Here is a list of the major .NET and C# versions starting from .NET Framework 4.7.2, including subsequent .NET Core and .NET releases, and their associated C# language versions.
Major .NET Versions (from .NET Framework 4.7.2 onward)
| .NET Version | Release Year | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| .NET Framework 4.7.2 | 2018 | Last in-place update before 4.8; improvements across ASP.NET, BCL, CLR, etc.123 |
| .NET Framework 4.8 | 2019 | Final major .NET Framework version; future work moved to .NET Core1 |
| .NET Core 2.0 | 2017 | Start of cross-platform, open-source .NET Core era |
| .NET Core 2.1 | 2018 | LTS release; supported until 2021 |
| .NET Core 3.0 | 2019 | Added Windows desktop app support (WinForms, WPF) |
| .NET Core 3.1 | 2019 | LTS release; widely adopted for cross-platform apps |
| .NET 5 | 2020 | Unified .NET Core and .NET Framework; dropped “Core” from name |
| .NET 6 | 2021 | LTS release; major improvements and new features. More details in this article. |
| .NET 7 | 2022 | Current release cadence: annual major updates |
| .NET 8 | 2023 | LTS release; continued performance and language enhancements. More details in this article. |
| .NET 9 | 2024 | Latest non-LTS release (as of April 2025)4 |
Major C# Versions (from C# 7.3 onward)
| C# Version | Associated .NET Version(s) | Major Features/Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 7.3 | .NET Framework (all), .NET Core 2.x | Last version for .NET Framework; performance and language improvements4. More details in this article. |
| 8.0 | .NET Core 3.x, .NET Standard 2.1 | Nullable reference types, async streams, ranges, switch expressions4 5 |
| 9.0 | .NET 5 | Records, init-only setters, top-level statements, pattern matching enhancements4 5 |
| 10.0 | .NET 6 | Record structs, global usings, file-scoped namespaces4 5. More details in this article. |
| 11.0 | .NET 7 | Raw string literals, list patterns, required members4 |
| 12.0 | .NET 8 | Collection expressions, primary constructors for classes4. More details in this article. |
| 13.0 | .NET 9 | Latest features as of 20254 |
.NET and C# Version Mapping
| .NET Version | Default C# Version |
|---|---|
| .NET Framework 4.x | 7.3 |
| .NET Core 2.x | 7.3 |
| .NET Core 3.x | 8.0 |
| .NET 5 | 9.0 |
| .NET 6 | 10.0 |
| .NET 7 | 11.0 |
| .NET 8 | 12.0 |
| .NET 9 | 13.0 |
Summary
- .NET Framework 4.7.2 was released in April 2018, followed by 4.8, which is the final major .NET Framework version123.
- .NET Core evolved into the unified .NET 5+ platform, which is now the future of .NET development.
- C# 7.3 is the last version officially supported by .NET Framework; newer C# features require .NET Core 3.x or later4.
- C# versions continue to advance with each major .NET release, with C# 13 being the latest as of 20254.
This overview should help you track the major .NET and C# versions relevant to modern development scenarios.
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.NET_Framework_version_history ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
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https://visualstudiomagazine.com/articles/2018/05/01/net-framework-update.aspx ↩︎ ↩︎
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https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/topic/microsoft-net-framework-4-7-2-offline-installer-for-windows-05a72734-2127-a15d-50cf-daf56d5faec2 ↩︎ ↩︎
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https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/csharp/language-reference/language-versioning ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
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https://www.reddit.com/r/csharp/comments/1d9r3ck/whats_the_most_significant_release_version_of_c/ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
