Overview

• Microsoft confirmed EEA consumers will get Windows 10 Extended Security Updates at no cost through Oct. 14, 2026 without needing a Microsoft account, cloud backup, or Microsoft Rewards.
• Windows Central reports the EEA enrollment change removes earlier conditions that tied free access to signing in and syncing PC settings to the cloud.
• Outside the EEA, access still requires either signing in with a Microsoft account and syncing settings, paying $30, or redeeming 1,000 Microsoft Rewards points.
• In the United States, a free path is available by uploading a Windows 10 profile to Microsoft’s backup service for up to one year, with $30 or Rewards redemption as alternatives.
• Windows 10 reaches its end-of-support date on Oct. 14, 2025, and European consumer groups say their pressure prompted Microsoft’s concession in the EEA.