Chinese phone sales hit 14-year low as Apple jumps to second

China's smartphone market shrank to its lowest level in 14 years during the third quarter of 2026.

Counterpoint Research reported that total shipments fell 10% compared to the same period a year earlier. The decline was driven by rising memory prices that increased costs for manufacturers.

Apple stood out from the rest of the industry. The company captured 19.5% of smartphone shipments in China during the quarter. This represented an increase of 4.8 percentage points from a year ago.

The gain moved Apple from sixth place to second in the national rankings. Only Huawei held a higher share, with 21.3% of the market. Huawei also increased its share by 5.3 percentage points year over year. These were the only two of the six leading brands to grow.

Rivals lost ground during the period. Vivo's share dropped 2.8 percentage points to 15.2%, and OPPO's fell 1.3 points to 15.1%. Xiaomi declined 1.6 points to 13.5%, while HONOR dropped 2.2 points to 12.7%. Other manufacturers combined fell 2 points to 2.8%.

Counterpoint attributed Apple's rise to the iPhone 18 Pro series. The firm noted that the lineup saw a strong launch, with sales in the first three weeks up 23.5% year over year compared to the iPhone 17 Pro series. The delayed arrival of the base iPhone 18 may have pushed some shoppers toward the higher-end Pro models.

A separate report from IDC published earlier showed a steeper decline. IDC estimated that Chinese smartphone shipments fell 15.4% year over year in the third quarter. That firm found Apple's share rose to 17.8%, even as iPhone shipments dropped 4.3%. IDC also reported that global smartphone shipments fell a record 22% in the quarter. Apple had the smallest decline among top manufacturers, at 4%.

Counterpoint warned that difficult conditions could persist. Higher device prices are causing consumers to delay upgrades or seek promotional deals. Some buyers are choosing refurbished devices instead of new models. This behavior could pressure demand further in the fourth quarter.