iPhone sales grew continuously year-over-year since its introduction until Q2 FY2016.[211][212] The iPhone briefly surpassed BlackBerry in Q4 FY2008,[213] and permanently overtook it starting in Q3 FY2010.[214] By 2011, Apple sold 100 million iPhones worldwide,[215] and became the largest mobile phone vendor in the world by revenue, surpassing long-time leader Nokia.[216] Q1 FY2012 marked Apple's best quarterly earnings in its history, with 53% of the company's revenues coming from iPhone sales.[217] Phone sales are strongly seasonal, peaking in the holiday season (Apple's Q1). With the release of the iPhone 13 in Q1 FY2022, Apple temporarily topped Samsung, with 84.9 million units shipped compared to Samsung's 68.9 million. In most quarters, Apple is the second largest smartphone vendor by units.[214][note 5] Apple sold 223 million iPhones in its financial year 2023 ending September 24.[218][219]
Today, Samsung and Apple dominate the smartphone market, with 21.8% and 15.6% worldwide market share respectively.[220] Due to Apple's small lineup, Apple often dominates the list of bestselling smartphone models.[221][222] Despite its lower market share, the iPhone's premium positioning has led it to capture nearly half of global smartphone revenue,[223] and 80% of global smartphone profits, with Samsung taking the other 20%.[224] Carriers compete with each other to subsidize iPhone upgrades, which is seen as a significant factor in iPhone sales, though this has reduced carrier profits.[225] On July 27, 2016, Apple announced that it had sold their 1 billionth iPhone.[226] As of January 1, 2024, more than 2.3 billion iPhones have been sold.[227]
Compared to other high-tech products, a greater proportion of iPhone users are female.[228] The iPhone has been adopted by both consumers and business users.[229] iPhone users are wealthier and spend more time on their phones than Android users on average.[230][231] The iPhone is especially popular in the U.S., where it has a 50% market share,[232] and is used by 87% of teenagers.[119] Worldwide, the iPhone accounts for 78% of the high-end ($1,000+) smartphone market.[232]
Android overtook the iPhone's installed base in 2010, according to NPD Group.[233] During Apple's earnings call on January 27, 2021, Tim Cook said that 1 billion iPhones were being actively used worldwide.[234]