Apple dominated the global best-selling smartphone list during Q3, but it wasn’t the shiny new iPhone 17 models that held the lead for Cupertino. According to Counterpoint Research, the iPhone 16 was the world’s best-selling phone during the July-September months, commanding a 4% share of all shipments for the period.
Apple iPhone 16
The iPhone 16 sold particularly well in India during the festive promotions and also showed some recovery in Japan.
But it wasn’t just the vanilla iPhone 16, as the iPhone 16 Pro, 16 Pro Max and iPhone 16e occupied the second, third and fourth spots on the best-selling list. This turn of events is not that different from last year when we saw the iPhone 15, 15 Pro and Pro Max occupy the top-three spots.
Share of Global Top 10 Best-selling Smartphones, Q3 2025 vs Q3 2024 (Counterpoint Global Monthly Handset Model Sales Tracker )
Samsung was the only other brand to have devices in the top ten, with the entry-level Galaxy A16 5G and Galaxy A06 sitting in fifth and sixth place, respectively. They were followed by the midrange Galaxy A36 and Galaxy A56, which slotted in at the seventh and eighth spots.
Samsung Galaxy A16 5G
Samsung Galaxy A06
The Galaxy A16 was in ninth place while the iPhone 17 Pro Max rounded out the top-ten list despite limited availability, as it was available from the latter end of September.