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What is the difference between Windows 10 Home and Windows 10 Pro

Windows 10, the upcoming operating system from Microsoft, has many various editions. These include Home, Pro, Enterprise, Mobile, Education, Mobile Enterprise, and IoT Core editions. We have reviewed them in the past. Most home users will probably use Windows 10 Home or Windows 10 Pro. Let's see what is the difference between these editions.

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Windows 10 RTM wallpaperAs expected, Windows 10 Home edition has significantly less features. It does not include Group Policy, Remote Desktop and many other useful features which Pro edition offers to the end user.

The lower editions of Windows have always been lacking in features, and with the upcoming release, it's the same case. The worst thing in my opinion is that the Home edition does not come with any option to control updates. The Windows Update for Business feature and Current Branch for Business update branches, are more flexible than the update branch for Windows 10 Home.

See the following table to find all the differences between Windows 10 Home and Windows 10 Pro:

FeaturesHomePro
Customizable StartYesYes
Windows Defender and Windows firewallYesYes
Fast startup with Hiberboot and InstantGoYesYes
TPM SupportYesYes
Battery SaverYesYes
Windows UpdateYesYes

Cortana

Talk or type naturallyYesYes
Personal and proactive suggestionsYesYes
RemindersYesYes
Search web, device, and cloudYesYes
“Hey Cortana” hands-free activationYesYes

Windows Hello

Native fingerprint recognitionYesYes
Native facial and iris recognitionYesYes
Enterprise level securityYesYes

Multi-doing

Virtual desktopsYesYes
Snap assist (up to four apps on one screen)YesYes
Snap apps across screens on different monitorsYesYes

Continnum

Switch from PC to tablet modeYesYes

Microsoft Edge

Reading viewYesYes
Built-in ink supportYesYes
Cortana integrationYesYes

Security

Device EncryptionYesYes
Microsoft PassportYesYes
Enterprise Data ProtectionNoYes

Windows as a service

Windows UpdateYesYes
Windows Update for businessNoYes
Current branch for businessNoYes

Management and deployment

Side-loading of line of business appsYesYes
Mobile device managementYesYes
Ability to join Azure directory, win single sign-on to cloud-hosted appsNoYes
Business Store for Windows 10NoYes
Easy Upgrade from Pro to Enterprise EditionNoYes
Easy Upgrade from Home to Education EditionYesNo

Existing fundamentals

Device EncryptionYesYes
Domain JoinNoYes
BitLockerNoYes
Group PolicyNoYes
Enterprise Mode Internet ExplorerNoYes
Assigned Access 8.1NoYes
Remote DesktopNoYes

What do you think about Windows 10 Home? Is it suitable for you or will you use Windows 10 Pro instead?

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Author: Sergey Tkachenko

Sergey Tkachenko is a software developer who started Winaero back in 2011. On this blog, Sergey is writing about everything connected to Microsoft, Windows and popular software. Follow him on Telegram, Twitter, and YouTube.

7 thoughts on “What is the difference between Windows 10 Home and Windows 10 Pro”

    1. Good. At this moment, one of my PCs has Win8.1 Pro installed. I will update it to Win10Pro sooner or later.

  1. I’m going to wait until Windows 10 is officially out and you can buy it, either I’ll use my Windows 8.1 home key or buy Pro, haven’t decided yet.

  2. Can somebody tell me if there will be a way to control the behavior of Windows Update in Windows 10 Home? Like for example, editing a value in the registry? According to what I’ve read in several sites (this one’s included, of course), Updates will be delivered automatically in Windows 10 Home.

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