Samsung reclaims global #1 smartphone rank, prices have risen by 40 to 50% in some markets

IDC's latest Q1 2026 data revealed that Samsung reclaimed the top spot from Apple. 

Galaxy S26 and S26+

Top 5 smartphone brands in Q1 2026 revealed

Top 5 brands according to IDC

Samsung had a strong demand for the Galaxy S26 Ultra, and the A Series launch boosted its volumes. Apple had strong sales of the iPhone 17 Series in China.

Xiaomi is at number 3 with a large 19.1% YoY decline. OPPO is strong in China, but weaker globally at number 4. vivo has a solid performance in China and India. They are also narrowing the gap with OPPO.

• Samsung - 62.8 million units shipped, 21.7% market share, +3.6% YoY growth
• Apple - 61.1 million units shipped, 21.1% market share, +3.3% growth
• Xiaomi - 33.8 million units shipped, 11.7% market share, -19.1% growth
• OPPO - 30.7 million units shipped, 10.6% market share, -9.9% growth
• vivo - 21.2 million units shipped, 7.3% market share, -6.8% growth

HONOR is not included in the top 5 yet, but they posted a +24% YoY growth, the highest in the top 10, due to its overseas expansion. HUAWEI and Lenovo also posted some growth, according to IDC.

During the quarter, IDC also reported that total shipments fell 4.1% year-over-year in Q1 2026 to about 289.7 million units.

The cause? Limited memory supply and record-high memory prices lead to higher device costs and reduced demand, especially in emerging markets.

The effect? In several emerging markets, prices have risen by as much as 40 to 50%, hurting the affordability of smartphones.

What do you guys think?

Source: IDC