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People migrated from Android to iOS in droves over the last four years.
David Lumb
Mobile Reporter
David Lumb is a mobile reporter covering phones, tablets, smartwatches, and how they’re changing our lives. He spent the last decade reviewing phones for TechRadar as well as covering tech, gaming, and culture for Engadget, Popular Mechanics, NBC Asian America, Increment, Fast Company, and others. He has other loves than phones, of course — namely coffee, beaches, and burritos.
Excited for the iPhone 14 launch event next week? It’s a good bet more Americans than ever are just as hyped: A research firm says iPhones now make up more than half the active smartphones in the US.
Apple’s phones haven’t outnumbered Android phones since the latter overtook iPhones in 2010, but in the second quarter of 2022, that changed, according to Counterpoint Research. Counterpoint noted a strong trend in Android users migrating to iOS devices (aka iPhones) over the last four years, as the Financial Times reported earlier.
Globally, Android phone share has declined to just under 70%, down from a peak of over 77% in 2018, according to StockApps analysis. By contrast, iPhones have grown to over 25% of phones around the world, up from under 20% four years ago. That’s not as dramatic a shift as in the US, but it’s still a trend that likely reflects Apple’s sales growth in China and other regions.
Another perspective shows how few brands consumers have to choose from in today’s phone market. Nearly 70% of the phones sold in the second quarter of 2022 were from just five brands: Apple, Samsung, Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo, according to a report from Counterpoint Research. While four out of those five run Android, having only a handful of brands to choose from makes Apple a bigger competitor in public perception. And once you’re inside the Apple ecosystem, it could be difficult to migrate back.
Read more: How to Watch Apple’s ‘Far Out’ September Event: iPhone 14, Apple Watch Series 8 Expected
