Smartphone sales in South Korea fell 6% in 2022

Emmanuel Oyedeji -

Smartphone sales in South Korea declined by 6% YoY due to an economic slowdown in 2022, according to a report by market intelligence group Counterpoint.

  • Samsung Electronics, the world's leading smartphone maker, experienced a 2% drop in smartphone sales in its home country in 2022. Meanwhile, Apple's iPhone sales in South Korea also showed a marginal decline of 0.4% from the previous year.
  • Other smartphone players witnessed a significant decline of 71% YoY, which can be attributed to LG Electronics' exit from the mobile business in 2021.
  • The top-selling smartphone models in South Korea last year were Samsung Electronics' Galaxy S22 Ultra, followed by the Galaxy Z Flip 4, Galaxy S22 5G, and Apple's iPhone 13. The combined sales of the top 10 models accounted for 46% of the total sales, down 7 percentage points from the previous year.
  • According to the outlook from analysts at Counterpoint Research, the continuing economic uncertainties will affect the demand for budget smartphones in 2023. However, he also forecasted that Apple's iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max would lead the local smartphone market in the first quarter.