How to download Skype from the Windows Store or the official site. There are two versions of Skype. A "Store App" version of Skype included with Windows 10 already downloaded and installed from the Windows Store, which has less functionality than Skype for desktop, available for download from the Microsoft website.
Skype per Windows
There are two versions of Skype for Windows:
- "Skype per Windows 10”Is included in Windows 10. It comes from the Windows Store. It's a UWP app, which means it has various limitations, unlike older desktop apps. This is called the “Trusted Microsoft Store App” in the Start menu and has a Windows 10 icon.
- "Skype per Windows”Is available for download from Microsoft's Skype website. If you have installed Skype Classic, it will soon automatically install this version of Skype on your system. It has extra functionality, as it has nothing to do with the limitations of the UWP sandbox. This is called the "Desktop App" in the Start Menu and has the traditional Skype bubble icon.
Both Skype apps are based on the new Skype 8 code and are very similar. But the downloadable version has more features. You can install both of them on your system at the same time, and you can even run them both at the same time, next to each other.
How to download Skype from the Microsoft website
To find it, you need to go to the web page of.
The normal “Download Skype for Windows 10” option downloads the Store version of Skype 8. To get the desktop version of Skype 8, you need to click the down arrow next to the download button and select “Download Skype for Windows”Under the various Linux Download Options.
What is the difference between Skype for Windows and Skype for Windows 10.
At first glance, these apps look the same. They are both based on Skype 8 but you will notice some differences.
For example, the desktop version of Skype offers more options. Under Settings> General, the desktop version of Skype (Skype for Windows) allows Skype to start automatically on startup and keep it running in the notification area, also known as the taskbar. The Store version of Skype (Skype for Windows 10) does not have these options.
The desktop version also offers Cortana features. You can enable Cortana's suggested replies, emoticons, and actions in Skype. The Store version of Skype does not include these options.
If you upgrade from Skype Classic, the desktop version of Skype 8 can import chat history. There is also an “Export chat history from Skype 7.x” option in Settings> Messaging so that you can export your previous chat history to a file on your computer if you want to keep it. But this option only exists on Skype per desktop.
The Settings> Messages screen also offers an option that lets you control the size of the conversation text, but only on Skype for desktop has it.
Only the desktop version of Skype 8 supports DirectShow camera device inputs, which are required for applications such as Open Broadcaster Software (OBS) and Xsplit.
The Store version only supports camera inputs using the latest "" platform. So, if the Store version can't find a camera input device you need, try downloading Skype for desktop. (The traditional desktop version supports both types of inputs).
Skype for desktop also supports NDI, while Skype from the store doesn't seem to have this option. This is a professional feature that can capture video from a networked camera and use it as a video source on Skype or even route a pre-recorded video to a Skype call. This option is available in Settings> Call> Advanced in Skype for desktop.
You can distinguish between the two from the Settings> Help & Feedback screen. The Store app will list both a Skype version and an application version. The desktop app only lists a Skype version number.
At the time we wrote this, the desktop version of Skype was slightly newer than the Skype version available through the Store, so perhaps Microsoft updates the desktop version more frequently as well.
Updates for the Store version are automatically installed through the Store app on Windows 10, while updates to the desktop version are delivered in the traditional Windows desktop way. You can go to Settings> Help & Feedback in the desktop version to see if a new version is available and Skype will automatically notify you and ask you to install new versions when they become available.
Skype 8 is now pretty much everywhere, from Windows 7 to macOS to Linux. There is even one.
Conclusions
If you don't use any of these features, then maybe the App Store version of Skype is right for you.
However, if you want to use multiple supported video sources, export saved messages, a Skype icon for the notification area, the ability to launch Skype on startup, and text size options, you will need to get Skype for desktop from the Microsoft website.
