Counterpoint: Vivo, OPPO and Apple Rank Top 3 In China’s Smartphone Market Last Year

Counterpoint announced smartphone market shares in China for 2021 on Wednesday. Taking first place was Vivo with a market share of 22%, up 21% year-on-year.

OPPO (including OnePlus’ data) took the second place with 21% market share, followed by Apple with 16% and Xiaomi at 15%. Honor and Huawei both account for 10% of the market, with Honor increasing by 6% year-on-year and Huawei decreasing by 68% year-on-year. Realme showed the strongest growth, with a year-on-year increase of 379% and a market share of 3%.

Research Analyst Mengmeng Zang commented on Apple’s performance, saying, “Apple rose to first place in China right after the iPhone 13 was released (week 39) in September. Afterwards, it remained in the leading position for most of the fourth quarter. The new iPhone 13 has led the pack due to a relatively lower starting price for its release in China, as well as the new camera and 5G features.”

Vivo and OPPO’s sales were driven by their strong offline presence and expansive product portfolio strategy. Vivo’s performance was driven by the X70 series and S series while OPPO’s Reno 7 series showed strength. HONOR also started to rebound in the second half of 2021 after restoring relationships with suppliers.

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The year also proved to be a milestone for Chinese OEMs embracing advanced technology. Vivo, OPPO and Xiaomi all launched self-developed chipsets to showcase their investments in semiconductors. OPPO and HONOR also launched foldable flagship models with more developed features and highly customized software, particularly for Chinese users.