Apple captured a record 49% of global smartphone revenue in Q2 2026, its highest-ever revenue share for a second quarter, according to new data from Counterpoint Research. The figure reflects a 22% year-over-year revenue increase for Apple at a moment when rivals were forced to raise prices to absorb surging DRAM and NAND memory costs, and many simply lost ground doing it.
Total smartphone revenue grew 7% year over year during the quarter, with Apple recording the fastest growth among the five largest brands. That revenue expansion happened even as unit shipments collapsed: the global smartphone market shrank 11% year over year in Q2 2026, pushing shipments to their lowest point since 2013. The culprit is a severe memory chip shortage driven by AI infrastructure investment, which has sent component prices skyrocketing and forced manufacturers into difficult strategic choices.
Apple also reached its highest-ever shipment share for a second quarter, rising to 21% from 17% a year earlier. The company remained in second place behind Samsung by volume, but its shipments grew 3% year over year while competitors shed share. It was the only major OEM to avoid raising smartphone prices during the quarter. While rivals including Samsung, Xiaomi, and OPPO pushed through steep price increases to absorb rising component costs, Apple held pricing largely stable across the iPhone 17 lineup, a decision that paid off in both volume and value terms.
Apple’s average selling price rose to $946, up from $879 a year earlier. That $67 increase reflects a favorable product mix, with sustained demand for the higher-margin iPhone 17 Pro Max pulling the average upward, rather than price hikes on existing models.
iPhone 17 production cuts earlier in the year had raised questions about demand, but Q2 results suggest the lineup held up well. The base iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro Max drove sustained demand through the quarter, and Apple had entered Q2 with momentum from Q1 2026, when it achieved its first-ever leading position in a first quarter by shipment volume. The base iPhone 17’s upgrades, which brought it closer to Pro specifications, resonated broadly and helped maintain volume during what is traditionally one of the slowest seasonal periods for iPhone sales.
Apple’s gains in China were particularly sharp as iPhone shipments grew 24.4% year over year in Q2 2026, lifting Apple’s market share from 13.9% to 18.1%, second only to Huawei’s 22.6%, in a market that contracted overall. Most Android vendors raised prices beginning in late March, while Apple and Huawei held theirs steady and introduced targeted promotions instead.
Counterpoint expects Apple’s pricing discipline to shift in coming quarters as memory cost pressures persist. The shortage is not expected to ease meaningfully before 2027, and a broader market recovery is not projected until 2028 or 2029. Manufacturers are already responding by cutting low-margin models, adjusting storage configurations, and leaning more heavily on refurbished and prior-generation devices. China’s year-over-year shipment decline is expected to widen to around 20% in the second half of 2026, roughly when Apple plans to launch its iPhone 18 Pro models and its first foldable iPhone.
The Counterpoint data arrived alongside Apple’s fiscal Q3 2026 earnings call, during which the company warned that supply constraints would increase significantly in the September quarter, affecting iPhone, iPad, and Mac alike. With Counterpoint projecting a roughly 14% full-year decline in global smartphone shipments for 2026, the iPhone 18 launch shapes up as a significant opportunity for Apple, provided it can manage the supply side of the equation.
