According to the latest report from Counterpoint Research, worldwide refurbished smartphone shipments are rapidly increasing. On the other hand market research firm IDC stated that used smartphone shipments would increase from 282.6 million units in 2022 to 413.3 million units in 2026. This amount corresponds to 22% and 32% of the annual shipment of new smartphones after Covid-19 of 1.3 billion units.
Counterpoint predicted that global sales of refurbished smartphones last year increased by 5% to 170 million to 180 million units. From 2020 to 2022, sales of refurbished smartphones rapidly increased.
In the market, Apple is leading with 49% of share in 2022 and Samsung Electronics’ share was 26%. Apple increased its refurbished iPhone sales by 16% last year, increasing its refurbished market share to 49%. Demand for refurbished products also affects new iPhone sales and service sales.
The South Korean tech giant Samsung’s share of this market reportedly decreased from 28% in 2021 to 26% in 2022. As some Galaxy users switched to iPhones in 2022, Samsung Electronics’ refurbished smartphone sales were affected. Counterpoint predicts that this trend will continue into 2023.
