Samsung gains ground in premium smartphone market in H1 2026

TL;DR

Premium smartphone sales rose 5% year over year in H1 2026, lifting the category’s share of the overall market from 25% to 29%.

Apple led the premium segment with 65% share, while Samsung ranked second at 19% and grew 3% year over year.

Counterpoint says trade-in, financing, and buyback programs helped drive demand, and premium brands were better able to absorb rising memory chip costs.

Counterpoint Research has published an analysis of the global premium smartphone market in H1 2026. According to the firm, the sales of premium smartphones increased by 5% in H1 2026 compared to H1 2025. That and other factors have increased the share of premium smartphones in the overall smartphone market from 25% in H1 2025 to 29% in H1 2026.

As expected, Apple and Samsung dominated the premium smartphone market globally. Apple led the chart with a 65% market share, and Samsung is in the second position with a 19% market share. The South Korean tech giant registered a 3% year-over-year (YoY) growth in the space. That’s despite launching this year’s Galaxy S series, the Galaxy S26 lineup, later than usual.

Counterpoint Research

Counterpoint Research's analysis of the global premium smartphone market in H1 2026

According to Counterpoint Research, smartphone brands pushed trade-in, financing, and buyback programs to push sales of premium smartphones. Samsung, for example, expanded the Galaxy Forever program to several markets to make its premium and flagship devices more accessible. That has probably helped Samsung register growth in the segment.

Lately, the prices of memory chips have been skyrocketing. That has impacted smartphone brands focusing on entry-level and mid-range smartphones the most. The brands offering premium smartphones, such as Apple and Samsung, on the other hand, have been able to absorb the increasing costs better as their phones have a higher profit margin.

Abid Iqbal Shaik - Writer

First Samsung device: Galaxy S II

I’m a computer science engineer living in Hyderabad, India, who has a keen interest in automobiles and consumer electronics. My journalism career kicked off in 2017 with MySmartPrice where I wrote news, features, buying guides, and explanatory articles about technology among other things, and reviewed many products, including smartphones, tablets, laptops, PC components, smartwatches, audio devices, wearables, and smart home products. Since then, I have worked for 91Mobiles, Apple, and Onsitego, before finally landing on SamMobile.

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