India smartphone sales drop 10% Q2 2026 while premium rises
India's smartphone sales dropped 10% YoY in Q2 2026, with budget and value-for-money phones hit the hardest: some segments fell by as much as 88%.
Rising prices and people holding onto their old devices longer played a big part.
But while most of the market slowed down, premium smartphones (over ₹25,000) actually saw a huge 54% YoY growth.
The super premium segment (₹50,000-₹100,000) surged 72% YoY, thanks to zero-cost EMI, trade-in offers, and consumer credit.
Vivo leads Indian market at 18.1%
Vivo held onto the top spot with an 18.1% share (mostly thanks to its V70), even though its sales slipped by 15%.
Samsung wasn't far behind at 17.9%, boosted by strong Galaxy A07 and S26 Ultra numbers.
OPPO grabbed third place with its A and K series, while Xiaomi managed to keep losses smaller than others.
Apple made up 8% of the market; most buyers went for iPhone 16 or 17 models.
CMR expects another dip for the rest of this year, so it'll be interesting to see how brands adapt next.