Smartphone unit sales worldwide 2018-2021, by region

In 2020, more smartphones were sold in Greater China than any other region in the world at over 368 million units. The annual global smartphone sales plateaued at around 1.5 billion units in the previous years, but dropped in 2020 to 1.38 billion units, due to the coronavirus pandemic. Before 2020, only China and other emerging countries in Asia were still showing growth. The potential for growth in China is reflected in the country's smartphone penetration rate, as currently, only around half of the population is using a smartphone.

Americas and Europe stagnating

Sales in the Americas region and Europe are predicted to decrease compared to pre-pandemic sales, with the largest drop in smartphone sales in 2021 predicted for North America, where smartphone sales are expected to decrease by around 8 million units in 2021 compared to 2019.

Africa and Middle East with modest growth

In contrast to the decreasing markets in Europa and the Americas, smartphone sales are expected to increase in Sub-Saharan countries and North Africa as well as the Middle East from 2019 to 2021. Shipments to the Middle East and Africa have been steadily growing since 2013. Drivers for the growth in these markets are the still low smartphone penetration and the average selling price for smartphones that is only half of the average price in North America.