Smartphone sales in Europe fell by 10%
The current crisis has hit low-cost and mid-range Android smartphones the hardest. The rising cost of memory and other components has forced manufacturers to increase prices and reduce discounts, while buyers have become more cautious with their spending. As a result, the market is quickly shifting towards Apple and Samsung.
Apple caught up with Samsung, and the two companies now hold 68% of the market.
In the second quarter of 2026, 35 million smartphones were shipped in Europe – 10% fewer than a year ago. This is the worst result for the second quarter since 2023.
On a declining market, Apple increased its share from 25% to 34% and caught up with Samsung. The share of the Korean company also increased – from 31% to 34%. As a result, in just one year, the combined share of the two largest manufacturers increased from 56% to 68%.
| Brand | Q2 2025 | Q2 2026 | Change | Estimated shipments in Q2 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apple | 25% | 34% | +9 p.p. | ≈11.9 million |
| Samsung | 31% | 34% | +3 p.p. | ≈11.9 million |
| Xiaomi | 19% | 15% | -4 p.p. | ≈5.3 million |
| OPPO | 6% | 4% | -2 pp. | ≈1.4 million |
| HONOR | 4% | 3% | -1 p.p. | ≈1.1 million |
| Others | 14% | 11% | -3 p.p. | ≈3.9 million |
In Counterpoint’s statistics, OnePlus and realme are also included in OPPO’s figures. Due to rounding, individual portions may not sum exactly to 100%.
An increase in Samsung’s share does not mean an increase in shipments.
The change in market share looks better for Samsung than the actual shipment dynamics. A year ago, the European market comprised approximately 38.9 million devices. If we convert the published market shares into units, Samsung shipped approximately 11.9 million smartphones compared to about 12.1 million a year ago—meaning it remained roughly at the same level.
Apple’s shipments increased from approximately 9.7 million to 11.9 million devices, or by more than 20%. Xiaomi, on the other hand, could have lost about 29% of its volume, OPPO approximately 40%, and HONOR more than 30%. These values are calculated based on rounded market shares, so they should be regarded as approximate.
Why Apple is growing in a falling market
The main source of growth was Western Europe. Demand here proved more resilient than expected, and the ongoing shift of buyers to higher price segments played in Apple’s favor. Samsung also showed a more stable result, but its growth turned out to be significantly more modest.
At the same time, there is no breakdown of European Apple shipments by individual models. Therefore, it is not yet possible to attribute the surge exclusively to the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, or iPhone 17e.
Apple and Samsung are effectively taking over the market precisely at the moment when affordable devices become harder to sell. A year ago, Xiaomi, OPPO, and HONOR together controlled 29% of the European market; now they control only 22%.
Budget smartphones have become the main victims of rising prices
Manufacturers have to pay more for memory and other components. Shifting these costs to the consumer without a noticeable drop in demand is most difficult in the lower price segment, so some companies simultaneously raise prices, reduce their assortment, and abandon familiar discounts.
This is especially noticeable in Eastern Europe, where affordable devices from Chinese brands occupy a large share of the market. Here the decline turned out to be significantly stronger than in Western Europe. For buyers, a price increase for a budget smartphone, even by a relatively small amount, is more critical than a similar price hike for a flagship device.
Additional pressure is created by the overall economic situation. So high inflation and uncertainty are causing users to keep their old smartphones longer and postpone non-essential purchases.
The market may continue to decline
Analysts do not yet expect a quick recovery. Smartphone inventories in European sales channels are shrinking, and cost issues have not disappeared. In the coming quarters, the market may lose additional volume, with the main pressure again falling on manufacturers of budget models.
Apple remains the main exception: growth in the premium segment allows the company to take market share from competitors even on a shrinking market. If the trend continues, Samsung will have to fight not only to maintain its leadership – for the first time in a long while, two companies are approaching the next quarter from virtually identical positions.
