Why I feel Android won’t ever overtake the iPhone within the US

If I am sincere, I’ve really been placing this story off for some time. It is an apparent matter, but it surely’s additionally a landmine, given how shortly folks are inclined to take sides within the iPhone versus Android battle. The truth that some folks even consider it as a battle is miserable, actually, contemplating that nobody ought to be deeply invested in issues that finally exist solely to show a revenue. It is one of many causes I am not hooked up to professional sports activities, both — I can not root for gamers who most likely aren’t from my metropolis, and would transfer to a different one in a heartbeat if somebody paid them sufficient.

I do have an opinion on the trajectory of the smartphone market nonetheless, significantly within the US. It appears to me that the iPhone isn’t solely dominant in its residence turf, however poised to carry that place indefinitely. Until a number of elements converge without delay, that’s.

The momentum drawback

A fast go searching

The most important think about Apple’s favor is the huge distinction in marketshare versus even its closest competitor. Based on Statcounter knowledge, Apple managed an estimated 58.42% of the US smartphone market in September 2025. Samsung ranked a distant second at 22.43%, regardless of huge distribution and big advertising and marketing campaigns, together with high-cost press occasions yearly. Firms like Motorola, Nothing, OnePlus, and Google are preventing for Samsung’s scraps, by comparability.

Extra importantly, this hole by no means appears to shrink in any significant manner. You will note exceptions — like October 2024, when Apple dipped to 51.19%, and Google shot as much as 14.51% — however issues inevitably appear to stage off, as soon as once more leaving Apple nicely over the 50% mark. It is arduous to overstate how uncommon that stage of dominance is. You may consider one or two auto firms as “proudly owning” the US, however in 2024, market chief GM managed simply 17% of new car sales.

The gist is that there is loads of floor for Apple’s rivals to cowl, even when they by some means pull all the correct strikes. And one of many issues that makes Android interesting — the liberty to change cellphone manufacturers at will — can be undermining it. Each Android model has its personal take, so there are various ranges of high quality, and there isn’t any one system you’ll be able to level to as “the” iPhone various. Google Pixel and Samsung Galaxy S telephones are about as shut as you get. Informal buyers will not be conscious of all of the Android manufacturers on the market, solely what their provider or native big-box retailer is promoting. Keep in mind that it is solely a minority of us who observe the tech business carefully.

Apple has additionally made sensible strategic use of its earnings. Each main metropolis now has no less than one Apple Retailer, and you may’t deny the benefit of getting a handy showcase and assist system the place most cellphone consumers dwell. As of this writing, there are simply seven Google Shops within the US, and 4 Samsung areas. Most Android telephones are offered by means of third events with various levels of assist and promotion.

Probably the most savage use of Apple’s cash has been constructing out a {hardware} and software program ecosystem that clients are reluctant to depart. Should you’ve acquired an Apple Watch, that buy turns into ineffective the second you turn to Android. And Apple merchandise that do not require an iPhone nonetheless are inclined to function higher in tandem with one, similar to AirPods, an Apple TV, or a Mac. Many Individuals are aware of iMessage’s social divide — non-Apple customers are typically handled as poor, or ruining group chats, if solely by the shallowest or most immature of individuals.

Firms like Google and Samsung have tried to duplicate this ecosystem, but at most it appears to be deterring extra folks from defecting. Switching platforms is an costly proposition lately. If I have been to purchase into Android once more, I might most likely need to personal each a Pixel 10 and a Garmin Venu 4 — that is almost $1,600 out the door earlier than worrying about issues like my HomePod minis.

What would it not take to shift that momentum?

Dreaming the unimaginable dream

The usual reply is a product with an plain benefit that may’t be simply copied. That’s, in any case, the factor that acquired the ball rolling for Apple. The primary iPhone was radically higher than different smartphones on the time, the dearth of 3G however. Firms that could not adapt have since shrunk to a shadow of their former selves, like Nokia and Motorola, or left the market totally, as with RIM.

It is not unimaginable to think about a future through which Apple stays (comparatively) stagnant whereas one other enterprise strikes in for the kill. The iPhone 17feels incremental, and even the primary foldable iPhone is more likely to be taking part in catch-up. In the meantime, the corporate has been lagging behind in promised AI options. I do not consider that Android’s Gemini assistant ought to be the primary purpose to purchase a cellphone. However the extra options Google provides, the broader the gulf turns into. I might fairly discuss to Gemini than Siri any day on the subject of getting issues achieved.

With Apple’s monolithic standing, a radically progressive product most likely will not be sufficient. The corporate has tens of billions of {dollars} in money reserves, so have been the iPhone to flop one 12 months, it could have the ability to trip out the storm and return in a 12 months or two with an overhauled design. Solely a string of flops can be sufficient to push the corporate right into a weak place.

To grab substantial floor from Apple, any Android cellphone maker would additionally want to ascertain itself as that pure iPhone various I discussed earlier. That features not simply technical innovation, however a greater semblance of the assist and in depth ecosystem Apple presents. Google and Samsung might doubtlessly obtain that, and arguably have, in some respects. Neither appears all that inquisitive about constructing out a large retail presence, although, a lot much less competing in each system class Apple does.

Maybe it is no marvel. Neither Google nor Samsung want the American market as a lot as Apple does. Google’s major enterprise is promoting, not {hardware} — it makes cash off of iPhone and Android customers alike, a lot in order that it pays Apple billions yearly to stay the default search choice in Safari. Samsung depends on {hardware}, but it surely’s the main smartphone maker worldwide, and has many different companies to shore it up. These vary from show and chip manufacturing to shipbuilding. Whereas it could be a catastrophe if its cellphone enterprise imploded, it would not be a deadly one. For both company, small features right here and there could also be all they care about.

I am genuinely curious as to what issues will appear like a decade from now. My guess is that Apple will nonetheless be on high of the cellphone recreation, but we’re getting into a serious transition interval the place smartphones themselves may ultimately lose out, changed by superior AR glasses. Being on high of telephones in 2035 might be just like being on high of MP3 gamers, and I will guess you’ll be able to’t bear in mind the final time you noticed a stranger with an iPod.