Apple’s iPhone 16 Emerges as India’s Top-Selling Smartphone in 2025, Beating Chinese Rivals

Apple’s iPhone 16 has become the highest-selling smartphone in India, beating many cheaper Chinese-origin Android phones and marking a big shift for Apple in the country’s phone market.

According to a report by Mint citing Counterpoint Research, Apple sold about 6.5 million iPhone 16 units in India between January and November 2025. This made it the top-selling phone in the country, while Vivo came second, with around 4.7 million phones sold during the same period.

Apple also continued to sell older models. Around 3.3 million iPhone 15 units were sold by November, making it the fifth most-sold smartphone in India this year. Together, the iPhone 16 and iPhone 15 made up about 8% of all smartphones sold in the country, even though budget phones still dominate the market.

The success of the iPhone 16 was not limited to India. It was also the world’s best-selling smartphone in the July-September quarter of 2025. Apple and Samsung together dominated the global top-10 list, which contributed 20% of the overall global smartphone volume for the quarter. Additionally, for the first time, all top five phones were 5G models, showing growing demand for faster networks.

Strong festive season sales in India and steady demand in Japan helped iPhone 16 sales stay high, even after Apple launched the newer iPhone 17 series. However, sales of the iPhone 16 Pro dropped more sharply in markets like the US, UK and China, as many buyers chose the newer model instead.

Apple’s growing sales in India reflect its increasing focus in the country. The company has expanded local manufacturing to reduce dependence on China and is targeting young buyers. It also opened three new Apple stores in Bengaluru, Pune and Noida, taking its total stores in India to five.

Yet, Apple’s rising fortunes defy the Indian smartphone market, which is expected to remain stagnant or register low single-digit growth in 2025 for the fourth straight year, after hitting a high during the pandemic. And a global memory chip shortage may drive up prices, further hurting demand, Mint had earlier reported.

According to IDC, smartphone shipments in India are expected to reach about 158 million units in 2025, up from around 151-153 million units last year.