In 2023, global premium smartphone sales are likely to grow 6% YoY; Apple had a 71% share, down from 75% in 2022, Samsung had 17%, and Huawei had 5%, up from 3%
- As against the decline projected for the overall global smartphone market this year, the premium (wholesale price ≥$600) …
Context & Ripple Effects
Premium phones had already become the revenue anchor of a weak unit market: premium sales took more than half of smartphone revenue in 2022 despite only 1% sales growth. This forecast extends that divergence, with the ≥$600 segment expected to grow while the overall market declines.
Apple remains overwhelmingly dominant but cedes four percentage points of premium share, while Samsung holds a meaningful second position and Huawei gains two points. Later coverage of continued premium-segment growth in H1 2025 suggests this was part of a durable tilt toward higher-value devices rather than a one-year anomaly.
First-order effects
- Premium-phone demand becomes a relative source of growth for Apple, Samsung and Huawei while the broader handset market contracts; Apple still controls 71% of the segment, but with a smaller share than in 2022.
- Samsung and Huawei gain more room to compete for high-end buyers as Apple’s premium share declines, with Huawei’s share rising from 3% to 5%.
Second-order effects
- The share shifts raise the value of premium product positioning and price realization for Android vendors: Samsung must defend its 17% position, while Huawei has evidence that its high-end offering is gaining traction.
- Component and channel partners serving higher-priced handsets are relatively better insulated than those dependent on the shrinking mass market, because premium sales are growing against the market direction.
Third-order effects
- If premium demand continues to outgrow total shipments, smartphone competition will be increasingly decided by revenue mix and ability to sustain high selling prices, not unit share alone.
- Apple’s reduced but still commanding premium share indicates a market that may remain concentrated while becoming more contestable at the high end; whether that persists depends on Samsung and Huawei converting share gains into repeatable demand.
The trend: The smartphone market is polarizing toward premium devices, making price realization and high-end share more consequential than aggregate shipment growth.