Overview
- Counterpoint Research’s Q2 report, released Aug. 26, 2026, shows Apple and Samsung together accounted for 26% of global smartphone unit sales while the overall market fell about 11% year‑on‑year.
- The iPhone 17 was the single best‑selling model, representing about 6% of global unit sales, and helped Apple grow unit shipments roughly 5% year‑on‑year with gains in India, Japan, the Middle East and Africa and a near doubling in South Korea.
- Apple and Samsung occupied every slot in Counterpoint’s top 10 models list, with Apple and Samsung each taking five places, and the top 10 models together contributing 26% of total sales, up two percentage points from a year earlier.
- On the Android side, Samsung’s Galaxy S26 Ultra became the best‑selling Android phone in Q2, accounting for more than half of S26 series sales as Samsung shifted marketing and supply toward its flagship.
- Analysts say constrained memory chips and higher component costs pushed makers to prioritize profitable premium and volume drivers, a trend that could keep global volumes weak through the rest of the year and leave buyers choosing higher‑end models supported by trade‑in deals and financing.