In brief
- Ubuntu 26.10 was released on October 15, 2026.
- Support ends in July 2027; this is not an LTS release.
- Check upgrade restrictions and prepare a backup.
Changes you may notice at your desk
Ubuntu 26.10, named Stonking Stingray, was released on October 15, 2026 with GNOME 51. Everyday improvements include remembering monitor brightness after a restart and an option to disable the touchpad automatically when a mouse is connected.
The file manager adds an item counter when you drag several files. Calendar gains responsiveness and month-view improvements. These are modest changes, but they may matter more in daily use than a long list of technical names.
Nine months is not long-term support
This release receives nine months of support, ending in July 2027. It is not an LTS release. If you depend on your computer for work or study and prefer fewer major upgrades, that difference deserves more attention than a visual adjustment.
One useful way to decide is to write down the specific problem an upgrade would solve. If your current system works well and is still maintained, a new desktop feature need not become an emergency. If you do upgrade, allow time afterward to check your applications and peripherals.
Check the upgrade path first
The release notes warn that, at launch, devices using TPM-backed full-disk encryption cannot upgrade from Ubuntu 26.04 to 26.10. Canonical expects to enable that path during the release cycle, but the expectation is not confirmation that it is available today.
Before starting an upgrade, read the current notes, make a backup and check that you can recover your important files. The image accompanying this article shows Ubuntu 24.04 and is labeled as an archive screenshot: it does not represent the exact appearance of the new release.
Sources and context
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