iPhone 16 Tops Global Smartphone Sales in Q1 2025 as Apple Leads the Chart: Counterpoint

Xiaomi's Redmi 14C was the only non-Apple and non-Samsung device in the top 10.

Written by Nithya P Nair, Edited by Siddharth Suvarna | Updated: 29 May 2025 11:39 IST

iPhone 16 Tops Global Smartphone Sales in Q1 2025 as Apple Leads the Chart: Counterpoint

Photo Credit: Apple

iPhone 16e took the sixth position in the top 10 best-selling smartphones list

Highlights

iPhone 16 becomes the world's best-selling smartphone in Q1 2025
Samsung's Galaxy A16 5G came in fifth on the list
Top best-selling smartphone models could keep stable share going forward

Apple has topped the global list of best-selling smartphones in Q1 2025, according to Counterpoint Research. The Cupertino-based company led global smartphone shipments in Q1 2025, with five iPhone models in the top 10. The iPhone 16, launched in 2024, was the top-selling phone, followed by the iPhone 16 Pro Max and iPhone 16 Pro in second and third place, respectively. Samsung's Galaxy S25 Ultra ranked seventh in the list. Meanwhile, Xiaomi's Redmi 14C was the only non-Apple or non-Samsung device in the top 10.

iPhone 16 Leads Global Smartphone Sales

As per Counterpoint Research's Global Handset Model Sales Tracker, the iPhone 16 was the world's best-selling smartphone in Q1 this year. This marked the return of the standard variant of iPhone to the top spot in the first quarter after a break of two years. The vanilla model drove volume in markets including Japan, and Middle East and Africa. Apple topped in smartphone shipments in Q1 2025, with five iPhone models featuring in the top 10 best-selling smartphones list.

The iPhone 16 Pro Max and iPhone 16 Pro came in the second and third positions, respectively. The iPhone 16 Pro models made up nearly 50 percent of Apple's total iPhone sales for the third straight quarter. China's government subsidies for sub-CNY 6,000 (roughly Rs. 71,000) devices and intense competition from brands like Huawei affected the sale of the iPhone 16 Pro series in China.

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Counterpoint states that the iPhone 16e, which was unveiled in March this year, also made the list. It took the sixth position in the top 10 best-selling smartphones. The iPhone 16 Plus managed to grab the 10th spot.

Samsung Bags 4 Spots in Top 10

Samsung had one fewer model in the top 10 compared to the same period last year. While the overall share of the top 10 smartphones in global sales stayed steady, low-end models saw a rise in their contribution.

Samsung's premium offering, Galaxy S25 Ultra, secured seventh spot on the list, slipping from the fifth position held by the Galaxy S24 Ultra a year earlier. The drop in sales was due to a shorter sales window for the phone during the quarter. The Galaxy S25 series accounts for one-fourth of Samsung's total smartphone sales in its active sales month.

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Driven by the popularity in the budget segment and wider availability, Galaxy A16 5G came in fifth on the list. The handset moved one position from the Galaxy A15 5G's ranking in Q1 2024.

The Galaxy A06 grabbed the sixth position on the list. Counterpoint notes that it has moved up four spots in the top-10 list compared to its predecessor in Q1 last year. This growth was boosted by a surge in demand for low-end smartphones across all regions. The Galaxy A55 5G is ranked ninth.

Meanwhile, Xiaomi's Redmi 14C was the only non-Apple and non-Samsung device in the top 10, with most of its sales coming from emerging regions such as the Middle East and Africa and Latin America. It came in eighth position.

Counterpoint expects top 10 best-selling smartphone models to maintain a stable share in the coming months, despite tariff tensions and market uncertainties. This resilience is driven by OEMs increasingly focusing on high-end devices that attract consumers with premium features.

Apple iPhone 16e

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Light and compact design
Powerful Apple A18 SoC
Customisable Action Button
Good battery life

Bad
Low light camera performance is below average
Available in just two basic finishes
Large display notch with thick borders
60Hz refresh rate display
Slow wireless and wired charging

Read detailed Apple iPhone 16e review

Display 6.10-inch

Processor Apple A18

Front Camera 12-megapixel

Rear Camera 48-megapixel

RAM 8GB

Storage 128GB, 256GB, 512GB

OS iOS 18

Resolution 1170x2532 pixels

More Apple mobiles Apple mobiles price in India

iPhone 16 Pro Max

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Massive screen size
Brilliant display
Performance beast
Camera Control is a boon
Fantastic battery life

Bad
Big phone for one-hand use
Expensive
No Apple Intelligence at launch
Slow-wired charging support

Read detailed Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max review

Display 6.90-inch

Processor Apple A18 Pro

Front Camera 12-megapixel

Rear Camera 48-megapixel + 12-megapixel + 48-megapixel

RAM 8GB

Storage 256GB, 512GB, 1TB

OS iOS 18

Resolution 1320x2868 pixels

More Apple mobiles Apple mobiles price in India

iPhone 16 Pro

KEY SPECS
NEWS

Display 6.30-inch

Processor Apple A18 Pro

Front Camera 12-megapixel

Rear Camera 48-megapixel + 12-megapixel + 48-megapixel

RAM 8GB

Storage 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB

OS iOS 18

Resolution 1206x2622 pixels

More Apple mobiles Apple mobiles price in India

iPhone 16

KEY SPECS
NEWS

Display 6.10-inch

Processor Apple A18

Front Camera 12-megapixel

Rear Camera 48-megapixel + 12-megapixel

RAM 8GB

Storage 128GB, 256GB, 512GB

OS iOS 18

Resolution 1179x2556 pixels

More Apple mobiles Apple mobiles price in India

iPhone 16 Plus

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Stunning display
Solid build quality and lovely colour options
Battery life is bonkers on this one
Excellent for gaming and performance (in general)
Improved cameras

Bad
Still offers a 60Hz refresh rate and misses out on AOD (always-on display)
No fast charging
Comes with USB 2
No Apple Intelligence features out of the box

Read detailed Apple iPhone 16 Plus review

Display 6.70-inch

Processor Apple A18

Front Camera 12-megapixel

Rear Camera 48-megapixel + 12-megapixel

RAM 8GB

Storage 128GB, 256GB, 512GB

OS iOS 18

Resolution 1290x2796 pixels

More Apple mobiles Apple mobiles price in India

Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
New design is for the better
Cameras deliver consistent performance
Good battery life
Excellent performance
Smooth UI

Bad
S-Pen is a downgrade
No Dolby Vision support
Low light camera performance is lacking
Slow charging

Read detailed Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra review

Display 6.90-inch

Processor Snapdragon 8 Elite

Front Camera 12-megapixel

Rear Camera 200-megapixel + 50-megapixel + 50-megapixel + 10-megapixel

RAM 12GB

Storage 256GB, 512GB, 1TB

Battery Capacity 5000mAh

OS Android 15

Resolution 1400x3120 pixels

More Samsung mobiles Samsung mobiles price in India

Samsung Galaxy A16 5G

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Good design
Reliable primary camera
Decent display
Good battery life
Long software support

Bad
Performance could have been better
Unreliable ultrawide camera
Automatic bloatware downloads (uninstallable)

Read detailed Samsung Galaxy A16 5G review

Display 6.50-inch

Processor MediaTek Dimensity 6300

Front Camera 13-megapixel

Rear Camera 50-megapixel + 5-megapixel + 2-megapixel

RAM 6GB, 8GB

Storage 128GB, 256GB

Battery Capacity 5000mAh

OS Android 14

Resolution 1080x2340 pixels

More Samsung mobiles Samsung mobiles price in India

Samsung Galaxy S25

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Compact and excellent aesthetics
Top-notch display
AI features loaded
One UI 7 brings nice updates
Decent cameras

Bad
25W fast-charging limit
Expensive (base price)

Read detailed Samsung Galaxy S25 review

Display 6.20-inch

Processor Snapdragon 8 Elite

Front Camera 12-megapixel

Rear Camera 50-megapixel + 12-megapixel + 10-megapixel

RAM 12GB

Storage 256GB, 512GB

Battery Capacity 4000mAh

OS Android 15

Resolution 1080x2340 pixels

More Samsung mobiles Samsung mobiles price in India

Samsung Galaxy A15 5G

KEY SPECS
NEWS

Display 6.50-inch

Front Camera 13-megapixel

Rear Camera 50-megapixel + 5-megapixel + 2-megapixel

RAM 6GB, 8GB

Storage 128GB, 256GB

Battery Capacity 5000mAh

OS Android 14

Resolution 2340x1080 pixels

More Samsung mobiles Samsung mobiles price in India

Samsung Galaxy A06 5G

KEY SPECS
NEWS

Display 6.70-inch

Processor MediaTek Dimensity 6300

Front Camera 8-megapixel

Rear Camera 50-megapixel + 2-megapixel

RAM 4GB, 6GB

Storage 64GB, 128GB

Battery Capacity 5000mAh

OS Android 15

Resolution 720x1600 pixels

More Samsung mobiles Samsung mobiles price in India

Samsung Galaxy A55 5G

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Modern design
Good display
Feature-packed software
Fantastic battery life
Good primary camera

Bad
Underwhelming ultra-wide angle camera
CPU performance lags behind the competition
Opts you in to Glance with every update
Software updates add unsolicited apps
Very pricey

Read detailed Samsung Galaxy A55 5G review

Display 6.60-inch

Front Camera 32-megapixel

Rear Camera 50-megapixel + 12-megapixel + 5-megapixel

RAM 8GB, 12GB

Storage 128GB, 256GB

Battery Capacity 5000mAh

OS Android 14

Resolution 2340x1080 pixels

More Samsung mobiles Samsung mobiles price in India

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Further reading: Counterpoint, Apple, iPhone 16, Samsung, iPhone 16 Pro Max, Best Selling Smartphones, Best Selling Smartphones 2025

Nithya P Nair

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Nithya P Nair is a journalist with more than five years of experience in digital journalism. She specialises in business and technology beats. A foodie at heart, Nithya loves exploring new places (read cuisines) and sneaking in Malayalam movie dialogues to spice up conversations. More