The Shipment Gap Between Samsung Smartphones and Apple's iPhones Dropped to 20 million Units, the Lowest Figure in the Market's History

November 9, 3:43 pm

Tech giants Samsung and Apple (AAPL) have been competing for the title of the world's largest smartphone vendor for almost fifteen years. Although both companies produce the highest-quality devices in the market and count their users in billions, the South Korean tech giant won most of the time. However, their smartphone shipment gap has decreased significantly over the years.

According to data presented by AltIndex.com, Samsung shipped 171.8 million smartphones in the nine months of 2024, 20 million more than Apple, marking the lowest shipment gap in the market`s history.

The Shipment Gap Between Samsung and Apple Dropped Fivefold Since 2019

The shipment gap between the world's two largest smartphone vendors, Samsung and Apple, has been shrinking for quite a while. While Samsung`s shipments dropped, Apple's increased, and there are several reasons for that.

The South Korean tech giant shifted its focus from budget models that once drove high sales volumes to high-end models like the Z series and Galaxy S. At the same time, Chinese competitors Xiaomi, Oppo, and Vivo made significant strides over the years, gaining market share in regions where Samsung traditionally led with affordable devices.

On the other hand, Apple's integrated ecosystem, strong brand loyalty, longer upgrade cycles, and software support encourage customers to stay with iPhones, fueling steady growth. The US tech giant`s expanding presence in regions like India, aided by local manufacturing, also boosted sales. These factors led to closer competition in shipments between Samsung and Apple, as both brands focus on quality over quantity and prioritize high-value customers. The IDC data show how much exactly their shipment gap decreased.

During the nine months of 2024, Samsung shipped 171.8 million smartphones, and Apple 151.3 million. The 20 million shipment gap is only a fraction of the figures reported over the past ten years. In 2019, the nine-month shipment difference between Samsung smartphones and Apple's iPhone was five times bigger and amounted to 108.8 million. That is roughly 8% more than the figures reported for the same period between 2015 and 2019, when the shipment gap stood between 95 million and 105 million, and 15% more compared to a massive 125 million unit difference in the nine months of 2014.

Samsung`s Nine-Month Shipments Dropped by 30% in Ten Years; Apple`s Jumped by 28%

The IDC data also showed that Samsung smartphone shipments dropped by 30% in the past decade, while Apple's jumped by 28%. During the nine months of 2014, one of the best years for Samsung Galaxy line sales, Samsung shipped 243 million smartphones worldwide, 71 million more than in the same period this year. On the other hand, Apple`s nine-month shipments increased by 33 million in this period, rising from 118.2 million in 2014 to 151.3 million in 2024.

But despite this considerable decline, the South Korean tech giant still convincingly tops in total ten-year sales. Between Q1 2014 and Q3 2014, Samsung shipped just over three billion smartphones, 700 million more than its biggest rival, Apple.

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