iPhone 17 is the world’s best-selling smartphone, Samsung and Xiaomi in the Top 10

The global smartphone market kicked off 2026 with a Top 10 dominated by Apple and a strong presence of Samsung, together with a single Xiaomi-branded model. Moreover, the top ten alone accounted for 25% of total unit sales in the first quarter.

This is the highest concentration ever recorded for a March quarter, a clear signal of how users are steering their preferences toward a small number of devices. In this scenario, Apple has confirmed its absolute leadership, occupying the first three steps on the podium with its latest flagship lineup.

The dominance of iPhone 17 and the Top 10 of the smartphone market: here’s the situation in the first quarter of 2026

The undisputed protagonist of the year’s first part is iPhone 17, which has confirmed itself as the world’s best-selling smartphone with a market share of 6%. The success of the base model lies in a series of key updates, such as the increase of the minimum storage capacity, the improvement of the camera and the adoption of a higher display refresh rate.

The Cupertino strategy paid off in terms of sales, allowing the device to register double-digit growth in crucial markets such as China and the United States, and even tripling volumes in South Korea. Behind the standard model were the iPhone 17 Pro Max and iPhone 17 Pro, which attracted the more demanding user base thanks to even more advanced camera capabilities and other flagship features.

On the Android front, the response came mainly from Samsung, which managed to place as many as five Galaxy A models inside the Top 10. In particular, Galaxy A07 4G was the best-selling Android smartphone of the quarter, driven by strong demand in emerging regions such as the Middle East, Africa and Latin America.

A decisive factor for the success of the budget phone was the promise of six years of software and security updates, a policy by no means taken for granted when looking at the budget tier.

Although it remained just outside the list of the top ten, the flagship Galaxy S26 Ultra also showed positive signs, recording initial sales higher than its predecessor thanks to innovations such as the first Privacy Display built into a smartphone.

To close the list of the ten most popular models we find Redmi A5 from Xiaomi, already present in the Top 10 of late 2025. The entry-level stands out as the group’s most affordable device, maintaining steady demand since its launch. However, the overall context for manufacturers becomes increasingly challenging due to the global memory shortage that is driving up component costs.

Economic pressure is pushing many brands to shift their focus from sales volumes to overall value, favoring premium models that continue to gain market share over cheaper segments. Certainly the analyses of Q1 2026 (conducted by Counterpoint) outline a future where quality and perceived value matter more than the number of models released.

With an overall market decline expected for the rest of the year, manufacturers are concentrating their efforts on a limited number of premium devices to maximize profits.