Mozilla is once again throwing a lifeline to users still running older versions of Windows. The company has announced yet another extension of support for its Firefox 115 Extended Support Release (ESR) on outdated Windows platforms, including Windows 7, 8, and 8.1, until March 2026, with a re-evaluation scheduled for February that year.
Firefox 115 — released in July 2023 — was originally intended to be the final build for the above operating systems, with support scheduled to end in September 2024. Since then, Mozilla has pushed the deadline back multiple times, citing the fact that a notable share of Firefox users still rely on older versions of Windows, which recently led the company to add another six months of support.
“We decided to extend support for ESR 115 only on Windows 7-8.1 and macOS 10.12-10.14 up to March 2026. We will re-evaluate this decision in February 2026 and announce any updates on ESR 115’s end-of-life then,” Mozilla said on the official Firefox release calendar website.
According to Mozilla’s Public Data Report, Windows 7 alone still accounts for 6.7% of Firefox’s user base, despite Microsoft ending official support for Windows 7, 8, and 8.1 back in January 2023. Unlike Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge, which dropped support in early 2023, Firefox remains the last mainstream browser offering security patches on these legacy systems.
What It Means For Users
Security updates only: Users on Windows 7, 8, and 8.1 will stay on Firefox 115 ESR. They won’t receive new features, but they will continue receiving critical security patches until at least March 2026. This helps reduce risks when browsing on outdated systems.
Upgrade recommended: Mozilla stresses that sticking with unsupported operating systems is still risky. Even with browser patches, old versions of Windows are exposed to known vulnerabilities. To stay safe long-term, the company strongly urges users to move to Windows 10 or higher — or consider Linux distributions like Mint as an alternative.
Future uncertain: Support could end after March 2026, but given Mozilla’s track record of multiple extensions, there is a chance updates may continue past 2026, but nothing is guaranteed.
For now, Firefox remains the only major browser still actively patching security issues for Windows 7, 8, and 8.1 — offering users a little more time before they must finally upgrade.
