It has been only a year since Windows 11 was first released, but the rumors of Windows 12 have already started floating around. There have been reports that Microsoft is planning to switch to a new update cycle for Windows, and there will be no Windows 11 23H2 or 24H2 builds released in the coming months. In fact, the Windows 11 23H2 “Sun Valley 3” update has reportedly been stopped, and work on Windows 12 (codenamed: Next Valley) has already begun. So to learn more about Windows 12’s release date, expected features, hardware requirements, and more, follow our in-depth article below.

In this article, we have discussed Windows 12’s release date, why Microsoft is switching to a new 3-year major Windows update cycle, the features we expect to come in Windows 12, and much more. Windows 11 22H2 is still on track, and we expect the update to roll out to all users in September – October. That said, expand the table below and read everything you need to know about Windows 12.

  • Windows 12 Release DateWindows 12: History of Microsoft’s Update RoadmapHow New Features Will Be Released on Windows 12?Windows 12 New Features (Expected)Windows 12: Hardware RequirementsWindows 12 Price: Will Windows 12 be Free?

Windows 12 Release Date

If you’re wondering when Windows 12 will be released, then you first need to understand Microsoft’s new Windows development roadmap. According to a report by WindowsCentral, it appears Microsoft is doing away with the long development cycles of its desktop OS. With the release of Windows 11, the company has already given up on its Windows-as-a-service dream and is ready to release more new iterations of its desktop OS.

Windows 12: History of Microsoft’s Update Roadmap

For Microsoft, the 3-year update cycle is not new. In fact, Microsoft followed this update cadence after the release of Windows Vista in 2006. After 3 years, Windows 7 was released in 2009, and Windows 8 was rolled out in 2012. After another 3 years, Microsoft released the most popular Windows version, Windows 10, in 2015.

If you look at Microsoft in 2015, it seems the company was trying to focus on Windows 10 after Windows 8/8.1 was not received well. In fact, in 2015, one of its engineers went on to say that Windows 10 will be the last version of Windows, and Microsoft never dismissed the statement. Not to forget, Microsoft was itself propagating the idea of “Windows as a service“, and that future branding was something Microsoft was not eager to talk about. Basically, the idea of version numbers was dead and Microsoft wanted its users to settle for just “Windows” instead of worrying about the version number.

How New Features Will Be Released on Windows 12?

Along with the new 3-year update cycle, Microsoft is also changing how features will be delivered on Windows 12. On Windows 10, major feature updates used to come twice a year (as H1 and H2). Things changed with Windows 11, and the update cycle was recently switched to an annual feature update. In fact, the first Windows 11 22H2 feature update is almost here and it will arrive in September or October. If you are on the Windows 11 Release Preview channel, you can install Windows 11 22H2 update right now and explore all the new Windows 11 22H2 features.

Now, on Windows 12, Microsoft is reportedly doing away with the annual update cycle as well. Microsoft has developed a new engineering effort called “Moments” that will bring new features throughout the year, similar to Pixel’s Feature Drop. It’s being said that at least four such feature drops will be delivered in a year on Windows 12.

Microsoft has not confirmed Windows 12’s existence yet, and there have been no feature leaks so far. However, if we go by recent builds released to Windows Insider users, especially in the Dev channel, we are noticing that Microsoft is experimenting with a lot of new features and prototypes. For example, the 25158 build (July 13) brought different kinds of visual treatments to Search in the Taskbar.

Not to mention, Microsoft is testing notification badges for the weather widget in the Windows 11 Taskbar. Apart from that, the Redmond giant is experimenting with another smart feature where you can copy a date, time, or phone number, and Suggested Actions offer quicker inline actions to complete the task through a dedicated app.

As far as Windows 12’s hardware requirements are concerned, I think Microsoft might not add more stringent policies to cut off older PCs. The TPM requirement will surely still be there, as Microsoft is getting serious about security on Windows computers. That said, you could see the company raise the upper ceiling on the processor’s that can run Windows 12, but we can’t say that for sure right now. But we’re certain that if your current machine can run Windows 11, it can very well run Windows 12 as well.

Windows 12 Price: Will Windows 12 be Free?

If we look at Microsoft’s past history, everything suggests that upgrading from Windows 11 to Windows 12 will be free, just like it was for Windows 10 to 11. Moreover, eligible PCs that are already running Windows 10 might also see the option to install Windows 12 without any charge.

However, if you want to run Windows 12 on your custom-built PC, you may have to buy a retail license for the upcoming desktop OS from Microsoft. That means you may have to pay $139 to get an official copy of Windows 12, which is the same as the price of Windows 10 and 11 Home.