Apple Inc. will surpass South Korea’s Samsung Electronics in global smartphone shipments in 2025 for the first time in 14 years, according to experts at Counterpoint Research.
According to the company’s forecast, iPhone shipments to the global market will reach 243 million units this year, while Samsung smartphone shipments will total around 235 million units.
Apple’s share of the global smartphone market at the end of the year is expected to be 19.4%, while Samsung’s will be 18.7%.
The optimistic forecasts for Apple are linked to the success of the iPhone 17 line, which the company unveiled in September. Counterpoint calls sales of this line of devices during the current holiday season “outstanding.”
Sales of iPhone 17 smartphones in the first four weeks after their launch were 12% higher than the previous iPhone 16 line, Counterpoint notes. In China, a key market for Apple, sales of these devices during the same period exceeded the previous line’s results by 18%.
Meanwhile, Samsung is facing difficulties due to growing competition from Chinese manufacturers in the budget and mid-range price segments, which is limiting the South Korean company’s sales.
Counterpoint analysts expect Apple to maintain its sales leadership in the global smartphone market until the end of 2029.
