A few days ago, two leading market research firms, Counterpoint and IDC, released their data on the Q1 2025 global smartphone market. While Counterpoint said Apple took the top spot, IDC begged to differ, putting Samsung as the leader. Sharing a similar view with the IDC, another firm, Canalys, now claims Samsung achieved the top position in Q1 2025 with the shipment of 60.5 million Galaxy smartphones globally.
Samsung maintained its lead in Q1 2025 due to new flagship and affordable A-series phones
In its official financial report yesterday, Samsung said that its MX Business saw QoQ growth in both revenue and operating profit due to strong sales of the flagship Galaxy S25 smartphones. In other words, in Q1 2025, Samsung managed to ship more smartphones globally, contributing to the company’s overall growth.
According to Canalys’ report, Samsung shipped 60.5 million smartphones in Q1 2025 globally. This report points out that higher shipments were possible due to the launch of its latest flagship models and competitively priced new Galaxy A-series phones. As a result, in terms of shipment, Samsung became the leader in the global smartphone market in Q1 2025.
On the other hand, its arch-rival, Apple, ranked in second position in Q1 2025 with 55.0 million units shipped globally, securing a 19% market share. Apple saw growth due to its increasing presence in emerging Asia Pacific markets and the US. Xiaomi came third with 41.8 million units shipped, driven by a strong presence in Mainland China and emerging overseas markets.
Speaking of the overall global smartphone market, in Q1 2025, it recorded a slight growth of 0.2%, with shipments reaching 296.9 million units. “The regional smartphone landscape is becoming increasingly complex,” said Toby Zhu, Principal Analyst at Canalys (now part of Omdia). “Markets that had shown strong momentum over the past year, such as India, Latin America, and the Middle East, are now experiencing notable declines in Q1 2025”.
