Apple Watch Shipments Up 14% | Q2 Market Performance Report

Q2 2026 Smartwatch Market Trends

Global smartwatch shipments dropped 4% year over year during the second quarter of 2026. While the broader market experienced this contraction, Apple managed a 14% increase in shipments during the same period. This data comes from a fresh report released by Counterpoint Research, which highlights shifts in consumer demand across major hardware brands.

Apple secured a 20.1% share of the global market, landing the company in second place. Huawei currently leads the industry with a 21.8% share, showing 1% growth over the same quarter last year. The remaining market is split among competitors like Imoo, Xiaomi, and Garmin, who faced varying levels of decline as the overall sector cooled.

Performance Drivers for Top Brands

Success for Apple during this quarter centered on the popularity of its recent hardware updates. The Apple Watch Series 11 and Watch SE 3 accounted for over 80% of the company's total shipments. According to Anshika Jain, a principal analyst at Counterpoint Research, this growth occurred across all global regions rather than being confined to a specific territory.

China remained a primary battleground for these manufacturers. The nation's consumer electronics subsidy program helped Apple recover from lower sales numbers recorded in the second quarter of 2025. Huawei also relied heavily on its home market, with approximately 80% of its global volume originating from Chinese sales.

Competitive Landscape and Future Outlook

Other industry players saw significant setbacks in the second quarter. Xiaomi experienced a 38% decline in shipments, while smaller brands combined for an 8% drop. Garmin bucked this trend by increasing shipments by 11%, capturing a 5.6% share of the market.

Analysts continue to monitor how these figures reflect broader economic pressures on consumer electronics. The market remains sensitive to regional subsidies and the release cadence of new models. While Apple and Huawei appear stable, the decline among smaller players suggests a consolidation phase that may influence future product strategies. Investors and industry observers will track these shipment trends into the second half of 2026 to see if the current divergence between top brands and the rest of the pack widens further.