The grip Apple has on China’s smartphone market is slipping, with the company being the only major brand to report a decline in shipments in the first quarter of 2025
While local competitors soared, Apple’s numbers dropped 9% compared to the same period last year — down to 9.8 million units.
This is the seventh consecutive quarter Apple has seen its shipment volume shrink in China. For a company that once shaped global tech culture, that’s a worrying trend.
At the heart of the issue? Pricing. Apple is sticking to its high-end strategy, but that playbook isn’t working anymore — at least not in China.
A new wave of government subsidies, rolled out in January, is giving Chinese consumers a 15% rebate on devices priced below 6,000 yuan (about $820). Most iPhones don’t qualify. But brands like Xiaomi do, and they’re cashing in.
Xiaomi shipped 13.3 million phones — a 40% jump from the same time last year. That puts it comfortably ahead of Apple in market share, as more Chinese buyers choose value over brand prestige.
“The subsidy scheme is clearly designed to boost domestic consumption, but it’s also giving Chinese brands a strong edge,” said IDC analyst Will Wong. “Apple’s premium pricing structure has prevented the U.S. company from capitalising on new government subsidies.”
Overall, China’s smartphone market grew by 3.3% in Q1. So while the pie got bigger, Apple’s slice got smaller. Its market share now sits at 13.7%, down from 17.4% in the previous quarter — a sharp drop in such a competitive space.
Now, to be fair, Apple isn’t doing badly in shipments everywhere. Globally, it shipped 57.9 million phones in Q1 — its best first-quarter performance ever, with a 10% increase year-on-year.
But China isn’t just another market. It’s the world’s largest consumer electronics battlefield, and losing ground here sends a strong signal.
Chinese consumers are changing. They’re more price-sensitive, more nationalistic, and less dazzled by the Apple logo. And with brands like Xiaomi, Oppo, and Vivo offering sleek design and solid performance at lower prices — backed now by government support — Apple’s old charm isn’t quite cutting it.
The company has a decision to make. Stick to its high-margin strategy and risk further erosion in one of its most important markets? Or rethink its approach to pricing and product positioning in China?
Anyways, this is beyond being one bad quarter. It’s about whether Apple can still compete in a market that’s no longer waiting to be impressed.
