the edition of that Windows version, like Pro, Ultimate, etc.; and whether that Windows version is 64-bit or 32-bit.

If you don’t know what version of Windows you have, you won’t know what software you can install, which device driver to choose for an update—you may not even know which directions to follow for help with something!

Keep in mind that the taskbar icons and Start menu entries in these images might not be exactly what you have on your computer. However, the structure and general appearance of each Start button will be the same, so long as you don’t have a custom Start menu installed.

Windows 10

You have Windows 10 if you see a Start menu like this when you select the Start button from the desktop. If you right-click the Start menu, you’ll see the Power User Menu.

The Windows 10 edition you have installed, as well as the system type (64-bit or 32-bit), can all be found listed in the System applet in Control Panel.

Windows 10 is the name given to Windows version 10.0 and is the latest version of Windows. If you just got a new computer, there’s a 99 percent chance you have Windows 10 installed. (Maybe closer to 99.9 percent!)

The Windows version number for Windows 10 is 10.0.

Windows 8 or 8.1

You have Windows 8.1 if you see a Start button on the bottom-left of the desktop and selecting it takes you to the Start menu.

You have Windows 8 if you don’t see a Start button at all on the desktop.

The Power User Menu when right-clicking the Start button in Windows 10, is also available in Windows 8.1 (and the same is true for right-clicking the corner of the screen in Windows 8).

The edition of Windows 8 or 8.1 you’re using, as well as information on whether or not that version of Windows 8 is 32-bit or 64-bit, is all found in Control Panel from the System applet.

If you’re not sure if you’re running Windows 8.1 or Windows 8, you’ll also see that information listed in the System applet.

Windows 8.1 is the name given to Windows version 6.3, and Windows 8 is Windows version 6.2.

Windows 7

You have Windows 7 if you see a Start menu that looks like this when you select the Start button.

The Windows 7 & Windows Vista (below) Start buttons and Start menus look very similar. The Windows 7 Start button, however, fits completely inside the taskbar, unlike the one for Windows Vista.

Information on which Windows 7 edition you have, as well as whether it’s 64-bit or 32-bit, is all available in the Control Panel in the System applet.

Windows 7 is the name given to Windows version 6.1.

Windows Vista

You have Windows Vista if, after clicking the Start button, you see a menu that looks a lot like this.

As you read in the Windows 7 section above, both versions of Windows have similar Start buttons and menus. One way to tell them apart is to look at the button itself—the one in Windows Vista, unlike in Windows 7, extends above and below the taskbar.

Information on the Windows Vista edition you’re using, as well as whether your version of Windows Vista is 32-bit or 64-bit, are all available from the System applet, which you can find in Control Panel.

Windows Vista is the name given to Windows version 6.0.

Windows XP

You have Windows XP if the Start button includes both a Windows logo as well as the word start. In newer versions of Windows, as you can see above, this button is just a button (without text).

Another way the Windows XP Start button is unique when compared with newer versions of Windows is that it’s horizontal with a curved right edge. The others, as seen above, are either a circle or square.

Like other versions of Windows, you can find your Windows XP edition and architecture type from the System applet in Control Panel.

Windows XP is the name given to Windows version 5.1.

Unlike with newer versions of Windows, the 64-bit version of Windows XP was given its own version number: Windows version 5.2.

How to Find the Windows Version With a Command

While the images and information above is the best way to determine the version of Windows you’re running, it’s not the only way. There’s also a command you can run on your computer that will display an About Windows screen with the Windows version included.

It’s really easy to do this regardless of the version of Windows you’re running; the steps are identical.

Just invoke the Run dialog box with the Win+R keyboard shortcut (hold down the Windows key and then press R once). Once that box shows up, enter winver (it stands for Windows version).

How to find out what windows you have

“Windows 10” is apparently here to stay, and Microsoft won’t be bumping things up to Windows 11 any time soon. Here’s how to find out what “build” of Windows 10 you have — you can think of it like a service pack level — as well as which edition and version of the operating system you have.

Microsoft has hidden the build number in an attempt to make Windows 10 look always-up-to-date, and there are still different editions of Windows 10 with different features. Microsoft is also still offering both 64-bit and 32-bit versions of Windows 10, too.

Use the Settings App

The new Settings application also offers this information in a user-friendly form. To launch it, click or tap the Start button and select Settings.

Navigate to System > About and scroll down. You’ll see the “Version” and “Build” numbers here.

• Edition: The “Edition” line tells you which edition of Windows 10 you’re using — Windows 10 Home, Professional, Enterprise, or Education. If you’d like to upgrade to Windows 10 Professional, you can upgrade to the Professional edition from within Windows 10. Switching to Windows 10 Enterprise or Education editions will require a complete reinstall and a special key that isn’t made available to normal home Windows users.
• Build Number: Look at the “Version” and “OS Build” lines. If you have the original version of Windows 10, you’ll just see “OS Build 10240”. This was the initial release of Windows 10. If you have the “November Update” version of Windows 10 — Windows 10’s first big update— you’ll see a new version number scheme here. It’ll say “Version 1511 (OS Build 10576.29)”.
  The “1511” is the key. This number identifies that you’re using the build of Windows 10 released in November (the 11th month) of 2015. If Microsoft were to release a build of Windows 10 in April (the 4th month) of 2016, its version number would be “Version 1604”.
• 64-bit or 32-bit: The “System type” line tells you whether you’re using the 32-bit version of Windows 10 or the 64-bit version. It also tells you whether your PC is compatible with the 64-bit version or not.
  For example, “64-bit operating system, x64-based processor” indicates you’re using a 64-bit version of Windows 10 on a 64-bit processor. “32-bit operating system, x64-based processor” indicates you’re using a 32-bit version of Windows 10, but you could install the 64-bit version on your hardware if you preferred.

Use the Winver Dialog and Control Panel

You can use the old standby “winver” tool to find the build number of your Windows 10 system. To launch it, you can tap the Windows key, type “winver” into the Start menu, and press Enter. You could also press Windows Key + R, type “winver” into the Run dialog, and press Enter.

The second line here will tell you which build of Windows 10 you have. Again, the version number is in the form YYMM, where 1511 means the 11th month of 2015.

You’ll also see the edition of Windows 10 you’re using displayed in the winver dialog. It states “Windows 10 Home” in the screen above.

The winver dialog doesn’t display whether you’re using a 64-bit or 32-bit version of Windows 10, but the Control Panel does. To open this screen, right-click “This PC” in a File Explorer window and select “Properties”. You can also open the Control Panel window, click “System and Security,” and then click “System”.

The “Windows edition” section at the top of the window displays which edition of Windows 10 you’re using, while the “System type” line here displays whether you’re using a 64-bit or 32-bit edition of Windows 10, and whether your computer’s hardware is 64-bit compatible or not.

This information is important if you want to know whether your Windows 10 machine has received an update yet, figure out if you have a feature available only in certain editions of Windows, or find out whether you should download the 64-bit version of a program or not.