Microsoft Internet Explorer 1.0 made its debut on August 16, 1995. It was a reworked version of Spyglass Mosaic which Microsoft had licensed,^[3][4] like many other companies initiating browser development, from Spyglass Inc.^[3][4] It came with the purchase of Microsoft Plus! for Windows 95 and with at least some OEM releases of Windows 95 without Plus!.^[5] It was installed as part of the Internet Jumpstart Kit in Plus! for Windows 95.^[6] The Internet Explorer team began with about six people in early development.^[7][8] Microsoft Internet Explorer 1.5 was released several months later for Windows NT and added support for basic HTML table rendering. By including it free of charge on their operating system, they did not have to pay royalties to Spyglass Inc, resulting in a lawsuit and a US$8 million settlement on January 22, 1997.^[3][4]

Although not included, this software can also be installed on the original release of Windows 95.

Microsoft Internet Explorer (that is version 1.x) is no longer supported, or available for download from Microsoft. However, archived versions of the software can be found on various websites. Support for Internet Explorer 1.0 Ended on December 31, 2001, same day as Windows 95 and older Windows Versions.