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.NET

Microsoft's open-source, cross-platform runtime for C#, F# and Visual Basic. A new version comes out every November.

  • Active project
  • Latest 11.0.0Nov 2026
  • Latest LTS 10 LTS
  • Supported 2 versions
Download Official site 22 .NET guides
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At a glance

Type
Runtime & framework
Developer
Microsoft and the .NET Foundation
First release
27 Jun 2016
Release cadence
Yearly (November); even versions are LTS (3 years), odd versions STS (2 years)
Languages
C#, F#, Visual Basic
Runtime
CoreCLR
Package manager
NuGet
Runs on
Windows, Linux, macOS
Predecessor
.NET Framework (Windows only, since 2002)
License
MIT
Website
dotnet.microsoft.com

Newest release

.NET 11

Released 10 Nov 2026 · latest update 11.0.0

Recommended for servers

.NET 10 LTS

Supported until 14 Nov 2028

Support status

11 Supported

Until 14 Nov 2028 · in 2 years

10 LTS Supported

Until 14 Nov 2028 · in 2 years

9 End of life

Ended 10 Nov 2026 · 3 days ago

Release history

VersionReleasedLatestEnd of lifeStatus
1110 Nov 202611.0.014 Nov 2028Supported
10 LTS11 Nov 202510.0.1514 Nov 2028Supported
912 Nov 20249.0.2310 Nov 2026End of life
8 LTS14 Nov 20238.0.3410 Nov 2026End of life
78 Nov 20227.0.2014 May 2024End of life
6 LTS8 Nov 20216.0.3612 Nov 2024End of life
510 Nov 20205.0.1710 May 2022End of life
3.1 LTS3 Dec 20193.1.3213 Dec 2022End of life
3.023 Sep 20193.0.33 Mar 2020End of life
2.24 Dec 20182.2.823 Dec 2019End of life
2.1 LTS30 May 20182.1.3021 Aug 2021End of life
2.014 Aug 20172.0.91 Oct 2018End of life
1.116 Nov 20161.1.1327 Jun 2019End of life
1.027 Jun 20161.0.1627 Jun 2019End of life

Release data: endoflife.date and vendor announcements, checked 13 Nov 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.

Support timeline

The 12 most recent releases, from release day to the end of support.

  • Active support
  • Today
11
10 LTS
9
8 LTS
7
6 LTS
5
3.1 LTS
3.0
2.2
2.1 LTS
2.0

History

Microsoft launched the .NET Framework in 2002 as a Windows-only platform for C# and Visual Basic. In 2014 it changed course: .NET Core was rebuilt as open source under the MIT licence and runs on Linux and macOS as well as Windows. .NET Core 1.0 shipped in 2016. With .NET 5 in 2020 the “Core” name was dropped and the platform became simply .NET.

A new major version ships every November. Even-numbered versions are Long Term Support releases with three years of updates. Odd-numbered Standard Term Support releases now get two years. The older .NET Framework 4.8 still ships with Windows but gets no new features.

Milestones

  1. 2002Microsoft releases the Windows-only .NET Framework 1.0
  2. 2014Microsoft announces an open-source, cross-platform .NET Core and the .NET Foundation
  3. 2016.NET Core 1.0 runs on Windows, Linux and macOS
  4. 2020.NET 5 unifies the platform and drops the "Core" name
  5. 2023.NET 8 is released as an LTS version
  6. 2025.NET 10 LTS is released; STS versions are now supported for 24 months
  7. 2026.NET 11 is released in November

.NET guides

Browse all 22 .NET guides →

Frequently asked questions

What is the latest version of .NET?

The newest .NET release is .NET 11, released on 10 Nov 2026. Its latest update is 11.0.0 (10 Nov 2026).

What is the latest LTS version of .NET?

.NET 10 LTS is the newest long-term support release (released 11 Nov 2025), supported until 14 Nov 2028.

Which .NET versions are still supported?

As of 13 Nov 2026, 2 versions are supported: .NET 11 (until 14 Nov 2028); .NET 10 LTS (until 14 Nov 2028).

Is .NET 9 still supported?

No. .NET 9 reached end of life on 10 Nov 2026 and no longer gets free security updates. Upgrade to .NET 10 LTS.

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