What’s coming for the Windows Insider Program in 2023!

Hi Folks,

As the Windows Insider Program enters its 9th year in 2023, I continue to be amazed at our ever-growing community. It’s with this mindset that we reflect on how we can achieve more with the program and the offerings for our Windows Insiders.

Introducing the Canary Channel

The new Canary Channel is going to be the place to preview platform changes that require longer-lead time before getting released to customers. Some examples of this include major changes to the Windows kernel, new APIs, etc. This is very similar to what we’ve been fighting for the Dev Channel in the past. And like the Dev Channel, some of the changes we try out in the Canary Channel will never ship, and others could show up in future Windows releases when they’re ready.

Dev Channel Rebooted (Recommended)

For Insiders who are hungriest to try out new features and experiences – we recommend the Dev Channel.

Switching Channels

Now is a good time for Insiders to evaluate their channel selection to make sure it’s right for them. For example:

If you are an Insider in the Beta Channel who wants to be closer to the latest new features and experiences, we recommend you switch to the Dev Channel today.

It is important to note that when switching channels, Insiders can’t switch to a channel that is receiving builds with lower build numbers without doing a clean installation of Windows 11 due to technical setup requirements.

Initial build series per channel:

• Canary Channel: 25000 series.
• Dev Channel: 23000 series.
• Beta Channel: 22000 series.
• Release Preview: Released versions of Windows 10 and Windows 11.

[NEW!] Canary Channel: Ideal for highly technical users. Preview the latest platform changes early in the development cycle. These builds can be unstable and are released with limited to no documentation.

[REBOOTED!] Dev Channel: Ideal for enthusiasts. Access the latest Windows 11 preview builds as we incubate new ideas and develop long-lead features. There will be some rough edges and low stability.

[Unchanged] Beta Channel: Ideal for early adopters. These Windows 11 builds will be more reliable than builds from our Dev Channel, with updates validated by Microsoft. Your feedback has the greatest impact here.

[Unchanged] Release Preview Channel: Ideal if you want to preview fixes and certain key features, plus get optional access to the next version of Windows before it’s generally available to the world. This channel is also recommended for commercial users.