Apple is experiencing nearly unstoppable global sales momentum right now on the back of its new iPhone 17 lineup, with the previous-gen iPhone 16 variants also adding to residual strength. As a result, Apple has now become the largest smartphone brand by global market share.
Counterpoint Research calculates that Apple is leading right now with a 20 percent global smartphone market share, with Samsung a close second
Counterpoint Research has just published an interesting report, noting that Apple "led the global smartphone market in 2025 with 20% share and 10% YoY shipment growth, the highest among the top five brands."
The report notes elsewhere:
- Global smartphone shipments grew for the second consecutive year in 2025, recording an annual growth of 2 percent in the just-concluded year.
- Apple's "iPhone 17 series gained significant traction in Q4 following its successful launch, while the iPhone 16 continued to perform exceptionally well in Japan, India and Southeast Asia."
- Samsung ended 2025 with a 19 percent global market share and 5 percent year-over-year growth in shipments.
- "While Samsung is under pressure in Latin America and Western Europe, its 2025 growth was aided by strong momentum in Japan and sustained growth in its core markets."
- Xiaomi ended the year as the third-largest global smartphone OEM with a market share of around 13 percent.
- Looking ahead, Counterpoint Research expects global smartphone sales to decline by 3 percent year-over-year in 2026 as AI-driven DRAM/NAND shortages bite and component costs rise.
Do note that Counterpoint Research had penned a similar report towards the end of November 2025, predicting that Apple was likely to end 2025 with a 10 percent year-over-year growth in iPhone shipments, equating to a global smartphone market share of around 19.4 percent - the highest among global smartphone OEMs. Consequently, the research firm had noted at the time that Apple would clinch the proverbial crown for the global smartphone market for the first time in over a decade, leaving Samsung as the runner-up.
As far as hard numbers are concerned, do note that Apple sold 231.8 million iPhones in 2024. Therefore, a 10 percent increase from this baseline means that Apple is likely to have shipped a whopping 254.98 million iPhones in 2025.
About the author: Writing is my one incontrovertible passion. Over the past six years, he has authored over 2,200 distinct articles on financial and tech-related topics, spanning nearly 1 million words. And he has been a member of Wcctech mobile team since 2025. As an alumnus of the University of Toronto, Rotman Commerce Program, I bring nuance, in-depth knowledge, and a unique perspective to every topic that I cover. When I'm not writing, I'm traveling the world, exploring hidden confectionaries and restaurants as an aspiring food connoisseur.
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