Huawei regains the top spot in China's smartphone market for the first time

Huawei regains the top spot in China's smartphone market for the first time

In the second quarter of 2025, Huawei regained the top spot in China's smartphone market for the first time after more than four years. Although the overall performance of smartphones in the Chinese market was poor in the quarter, with shipments down 4% year-on-year, Huawei still achieved outstanding results.

According to IDC's "Global Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracking Report", China's total smartphone shipments fell to 68.96 million units, ending six consecutive quarters of growth and showing a decline. IDC analyzed that the limited effect of the national subsidy policy and the low consumer confidence were the main reasons for the market decline.

In this market environment, Huawei ranked first in the industry with 12.5 million units shipped and 18.1% market share. Although the shipments fell slightly by 3.4% year-on-year, its performance was still remarkable. Will Wong, senior research manager of client devices in IDC Asia Pacific, believes that Huawei's strong brand appeal and effective shipment management are key factors in its recovery.

Vivo ranked second with 11.9 million units shipped, down 10.1% year-on-year; OPPO ranked third with 10.7 million units shipped, down 5%. Xiaomi is the only brand among the top five manufacturers to achieve year-on-year growth, and it has bucked the trend by virtue of its strong appeal to price-sensitive consumers. Apple ranked fifth with 9.6 million units shipped, down 1.3% year-on-year, but it has adjusted prices to make some iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro models eligible for government subsidies, which has alleviated the decline in sales to a certain extent.