It is very hard to evaluate Apple as a single entity. Certain branches of the company did great in the latest 10 years: the chips division being the most obvious one but in general hardware did well. Software received a lot less love, and in general deteriorated, but the really terrible performance was the products division. Then there is the horror story of Apple software stores and services.

Apple is held to a different standard. Tahoe is bad because it's ugly and has inconsistent corner radii. Meanwhile Windows has multiple critical issues e.g. Windows update induced instability.

Apple's hardware and silicon divisions are considered good not because they're competitive, but because they're uncompetitive. They keep cranking out products that far surpass their competitors. Apple is reduced to announcing the fastest CPU core in the world in a press release spec bump, every year.

Even if Tahoe is a regression from the high bar Apple set with Sequoia, it's still the best OS for regular people (sorry Linux but you know it's true). Apple's software is bad because it's merely best-in-class and not light years ahead.