India smartphone shipments grow by 8% on-year in Q2; Xiaomi slips to fifth spot: Counterpoint

Time of India

3 days ago

NEW DELHI: The India smartphone market grew by 8% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2025 (Q2 2025), marking a solid rebound from a muted first quarter, driven by new launches and strong summer season sales, according to the latest
Counterpoint Research
report released on Wednesday.
The market grew by 18% year-on-year in terms of value in the April-June quarter, according to the research agency. It said that the brands offered steeper discounts, convenient EMIs, and bundled offers, particularly in the mid and premium segments.
'India's smartphone market recovery in Q2 2025 was further supported by an improved macroeconomic environment that boosted consumer confidence and spending. Retail inflation dropped to a six-year low, easing pressure on household budgets, while the central bank's repo rate cuts made financing more accessible,' said Senior Research Analyst Prachir Singh.
Singh said that tax relief measures introduced earlier in the year increased disposable incomes and savings, creating a favorable setup for discretionary purchases.
First-ranked Vivo's volume market share increased from 17% in Q2 2024 to 20% in Q2 2025, while second-ranked
Samsung
's share declined from 17% to 16% during this period, and Oppo displaced
Xiaomi
to take the third spot with a 13% share, an increase from 11% in the corresponding quarter a year ago, according to the research firm.
Realme, in fourth position, saw its share erode from 13% in Q2 2024 to 10% in Q2 2025, while Xiaomi slipped to fifth spot with an 8% share in Q2 2025, the research firm's data showed.
Between Q2 2024 and Q2 2025, OnePlus' volume share declined from 4% to just 2%, whereas Vivo sub-brand iQOO's share grew from 2% to 4%, and Poco's share fell from 6% to 5%, as per the separate data listed out for these three brands.
Nothing's Q2 2025 shipments jumped 146% year-on-year, while Motorola's shipments grew 86% year-on-year, and homegrown handset maker Lava was the fastest-growing brand in the sub-₹10,000 segment with a 156% year-on-year growth.
'During Q2 2025, both OEMs and channels hosted several sales events, including parallel offline events, which helped some of the OEMs clear existing inventory and push for new launches. Vivo (excluding iQOO) grew 23% year-on-year, led by strong demand in the ₹10,000-₹15,000 segment, where both the Y and T series performed well,' said Research Analyst Shubham Singh.
'Samsung followed as the second-largest brand, supported by aggressive summer promotions on its A and S series and increased traction for its N-1 flagship upgrades, which helped sustain momentum in the mid to premium segments,' Shubham said.
According to him, Oppo (excluding OnePlus) secured the third position in Q2 2025, driven by the strong performance of its refreshed A5 and K series. 'The brand's ongoing portfolio revamp, combined with retailer engagement and improved margins, strengthened its offline traction and supported a steady market recovery,' Shubham said.
'Samsung, Apple lead market by value'
Samsung, Apple, and Vivo led the market (by value) in Q2 2025.
'The improving sentiment contributed to the ultra-premium (>₹45,000) segment's strong 37% year-on-year growth, making it the fastest-growing price tier. The ultra-premium segment helped the Indian smartphone market record its best-ever Q2 in value terms and highest-ever ASP,' said Prachir.
Apple and Samsung capitalised on this trend through aggressive affordability initiatives such as trade-in programs, no-cost EMIs, and limited-period summer discounts, making flagship devices more accessible to aspirational buyers, he added.
MediaTek led India's smartphone chipset market with a 47% share, followed by Qualcomm with a 31% share. Qualcomm's
smartphone shipments
grew 28% YoY during the quarter.