Strong replacement demand and major product launches has fueled growth across all vendors.
Published: October 17, 2025
The global smartphone market has grown year over year, according to Q3 2025 data from Omdia’s latest research. Major product launches during the quarter are credited with helping smartphone sales rebound, along with strong replacement demand and several vendors preparing inventories ahead of Q4.
Samsung maintained the position for the third consecutive quarter with a 19% market share, supported by sustained volume strength of its Galaxy A series alongside an upgraded 7th generation foldable portfolio. Apple grew iPhone shipments by 4% achieving its strongest Q3 performance ever, as early demand for the iPhone 17 series helped it secure 18% share. Xiaomi delivered another steady quarter with 14% market share, while TRANSSION and vivo each captured 9% share, rounding out the top five vendors for the quarter.
The growth of emerging phone formats such as foldable designs helped boost demand in the market, resulting in all major vendors seeing an increase in year over year sales.
“Recovering consumer demand to both upgrade and replace smartphones is boosting the market following a disruptive start to the year, as reflected by all of the top five vendors growing compared to Q3 24” said Le Xuan Chiew, Research Manager at Omdia. “The reception to the industry’s biggest launch events have been positive as the leading vendors balanced their focus between hardware and software. This season’s hardware standouts – foldables, slim phones, bold colors, and back-cover displays – have captured people’s attention. Compared to previous quarters, several vendors have increased their production targets as the initial demand delivered beyond expectations.
“Returning demand also enforces the importance of effective portfolio segmentation, where the iPhone 17 series has been a clear stand-out. The base iPhone 17 exceeded launch expectations with upgraded storage at unchanged pricing, while the redesigned iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max continue to attract consumers globally. iPhone Air’s shipments remain modest, but its marketing effectiveness has proven strong, and serves as a core technical testbed for Apple, potentially positioning Apple for future form factor innovations”.
“Many vendors used the muted 1H25 to calibrate inventories, streamline operations, and strategically optimize launch cycles, and are now benefitting from reigniting consumer demand,” added Chiew. “TRANSSION was a particular stand-out, growing by double digits compared to 3Q24 to its highest 3Q volume ever. This growth was supported by prudent inventory management earlier in the year, recovering demand in Middle East and Africa and refreshed model series such as Infinix’s Hot 60 and Smart 10 series.
“Still, economic fears and uncertainty continue to weigh on vendors’ strategic planning, with many having to carefully balance volume scale, profitability, and revenue targets. Vendors remain cautious amid looming headwinds, but success in the short term will depend on identifying clearly defined opportunities with effective go-to-market and marketing strategies.”
Click here to view the full report from Omdia.
See also: I Showed The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 To A Z Fold 4 Owner, And He Was Blown Away