India’s smartphone market is showing a clear divide between premium and affordable segments. Smartphone prices have increased across brands, but shipments rose sequentially in the second quarter of 2026, even as the market remained below last year’s level.
According to CyberMedia Research (CMR), 34 million smartphones were shipped in India during Q2 2026, up from 31 million in the previous quarter. However, shipments were lower than the 37 million units recorded in Q2 2025.
The increase in shipments comes despite price hikes by Samsung, Vivo, Oppo and OnePlus. The brands have raised prices of existing smartphone models, while new launches, including Google’s latest Pixel phones, have also come at higher prices.
CMR expects India’s smartphone market to decline by 10–12% in 2026. Affordable smartphones are likely to remain under pressure as higher prices and cautious consumer sentiment lead price-sensitive buyers to delay upgrades.
The premium segment, however, is moving in the opposite direction. CMR data shows that the super-premium segment grew 72% year-on-year.
Menka Kumari, senior analyst at CyberMedia Research, said financing options such as zero-cost EMI, trade-in offers and consumer credit are playing an important role in premium smartphone upgrades. AI features and camera hardware are also supporting demand.
“Meanwhile, affordable and value-for-money segments remained under pressure as price-sensitive consumers delayed upgrades, resulting in a more polarised market,” she said.
Vivo continued to dominate the Indian smartphone market with a market share of 18.1%. Nonetheless, its shipments fell by 15% from the year before. Not far behind was Samsung, with a market share of 17.9%, narrowing the gap with Vivo while maintaining steady shipments.
The numbers show that the market is under some stress, but there is still money among premium customers to spend on smartphones.
Financing has become increasingly important in smartphone purchases. Counterpoint Research’s latest Smartphone Financing Tracker found that the average financing tenure reached 10 months in Q2 2026.
Tarun Pathak, research director at Counterpoint, said smartphone financing is no longer only about extending EMI tenures. Instead, consumers are increasingly focused on making monthly payments more affordable and are considering the monthly cost rather than the upfront price.
EMI usage is particularly high in smaller cities. In Tier-II towns, 57.5% of smartphone purchases in Q2 were made through EMIs, compared with around 55% in Tier-III towns. The figure stood at 41% in metros.
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The average EMI tenure for Apple was the highest among leading brands at 17.2 months. The second-longest was for Samsung at 11.4 months, while Oppo and Vivo came in next at 9.9 months and 9.8 months, respectively.
Xiaomi had the shortest EMI tenure amongst leading brands at 8.5 months.
These figures reflect a growing trend in the Indian smartphone industry, where rising prices have affected mass-market sales, while EMI payments keep the premium segment buoyant.