TL;DR: Samsung Electronics reportedly sold more smartphones than Apple in the US during the 12 months between April 2023 and March 2024. However, the US tech giant still managed to sell more flagship premium-priced models during the same period.
The report from CIRP suggests that Samsung and Apple remained the two biggest smartphone brands in the US between April 2023 and March 2024. Samsung took the top position with a 38 percent market share, while Apple was a close second with 33 percent.
Motorola surprisingly secured the third spot with a 13 percent market share, and Google rounded out the top four with six percent.
Despite surpassing Apple in the overall market, most of Samsung’s sales came from its mid-range and entry-level models, while nearly two-thirds of Apple’s market consisted of “flagships.” According to the data, 64 percent of Apple’s market was for its flagship devices, while only 42 percent of Samsung’s sales came from its top-of-the-line products.
CIRP defines flagships as “the most current model family” for each vendor. For Apple today, this means the iPhone 15 family. For Samsung, the current flagships include the Galaxy S24 models, as well as the latest Flip and Fold devices. Before the September 2023 launch of the iPhone 15, the iPhone 14 models were Apple’s flagships. Similarly, the Galaxy S23 series were Samsung’s flagships before the launch of the Galaxy S24 line earlier this year.
Samsung secured the top position in the US market thanks to its varied product portfolio catering to consumers at almost all price points. While the Galaxy S-series typically gets all the press, Samsung’s biggest sellers have always been the A-series devices, designed for people who want a no-frills smartphone at an affordable price.
On the other hand, Apple doesn’t offer much for the value-conscious buyer, leaving the entire segment to Android vendors. The only “affordable” smartphone in Apple’s portfolio is the dated iPhone SE, launched in 2022 with a starting price of $429.
Apple is expected to launch an updated version of the device in spring 2025, with several design upgrades and faster hardware. It will be interesting to see if this update can challenge Samsung’s dominance in the mid-range market.
