A market research company asserted that in 2024, Apple was the leading original equipment manufacturer (OEM) in terms of the number of smartphones supplied. Apple, headquartered in Cupertino, California, had no less than seven iPhone models among 2024’s best-selling smartphones; the company’s newest flagship, the iPhone 16 Pro Max, was an instant hit upon release in September of that year. As for Samsung, the Galaxy A15 was almost enough to get them into the top five.
It is worth mentioning that in Q4 2024, Apple achieved a market share of 23%, mainly due to its newest iPhone 16 series.
According to research by Canalys, a company that studies consumer behavior, the worldwide smartphone market reached 1.22 billion devices in 2024, an increase of 7 percent YoY. After falling for two years in a row, smartphone shipments have reportedly begun to rise again. In spite of a 1% drop in iPhone shipments to 225.9 million units, Apple maintained its position as the leading smartphone vendor in 2023.
Even Samsung’s smartphone shipments fell 1% in 2024, to 222.9 million units, putting it in second place, barely behind Apple. With a 15% increase to 168.6 million units, Xiaomi maintained its impressive growth and came in third place. Fourth place went to Transsion Holdings, which is responsible for Tecno, Infinix, and Itel brands; fifth place went to Oppo, which includes OnePlus.
Among the most popular smartphones of 2024, the iPhone 15 came out on top, followed by the iPhone 16 Pro Max and the iPhone 15 Pro Max, both from Apple. In the meanwhile, the iPhone 16 Pro rounded out the top five, with the Galaxy A15 rounding out the top five as the sole other phone. Surprisingly, the top 10 best-selling devices were all from Samsung and Apple. Apple had seven different iPhone models, whereas Samsung had three, with the Galaxy S24 Ultra being the only flagship. Here is the full list of the ten best-selling smartphones:
The market research company predicts that regional and worldwide complexity will increase in the year 2025. It is believed that growth has slowed down due to the saturation of various markets. Consequently, suppliers may need to strike a balance between managing inventories, making long-term investments, and performing well in the immediate term.