A low-cost Xiaomi is in the world’s top 10 best-selling smartphones, among the giants

Recently Counterpoint published the world’s best-selling smartphones list for the fourth quarter of 2025. This is an interesting overview, capable of capturing the global smartphone sector at a critical moment. The skyrocketing memory prices (the shortage of which is due to the high demand for AI services, now so popular) have led to an increase in production costs and, consequently, the final price of the devices.

iPhone 17 Pro Max has no rivals: it’s the market leader despite memory price hikes, but the real surprise is something else

Apple does not relinquish any of the top positions: Counterpoint’s team research is clear regarding users’ absolute preference. At the top of the chart we find iPhone 17 Pro Max, the giant of Cupertino’s latest flagship generation.

The success of the American company is tangible, given the positions from the second to the fourth, dominated by the rest of the iPhone 17 lineup and the former base flagship iPhone 16.

The Cupertino budget phone, iPhone 16e, is present in eighth position while the back of the ranking (remember, it refers to Q4 2025) sees Samsung as the protagonist. The mid-range of the Asian giant are the favorites of Android users, with Galaxy A56 in primis: the A series is now the main choice for most consumers approaching the mid-range.

The only top-of-the-line Android appears at the end, at the tenth place: it is Samsung Galaxy S25, the entry-level model in the flagship series of 2025. The real surprise is at the ninth place with a small Xiaomi: Redmi A5 has secured a position within the world’s top-selling list, thanks to its sales boosted by emerging markets such as Latin America, the Middle East and Africa.

1. iPhone 17 Pro Max
2. iPhone 17
3. iPhone 17 Pro
4. iPhone 16
5. Samsung Galaxy A56
6. Samsung Galaxy A36
7. Samsung Galaxy A07
8. iPhone 16e
9. Redmi A5
10. Samsung Galaxy S25