Windows is finally hitting back at Chrome OS in the Education market. Following the downfall of Windows in the education sector, Microsoft recently started focusing on the market to gain back its market share from Chrome OS with the launch of Windows 10 S. The company today touted the “strong” growth of Windows PCs in the education sector in the United States and worldwide.

Windows device market share grew by 4.3% for sub $300 devices in the United States in K-12 schools, while devices over $300 saw an 8.2% increase from last quarter. The growth of Windows isn’t effectively “strong” yet, as Microsoft would need to continue the trend in the following quarters if it actually wants to take over Chrome OS — at least in the States where Chrome OS still holds 59.8% of the market.

Microsoft is actually citing the data from a recent report from analytics firm Futuresource, which claims Chrome OS experienced the slowest growth ever last quarter, with the market share shifting from 57.9% from Q2 2017 to 59.8% in the United States. Apple’s iOS and Mac devices have also experienced a steep decline over the last quarter in the United States, losing 6.1% and 0.1% share of the market respectively.

As for the rest of the world, Windows continues to dominate the education sector with 66.5% of the market (up from 57.1%). Windows’ growth — mostly led by increased sales in India and Argentina — means Chrome OS lost a good portion of the market, dropping by roughly 10% over a single quarter.

The growth for Windows was likely led by the recent launch of Windows 10 S and affordable Windows laptops that promise to offer improved security and a streamlined deployment experience for IT Pros in schools. Microsoft expects the education market to grow by 15% YoY worldwide, which should help boost Windows 10 S and its other solutions for the education market. But being able to keep up the growth in the US should be a priority for Redmond.

Tagged with Chrome OS, Microsoft, Microsoft Education, Windows, Windows 10