Samsung "dethroned" — who is the smartphone market's new king?

For the first time in history, the American technology giant Apple became the leader in terms of smartphones sold in the first quarter of the year, overtaking Samsung and displacing it from the position of the "king of smartphones". In January-March 2025, the global smartphone market grew by 3% compared to the same period last year.

This is evidenced by Counter Point data.

Which Apple smartphone made the company a leader

Apple's achievement was primarily due to the unexpected launch of a more affordable version of its flagship, the iPhone 16e, at a time when the company's timing was unconventional (usually, new products are announced in September). As a result, Apple's share of the global market rose to 19%, enough to take the top spot. At the same time, Samsung's share, which was the leader in the first quarter of 2023 and 2024, fell to 18%. The rest of the top five were distributed as follows:

• Xiaomi — 14%;
• vivo — 8%;
• OPPO — 8%;
• other manufacturers — 33%.

January was a particularly strong month, driven in particular by strong demand in China, and at the beginning of the quarter, sentiment was also boosted by high-profile releases such as the Samsung S25 and the aforementioned iPhone 16e. However, towards the end of March, economic uncertainties and the risks of the trade war began to impact the situation.

The study also notes that Apple's success was made possible not only by its new low-cost flagship, but also by the company's high growth rates in a number of emerging markets: Japan, India, the Middle East, Africa, and Southeast Asia. Samsung, despite the delayed launch of its flagship S25, regained its footing towards the end of the quarter and posted double-digit sales growth in March, especially for the A-series and S25 Ultra models.

Analysts predict that in 2025, the smartphone market may decline overall due to rising economic uncertainty and the impact of tariffs on consumer demand, primarily in the United States. As a result, the forecast for the whole of 2025 has been revised: sales are expected to decline slightly compared to last year, despite growth in the first quarter. The risk factors include possible trade restrictions and supply chain instability.

As a reminder, Apple has officially unveiled the "affordable" iPhone 16e smartphone, which complements the iPhone 16 line. Given the price, the question arises as to whether the novelty is worth the money or whether it is better to pay attention to the basic iPhone 16.

We also wrote that Samsung was supposed to unveil the Galaxy S25 Edge in April, but the plans have changed. The company is planning to postpone the presentation to May due to recent management changes.