Apple Tops in Smartphone Sales For First Time in 2023, Beating Samsung

Apple has for the first time sold more smartphones in a year than any other company, according to the latest research from both IDC and Canalys. This means that Samsung has lost the top spot for the number of units sold globally, which it had occupied since 2010. Amid a decline in global smartphone shipments to 1.17 billion units, down 3.2 percent from the previous year, IDC reports an 8.5 percent year-on-year growth in the fourth quarter, beating its own forecast and setting the tone for recovery in 2024. The firm attributes Apple’s success to a continuing market shift towards premium devices, which now account for over 20 percent of the market.

The top three players in 2023 were Apple, with 234.6 million units, followed by Samsung with 226.6 million, and Xiaomi with 145.9 million. Rounding out the global top five are Oppo and Transsion with 103 million and 94.9 million shipments respectively. Apple and Transsion are the only ones in this list to have grown YoY, with 3.7 percent and 30.8 percent increases respectively in shipments worldwide, whereas Samsung had the biggest fall YoY with -13.6 percent.

In terms of global market share in 2023, Apple is in the lead with 20.1 percent, followed closely by Samsung with 19.4 percent, Xiaomi with 12.5 percent, Oppo with 8.8 percent and Transsion with 8.1 percent. In total, 1.17 billion smartphone units were shipped during 2023, down 3.2 percent YoY. 

IDC has stated that this data is preliminary and subject to change. These figures apply to all brands and sub-brands of each company. The report does not include country-specific market share breakups. Canalys has released similar numbers, and places Transsion in fourth place and Vivo in fifth place, above Oppo, for Q4 2023. 

Samsung has occupied the top spot for 13 years, a time when Apple was selling only a few iPhone models and wasn’t even in the top five. Trade-in offers and financing plans have helped Apple push its higher-priced iPhones.

The report notes that Apple has faced regulatory challenges and stiff competition from Huawei in China, as well as intense competition from the likes of OnePlus and Google at the lower end of the premium market. The company also does not have a foldable smartphone model yet. With the emergence of AI as a huge marketing point, the market will be interesting to watch in 2024.

Noted Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has projected that the iPhone 15 Pro Max will account for 40-45 percent of all iPhone 15 shipments in the first half of 2024. With prices starting at Rs. 1,59,900, this is Apple’s highest-priced iPhone model, and one of the most expensive smartphones available. It is the only model in the current lineup with a 5X optical zoom camera and features a lighter body made of Titanium as well as a USB Type-C port, making it attractive to iPhone users looking to upgrade an older model.