Smartphone shipments into Europe, excluding Russia, fell by 9 per cent to 28.7 million units in the second quarter of 2025, according to industry analysts Canalys.

A restrained consumer and economic outlook is still limiting demand, making Europe the worst-performing smartphone region worldwide during the second quarter.

On the vendor ranking table, Samsung maintained a confident lead, although its shipments declined by 10 per cent year on year to 10.3 million units.

The company’s volume performance was affected by the Galaxy A06 not being brought into European Union regulated markets due to eco-design regulations.

Apple was the second largest vendor, falling by 4 per cent to 6.9 million units.

A consistent performance by the iPhone 16 series partly offset the company’s slimmer portfolio, which covered fewer price segments compared with the second quarter of 2024.

Xiaomi finished third, declining by 4 per cent to 5.4 million units.

Its strong comeback in Italy, where it grew by more than 50 per cent year on year, helped balance out a challenging demand environment.

Motorola ranked fourth, dropping by 18 per cent to 1.5 million units, while HONOR rounded out the top five with growth of 11 per cent to 0.9 million units.

“Players in Europe’s smartphone industry have had a tough first half of 2025, defined by sluggish end-user demand and conservative channel inventory strategies,” said Aaron West, Senior Analyst at Omdia.

“Additionally, the EU eco-design and energy efficiency regulations came into force in late June, which vendors have spent years preparing for. Any vendors’ desire to stockpile channel inventory ahead of 20 June failed to materialise as the channel remained resistant to taking on any excess inventory. Plus, some of the largest network operators required devices in their portfolios to be compliant a few months in advance,” he added.

“But a healthy channel dynamic positions the market for growth in the second half of the year, as industry players strive to get a positive return on the momentum from the major launch events,” he said.

“Market influence continues to shift toward the largest five players, which held a record-high 87 per cent combined market share in the second quarter of 2025,” said Runar Bjørhovde, Senior Analyst at Canalys.

“While it reflects the importance of differentiated brands and scale for a profitable and sustainable business model for vendors, competition remains brutally fierce within the channel. Here, telcos, retailers, e-commerce specialists and direct channels are all competing intensely to acquire and retain customers. But growing dependence on a few vendors is making it hard to differentiate,” he added.

“In recent years, both direct-to-consumer and open-market channels have taken some share, mainly from operators,” he said. 

“Our recent consumer study of 8,000 Europeans,” he continued, “found that the draw toward direct purchases relates to a desire to engage with the brand alongside perceived customer service, while the draw to open-market channels largely relates to pricing. Operators remain a key route to the market for vendors and have been a key catalyst to drive adoption of, for example, 5G and eSIM capable smartphones.”

“Europe’s smartphone market is undergoing a tough period, but we anticipate growth to return by 2026, powered by a low-end device replacement push and maturing AI propositions starting to capture consumer interest,” said Bjørhovde.

“Still, our long-term growth outlook is modest, as we only expect the market to grow by a compound annual growth rate of 1.7 per cent to 2029. Consequently, industry players must know why and how their customers buy. Understanding how buying journeys evolve as purchase motivations are reshaped is essential to know where and how industry players can influence consumers,” he added.

“Particularly in a competitive region with a limited total addressable market, manoeuvring cleverly and effectively can become the difference between resiliently winning market share and potential market exits,” he said.