Global smartphone unit shipments 2009-2024

In 2024, the total amount of smartphone shipments reached 1.2 billion units worldwide, an increase 

 Global smartphone shipments worldwide

The global smartphone market saw an exceptional growth from 2009, when 173 million smartphones were shipped worldwide to 2016 when smartphone shipments amounted to 1.47 billion. Much of this increase can be attributed to the iPhone release in 2007. With its consumer-friendly design, Apple introduced multimedia functions to smartphones, offering more than basic features such as e-mail and web browsing. Apple’s release pushed the competitors to respond with new models, and started to shape the consumers’ habits. This shift can be observed in smartphone vendors’ shipment figures. Nokia and Blackberry/RIM – previous leaders in smartphone shipments – saw their figures slowly decrease over the years, whereas Samsung and Apple increased their market share. In 2024, Apple nearly 19 percent of the global market share, and Samsung accounted for nearly 18 percent.

Google’s Android is the most popular smartphone operating system in the world. As of the fourth quarter of 2024, Android held over 70 percent of the global smartphone OS market, whereas Apple dominated less than 30 percent.