Apple is dominating US phone sales, but it sounds like Google Pixel is holding on

Ben Schoon | May 13 2026 - 8:20 am PT

A new report shows that, perhaps even more so than usual, Apple’s iPhone is dominating phone sales in the US market, but Google Pixel is apparently holding onto its sliver.

Counterpoint Research says that, in Q1 2026, iPhone sales went up by 1.3% year-over-year (YoY) despite the market as a whole dropping by 5.7%. As a result, Apple’s dominance in the US smartphone market went up by 4%, with Android’s share of sales dropping by over 14%. The report partially attributes this to Samsung’s later Galaxy S26 series launch, but mostly on the success of the iPhone 17 series.

At the “Big 3” US cellular carriers – Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile – iPhones apparently made up 75% of phone sales in Q1 2026, up from 72% the same time last year.

On the note of Samsung’s later launch, the report cites a Counterpoint analyst who notes that the US premium smartphone market is “highly consolidated,” with Google Pixel being one of the major brands.

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The premium smartphone space in the US is highly consolidated compared to some other markets, with Apple, Google, Samsung and, to some extent, Motorola comprising the vast majority of sales here. When one brand delays a flagship launch, it opens a window of opportunity to fill that vacuum. Apple did just that.

It’s later noted that, where Samsung’s promotional/marketing efforts declined in Q1, Apple increased its spend, as did both Motorola and Google Pixel.

No direct numbers are shared in this report around how Google Pixel may or may not have slipped, but the mention of Pixel being one of the brands succeeding in the premium space suggests it is at least holding on to the niche it has carved out in the US market. Another recent report mentioned that Google’s chipset shipments were up while those from Qualcomm and MediaTek were down, again suggesting that Pixel is at least holding its ground or growing.

Pixel was expected to weather a turbulent smartphone market better than others.

Google Pixel is growing in 2026 as almost everyone else struggles in the chaos

Meanwhile, in the prepaid space, Motorola managed quite a bit of YoY growth in Q1, making up 32% of prepaid/”national retail” smartphone sales. That’s just a hair behind Samsung, which hit 33%. The report attributes this to other brands “having a tough time keeping up with the marketing power of Motorola and Samsung,” while others have put off new models or exited the market altogether due to the squeeze of shortages and other factors.