Apple outperformed the broader US smartphone market in Q1 as demand for the iPhone 17 continued amid weak Android sales, according to Counterpoint Research. here are the details.
US sales of iPhone seen up 1.3% year-on-year through Q1 2026
in a new reportCounterpoint Research says Apple sees iPhone sales in the US rising 1.3% year-over-year during the first quarter of 2026, which contrasts with a 5.7% decline in the overall market.
As Counterpoint notes, Apple’s performance was partly driven by stronger-than-expected demand for the base iPhone 17, as well as the delayed launch of the Galaxy S26 series by Samsung.
Historically, Samsung’s Galaxy S flagship phones arrive in stores in January or February every year since 2021. However, this year, the Galaxy S26 lineup only hit the market in mid-March, leaving “some voids in the premium space for an extra month in the first quarter,” according to Counterpoint.
This helped the iPhone account for 75% of smartphone sales at the Big 3 US carriers in Q1 2026, up from 72% a year ago.
Interestingly, the report notes that Apple’s “stake in Verizon will increase by the most to 77% in the first quarter of 2026.”
Another contributing factor to Apple’s gain was how each smartphone maker responded to pricing amid rising memory costs. Counterpoint noted that Apple kept the price of the iPhone 17e the same year-over-year by increasing the entry-level storage to 256GB, while competitors raised prices.
From the report:
Through Q1 2026, Apple overtook Samsung in Counterpoint’s average Smartphone Promotional Index score across devices priced at $600 and above in US postpaid channels. Apple stepped up its promotional efforts in this segment in Q1, as did Motorola and Google, while Samsung reported a decline. If Apple can avoid significant price hikes and continue to outpace its peers in promotional dollars, it will be hard for Android OEMs to keep up in the coming year.
To read the full report from Counterpoint Research, follow this link.
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