On the calendar
August 24, 1995 was a Thursday, the 236th day of 1995 with 129 days left in the year. It fell in ISO week 34.
Windows 95 went on sale on August 24, 1995, after one of the most expensive marketing pushes the software industry had seen. The new Microsoft operating system introduced the Start button and taskbar, a layout that Windows users still rely on to find their programs. Microsoft shipped about 1 million copies in the first four days.
What Happened on August 24, 1995
Bill Gates hosted the launch on Microsoft’s campus in Redmond, Washington, with demonstrations, a carnival atmosphere and an audience of journalists, guests and employees. Gates told the crowd the release marked “the next era of computing.”
Some stores opened at midnight so buyers could take a box home the moment sales began, and the first copies in Australia were sold at midnight local time. In New York, the Empire State Building was lit in the Windows colors. The campaign’s soundtrack was the Rolling Stones’ “Start Me Up,” a reference to the Start button that Microsoft licensed for a fee reported at about $3 million.
From Chicago to Windows 95: What Was New
Microsoft developed the system under the code name Chicago and released the finished version to manufacturing on July 14, 1995, about six weeks before the retail date. It combined the familiar MS-DOS foundation with a redesigned interface and many technical changes. Before launch, Microsoft also sold a prerelease copy through its Windows 95 Preview Program for $19.95, so some enthusiasts had used the new desktop before August.
| Feature | What it did |
|---|---|
| Start button and Start menu | Put programs, recent documents and settings in one place |
| Taskbar and notification area | Showed open programs and status icons along the edge of the screen |
| Windows Explorer | A new file manager for browsing folders and files |
| Long file names | Allowed file names up to 255 characters |
| Plug and Play | Detected and configured new hardware more automatically |
| 32-bit design | Let 32-bit programs multitask preemptively and, in theory, address up to 4 GB of memory |
| Recycle Bin | Held deleted files until the user emptied it |
| Microsoft Exchange inbox | Gathered email, messages and faxes in one place |
The minimum requirements were an Intel 386DX processor, 4 MB of memory and about 50 to 55 MB of free disk space, though Microsoft recommended a 486 with at least 8 MB.
How Microsoft Sold Windows 95
Microsoft’s own advertising budget is usually put at around $200 million, and published estimates of the total campaign, including partners and retailers, run much higher. The company also released a 30-minute video guide starring Jennifer Aniston and Matthew Perry, two of the stars of the television sitcom Friends, who walked viewers through multitasking and The Microsoft Network.
The Microsoft Network, or MSN, shipped with Windows 95 as a rival to online services such as America Online. For many families, it was the first way into email and the web. The internet itself was handled more slowly: the original retail version had no web browser built in. Internet Explorer 1.0 came in the separate Microsoft Plus! pack, along with desktop themes and a 3D pinball game, and Internet Explorer 2.0 arrived with OEM Service Release 1.
Sales, Reviews and Rivals
Microsoft had told the press it hoped to sell 20 million to 30 million copies worldwide by the end of 1995. Reports at the time counted about 7 million copies in the first five weeks, and by the first anniversary Microsoft said 40 million units had shipped.
Not every review was glowing. The New York Times described the system as “an edifice built of baling wire, chewing gum and prayer,” pointing to its reliance on MS-DOS underneath. Apple ran a Wall Street Journal ad poking fun at features such as long file names and a trash folder, which Macintosh owners already had.
None of that slowed adoption. Game makers showed off Windows 95 versions of popular titles such as Doom II at launch events, giving home users another reason to upgrade. Windows 95 helped Windows dominate PC sales through the late 1990s and pushed rivals such as IBM’s OS/2 to the margins.
Timeline of Windows 95
| Date | Milestone |
|---|---|
| July 14, 1995 | Released to manufacturing |
| August 24, 1995 | Retail launch and Redmond event |
| August 1996 | Microsoft reports 40 million units shipped |
| 1998 | Windows 98 succeeds it |
| December 31, 2000 | Mainstream support ends |
| December 31, 2001 | Extended support ends |
What Windows 95 Changed for PC Users
The Start button outlasted almost everything else in the release. Microsoft dropped the traditional Start menu in Windows 8 and restored a full Start menu in Windows 10, a sign of how strongly users had come to expect it. The taskbar, the notification area by the clock and the Recycle Bin also carried forward into later versions.
Windows 95 was followed by Windows 98 three years later, and Microsoft ended all support on December 31, 2001.
The launch was one of several 1995 milestones that pulled computers into everyday American life, alongside the opening of Amazon’s online bookstore in July and the release of Toy Story, the first fully computer-animated feature film, in November. You can see how those dates line up on the full 1995 calendar.
Frequently asked questions
When did Windows 95 come out?
Windows 95 went on sale at retail on August 24, 1995. Microsoft had finished the code and released it to manufacturing on July 14, 1995, so PC makers could prepare machines. Some stores opened at midnight on August 24 so customers could buy copies the moment sales began.
Why did Microsoft use Start Me Up for Windows 95?
The Rolling Stones song was a direct nod to the Start button, the most visible new feature of Windows 95. Microsoft licensed the track as the soundtrack of its launch campaign, reportedly for about $3 million, and used it in television ads and at the launch event in Redmond.
Did Windows 95 come with Internet Explorer?
Not at first. The original retail version of Windows 95 shipped without Internet Explorer. Internet Explorer 1.0 was sold in the separate Microsoft Plus! add-on, and the first version of Windows 95 to include the browser was OEM Service Release 1, which carried Internet Explorer 2.0. The Microsoft Network online service was included from the start.
How many copies of Windows 95 were sold?
Microsoft shipped about 1 million copies worldwide in the first four days, and reports from the time put sales at about 7 million copies in the first five weeks. By the first anniversary in August 1996, Microsoft said 40 million units had shipped.
Sources
- Start Me Up! Microsoft's Breakthrough OS Windows 95 Turns 20 - NBC News
- Back to the Start: How Microsoft launched Windows 95 to the world - The Star
- Windows 95 - Wikipedia
Facts in this article were checked against the sources above. See our editorial policy to report a correction.