The US smartphone slump is hitting Android makers harder than Apple

• Apple grew iPhone shipments by 1.3% in Q1 2026 even as the overall US smartphone market dropped 5.7%, according to Counterpoint Research.
• Android brands took a much bigger hit, with US smartphone sales falling 14.4% year over year.
• Samsung’s delayed Galaxy S26 launch left a premium phone gap in January and February, and Apple quickly capitalized on it, the research suggests.

Apple is doing something Android brands would rather not talk about right now. iPhone shipments grew in the first quarter of 2026 after finishing 2025 as the world’s top smartphone brand in terms of units shipped. This is despite the fact that the US smartphone market shrank.

Counterpoint Research’s latest data for Q1 2026 shows that total US smartphone sales declined 5.7% year-over-year (YoY). Nevertheless, Apple still managed to grow its sales by 1.3%. If you’re an Android fan, the numbers are even worse: Android sales in the US fell 14.4% over the same period.