CHART: China's Smartphone Market Performance in Q2 2024

  • China's smartphone market grew 10% year-on-year in Q2 2024, exceeding 70 million units.
  • Domestic brands dominated the top five for the first time ever.
  • Apple slipped to sixth place with a 14% market share.

China's smartphone market is heating up faster than a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 as domestic brands captured all top five positions marking a historic quarter for the market.

The country also saw a 10% growth in smartphone shipments in Q2 2024 with over 70 million units finding new owners, according to the latest numbers from Canalys. This is particularly impressive given the challenges the market faced last year. 

This surge in China's smartphone market was driven by a perfect blend of factors. National sales events like the "618" e-commerce festival played a significant role, with vendors launching promotional cycles earlier and offering substantial discounts. Additionally, companies like Huawei and Xiaomi leveraged their offline channels to up-sell and cross-sell products within their ecosystems, further boosting sales.

Looking at the brand performance, domestic brands absolutely crushed it, coming out as top performers in the quarter. Vivo led as it reclaimed the top spot with a 19% market share, shipping 13.1 million units. Its strong offline channel performance and robust online sales during the "618" festival led to a 15% year-on-year increase.