What Operating System Am I Using? Detect OS

The operating system your browser is running on is shown above. It comes from platform tokens in the user agent and, on supporting browsers, from the platform Client Hint, which is harder to fake and more precise.

Websites map this to Windows, macOS, Linux, Chrome OS, Android or iOS. The distinction changes real things: which keyboard shortcuts a web app shows, whether a download is an .exe, .dmg or .apk, and whether a page assumes touch or a mouse.

Version detail is deliberately fuzzy on modern browsers. Both Windows and macOS now report a frozen or capped OS version to most sites to cut down on fingerprinting, so "Windows 10" in a user agent may actually be Windows 11.

What you should know

Why sites collect it

Sites use your OS to offer the correct app or installer, adapt shortcut hints, choose touch or pointer interfaces, and segment analytics. App stores and download pages rely on it to point you at the right build.

Privacy implications

The OS family is shared by hundreds of millions of people, so it is weak on its own. Older browsers leaked a precise OS build, which was more identifying. Newer browsers freeze that value, so the platform is now a coarse signal rather than a sharp one.

How to change or hide it

You can spoof the platform with a user-agent override, but web apps that adjust shortcuts and downloads to your real OS will then behave oddly. Keeping this accurate is usually the practical choice, and the modern frozen values already limit what leaks.

Frequently asked questions

Can a website tell my exact OS version?

Less than it used to. Windows and macOS now report a frozen version to most sites, so a page can tell the family and a rough era, but not always the precise build.

Does my OS reveal my hardware?

Not directly. The OS is separate from CPU cores, memory and GPU, which browsers expose through their own APIs and which you can check on their own pages here.