Analysis of China's High-End Smartphone Market Share in 2024: Apple and Huawei Lead, Domestic Brands Show Strong Growth

Analysis of China's High-End Smartphone Market Share in 2024: Apple and Huawei Lead, Domestic Brands Show Strong GrowthSpecifically, while Apple's market share in China's high-end market dropped to a new low of 54% in 2024, it still maintained its leading position. Apple phones are generally priced above US$600, and even standard models or previous generations maintained considerable sales during e-commerce promotional events like "618" and "Double Eleven," indirectly reflecting consumer recognition of its brand and products

Analysis of China's High-End Smartphone Market Share in 2024: Apple and Huawei Lead, Domestic Brands Show Strong Growth

In recent years, numerous smartphone brands have aggressively entered the high-end market, continuously launching premium models and attracting considerable attention. Recently, data analytics firm Counterpoint released its 2024 sales data report on China's high-end smartphone market, providing insights into the latest market landscape. The report defines high-end smartphones as models priced at US$600 and above (approximately RMB 4344).

The report data reveals a clear trend towards high-end devices in the Chinese smartphone market. The market share of smartphones priced at US$600 and above increased significantly from 11% in 2018 to 28% in 2024. In 2024, Apple and Huawei continued to dominate, accounting for a combined 83% of total sales.

Specifically, while Apple's market share in China's high-end market dropped to a new low of 54% in 2024, it still maintained its leading position. Apple phones are generally priced above US$600, and even standard models or previous generations maintained considerable sales during e-commerce promotional events like "618" and "Double Eleven," indirectly reflecting consumer recognition of its brand and products.

Huawei also performed impressively in the high-end market in 2024. Its market share increased from 20% in 2023 to 29%, securing second place and achieving the highest growth rate among all domestic brands. This growth is primarily attributed to the application of Huawei's self-developed chips in more models, such as the renamed Pura series and the slightly lower-priced Nova 13 series. Thanks to this, Huawei's overall sales increased by 37% year-on-year in 2024, with high-end market growth reaching 52%.

Xiaomi ranked third. In recent years, Xiaomi's flagship digital series has adopted a diversified product strategy encompassing compact flagship, balanced flagship, and imaging flagship models, with the compact and imaging flagships particularly attracting consumer attention. Vivo and Honor ranked fourth and fifth respectively. Vivo received positive feedback for its excellent imaging system and user experience, while Honor won market share with its balanced product configurations.

The report indicates that besides Apple and Huawei, other major domestic brands have increased their investment in the high-end market, with their overall market share growing from 5% in 2020 to 15% in 2024. In 2024, the year-on-year growth rate of brands like Xiaomi and Vivo in the high-end market was approximately 50%. However, compared to Apple and Huawei, these brands still have relatively low high-end phone sales. To gain a firm foothold in the high-end market, they need continuous innovation and to navigate intense market competition.

It's noteworthy that Huawei and other domestic brands further consolidated their leading position in the US$400-600 price segment. The report suggests this is crucial for driving future consumer upgrades to the US$600 and above segment. The overall market share of this segment increased from 89% in 2023 to 91% in 2024, clearly demonstrating consumer preference for domestic brands. Domestic phones not only offer a price advantage but also excel in performance.

In summary, the Chinese high-end smartphone market in 2024 exhibits several key characteristics: domestic brands like Huawei are showing strong momentum, gaining increasing market share with more comprehensive product lines; Apple, despite a declining market share, remains the leader; and future market competition will be even more intense.

The 17-percentage-point increase in the high-end smartphone market share (US$600 and above) from 11% to 28% between 2018 and 2024 clearly reflects the trend of consumer upgrading in China and the continuously improving competitiveness of domestic smartphone manufacturers in the high-end market. While Apple and Huawei dominate the high-end market, other domestic manufacturers are actively catching up and making progress. The over 50% growth rate of Xiaomi, Vivo, and others in the high-end market demonstrates strong growth potential. However, a significant gap remains compared to Apple and Huawei's market share, requiring continued effort in the future.

The growth in the US$400-600 price segment is also noteworthy. The increase from 89% to 91% in market share in 2024 consolidates the leading position of domestic manufacturers in this price range. This reflects not only the price-performance advantage of domestic phones but also indicates that their performance and features meet, or even exceed, the needs of most consumers.

Huawei's strong performance in 2024 is remarkable. Its 9-percentage-point increase in high-end market share to 29% makes it the fastest-growing brand. This is inseparable from the application of Huawei's self-developed chips and showcases its strong R&D capabilities and technological prowess. Huawei's success provides valuable experience and reference for other domestic manufacturers and injects strong momentum into the future development of China's mobile phone industry.

Looking ahead, competition in China's high-end smartphone market will intensify. Apple will continue to maintain its premium brand image and strive to maintain its leading position; Huawei will continue to consolidate its high-end market position and seek further breakthroughs; and domestic manufacturers like Xiaomi, Vivo, and Honor will continue to increase R&D investment to strive for a larger share of the high-end market. Consumers will benefit from a wider selection of high-end smartphones and more intense price competition.