The wholesale cost of a smartphone will reach $310, the highest since 2013

Driven by factors such as 5G, component shortages and innovations such as Samsung’s folding / reversible form factor, the global wholesale price of smartphones will grow by more than 11% (annually) from $ 279  in 2020 to $ 310 in 2021, the highest price in the smartphone industry since 2013.

According to the latest research from market research firm Strategy Analytics, global smartphone wholesale revenue is expected to grow by more than 21% annually to reach its highest value of $ 435 billion. dollars in 2021.

“This is driven by the volume of smartphone sales that will recover + 9% annually and the highest average price. This is the first time the global average wholesale price has crossed $ 300 in the last nine years. said Abhilash Kumar, an analyst at Strategy Analytics.

“The price increase is due to technological migration to 5G smartphones, supply constraints due to component shortages that is causing price rises and new hardware innovations as the form factor / folding Samsung’s flip, “Kumar added.

Smartphones with a price level above “$ 600” are behind the growth of the market.

“This is driven by strong sales of the iPhone 12 series, Samsung’s enriched folding range and sales of other premium devices from Chinese suppliers such as the OnePlus 9 series, Xiaomi 11 series, OPPO Reno series, Vivo series X, etc., ”said Linda Sui, Senior Director of Strategy Analytics.

“We expect the recently released iPhone 13 series to add to the factors mentioned during the fourth quarter of 2021,” Sui added.
The report predicts that the price level of “$ 600 and up” will grow 34% annually in volume and 48% annually in terms of revenue, significantly outpacing the global market and other price bands.

“We expect global wholesale prices for smartphones to decline modestly to $ 300 by 2022. Facilitate supply constraints and component price hikes, as well as the expected iPhone SE model that would have been to renew during the first half of 2022 will fuel setbacks, ”Kumar commented.

China, the United States, Japan and India are the top four countries with wholesale revenue from smartphones, which contributed 53% of global wholesale revenue from smartphones on 2022.