Canalys: China's smartphone market shipments to reach 285 million units in 2024, up 4% year-on-year

Canalys reports that 2024 is the year of recovery for the Chinese smartphone market. A total of 285 million units were shipped, a year-on-year increase of 4%. Vivo became the new market leader with 49.3 million units shipped, while the recovering Huawei also surpassed Apple (total shipments of 46 million units) with a year-on-year growth of 37%.

Apple, which was ranked first in 2023, has now fallen to third place, followed by Oppo and Honor.

These are for the full year 2024. Apple’s best quarter is usually the fourth quarter – when the new iPhones are released – which usually pushes Apple to the top of the list for that quarter. That’s the case this year, but only just.

In the fourth quarter of 2024, Apple shipped 13.1 million units, a 25% decrease from the same period in 2023. With the growth of vivo and Huawei (14% and 24% respectively), the two companies reached 12.9 million units in the fourth quarter, closely following Apple.

Analysts expect the smartphone market to ship more than 290 million units in 2025. “Further upgrades in product experience, such as longer battery life, thinner and lighter designs, innovative form factors, and enhanced AI operating system experiences will benefit and attract consumers across all price segments,” commented Lucas Zhong, research analyst at Canalys.

From Chinese Industry Information Station