Industry Insights
03 Jan 2026
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Omdia: Latin American smartphone market grows 1% YoY in Q3 2025, reaching highest quarterly shipment level since 2015
According to the latest Omdia report, in the third quarter of 2025, Latin America's smartphone market grew 1% year-on-year, with shipments reaching 35.2 million units—the highest quarterly level since Q4 2015. Despite economic uncertainty, cautious inventory management and moderate consumer demand enabled major vendors to maintain resilient shipment volumes.
Samsung ranked first with 11.6 million units shipped and a 33% market share. Its low-end A-series models performed strongly, accounting for 68% of its total shipments. Xiaomi came second with 6.3 million units (18% share). Motorola ranked third but has now declined for six consecutive quarters, down 11% year-on-year this quarter. HONOR ranked fourth, achieving a new record high for the third consecutive quarter with 2.9 million units shipped, driven by growth in the Caribbean, Colombia, and Ecuador—three markets that now account for over 40% of its total shipments. Transsion entered the top five despite a 19% year-on-year decline.
The regional recovery was supported by growth in key markets such as Brazil and Central America, along with recoveries in Chile, Colombia, and Ecuador. Brazil, the largest market, held a 29% share with 10.3 million units shipped (up 5% year-on-year). New entrants such as realme, OPPO, HONOR, and Jovi (vivo) further strengthened their market positions through local manufacturing and partnerships with carriers and retailers. In contrast, Mexico, the second-largest market, saw shipments fall to 7.4 million units (21% share), down 11% year-on-year and marking the fourth consecutive quarter of contraction. This was primarily due to reduced shipments of devices priced below $300, reflecting more cautious inventory strategies.
Beyond Brazil, key markets including Central America and Ecuador continued to grow, driven by strong demand for low-end devices. Meanwhile, Colombia and Chile showed signs of recovery amid improved economic conditions such as better inflation control, increased investment, and rising consumer spending.
Despite overall market growth, the sub-$300 segment, which accounted for 71% of total shipments as of Q3 2025, declined by 2%. This drop stemmed from ongoing inventory pressure, stagnant consumer demand, and vendor strategy shifts toward higher average selling prices (ASP) to achieve stronger financial performance.
However, this decline was offset by robust growth in the premium and flagship segments above $500, where shipments rose 20% year-on-year in 2025. This structural shift pushed ASP up by 8% in Q3 2025, intensifying competition in the high-end segment—a space traditionally dominated by Apple and Samsung. Brands including OPPO, Xiaomi, HONOR, vivo, realme, and Google (in the Mexican market) are increasing investments to solidify their presence in this high-margin segment.
"The rise in premium segment shipments reflects vendors' efforts to maintain market share and elevate brand positioning amid saturation in the low-end market. For vendors with long-term goals, increasing average selling price (ASP), enhancing ecosystem profitability, and strengthening user loyalty are key to sustained financial health. Pre-stocking premium devices in Q3 ahead of the Q4 peak sales season is also a critical strategy to boost volume, value, and profit, laying the foundation for next year’s business planning."
"Despite challenges, Omdia expects the Latin American smartphone market in 2025 to be largely flat compared to 2024, with full-year shipments around 137 million units. However, pressures for 2026 are emerging. Rising memory and storage costs may push device prices—especially entry-level models—upward, potentially hindering market growth. To mitigate consumer impact, vendors and retailers will need to adopt strategies such as subsidies, margin management, bundling, and flexible financing options."
| Latin America Smartphone Shipments and Year-on-Year Growth
Omdia Smartphone Analysis Data: Third Quarter 2025 | Vendor | Q3 2025
Shipments
(Million Units) | Q3 2025
Market Share | Q3 2024
Shipments
(Million Units) | Q3 2024
Market Share | Year-on-
Year Growth | Samsung | 11.6 | 33% | 11.3 | 32% | 2% | Xiaomi | 6.3 | 18% | 5.8 | 16% | 9% | Motorola | 5.4 | 15% | 6.0 | 17% | -11% | HONOR | 2.9 | 8% | 1.7 | 5% | 75% | Transsion | 2.5 |
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