IDC: China Smartphone Market Down 0.8% in 4Q25; Apple Reclaims Top Spot

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According to preliminary data from the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, China’s smartphone market shipped 75.8 million units in 4Q25, a slight 0.8% year-on-year (YoY) decline. Under the pressure of rising memory costs, the majority of domestic brands reduced low-end models’ shipments to protect profitability. Furthermore, as the stimulating effect of the government subsidy policies was limited, OEMs did not build up significant stock even with a new round of subsidies.

For the full year of 2025, smartphone shipments in China totaled approximately 285 million units, a YoY decline of 0.6%. At the beginning of the year, the government subsidies combined with the Lunar New Year peak season drove significant growth, though momentum subsequently waned. In the second half of the year, the market continued its decline, caused by rising memory costs and depleted subsidy funds.

“Apple climbed to the top spot and achieved the highest growth among the Top 5 players in the last quarter of 2025, driven by its popular iPhone 17 series as well as the strategic discounts on its iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max to extend the sales momentum,” said Will Wong, senior research manager for Client Devices at IDC Asia/Pacific. “From the full-year perspective, Huawei led the market in a close race with Apple and vivo. Both Huawei and Apple demonstrated that a premium brand name is a key success factor in the long term, especially in a rising production cost environment.”

“Facing the trend of expected sharp increases in memory prices, cost pressures on smartphone OEMs are set to intensify,” said Arthur Guo, senior research analyst in Client System Research for IDC China. “Consequently, the smartphone market in China is expected to experience a more noticeable decline in 2026.”