Smartphone Penetration Statistics for Saudi Arabia in 2024

Smartphones. The likelihood is that if you’re not reading this from one, you have one in your pocket, on your desk or in a bag beside you. Recent studies estimate that there are now over 7.33 billion smartphone users worldwide. That’s almost 92% of the world’s population. But just how many people in Saudi Arabia own a smartphone? How big is the smartphone market in the country? And which are the most popular phone brands and models in 2024?

To find out all of this and more, we conducted an analysis of millions of online searches related to smartphones in Saudi Arabia. We also delved into all of the most recent smartphone penetration usage for 2024 and gathered together the most relevant market share information for the country.

Smartphone Facts and Figures for Saudi Arabia: A Quick Version

In a hurry? Not to worry. Here are our key findings wrapped up in one!

• Apple was the most searched-for brand of smartphone in Saudi Arabia in each year between 2020 and 2022 followed by Samsung, Oppo and Vivo.
• Apple is the market leader in Saudi Arabia with almost half of the smartphone market (46%). Samsung is second with around 24%, followed by Huawei (12%).
• In 2024, approximately 92% of Saudis have access to or own a smartphone.
• Android (53.87%) and iOS (46.01%) unsurprisingly accounted for virtually all of the operating systems on smartphones across Saudi Arabia in 2022.
• The iPhone 13 and iPhone 14 were the most searched-for models in 2022.
• The average Saudi Arabian adult spends 4 hours and 25 minutes browsing the internet on their mobile phones, that’s 25% of the time they’re awake.

Saudi Arabia Smartphone Usage Statistics

There seems to be two boats when it comes to smartphone usage. Some say that we spend far too much time on our phones, scrolling through social media, playing games or sending messages. Whilst others think that smartphone use is actually quite healthy, and allows us to learn more and become more connected to one another. No matter what your views on regular smartphone use may be, the statistics show that we really are becoming a nation (or more accurately - a planet) of habitual scrollers, tappers and swipers.

So exactly how many Saudi Arabians regularly use smartphones?

According to recent figures:

• The number of smartphone users in Saudi Arabia has grown from 14.31 million in 2013 to 33.55 million in 2024.g?
• What’s more, smartphone usage is estimated to grow to 36.55 million by the year 2028.
• This means that Smartphone penetration has grown from 47% in 2013 to 92% in 2024 and is now forecast to hit 95% by 2028.

The graph below shows the number of smartphone users and smartphone penetration rate in Saudi Arabia between 2013 and 2028*.

*Figures for 2023 onwards are based on projections

Most Popular Smartphone Brands by Market Share

If you ask friends and family members about their preferences when it comes to smartphone brands, it’s likely that you’ll come across some strong opinions! Predominantly on the topic of Apple vs Android. Generally smartphone users tend to sway more towards one than the other, preferring the functionality, features, price points and other specifications.

So now’s the time to settle the debate once and for all. Is Saudi Arabia a nation of Apple lovers? Android supporters? Or simply those who don’t have a preference and just want a smartphone that works for them?

To determine how much of a share each smartphone brand has of the Saudi Arabian smartphone market in 2024, we analyzed the most up-to-date market data, which found that:

• Samsung was the biggest smartphone brand in Saudi Arabia between 2013 and 2019. However, its market share has steadily decreased over time and it was finally overtaken by Apple in 2019
• As of 2022, Apple’s market share rose to 46%, accounting for almost half of the Saudi Arabian mobile vendor market share.
• As you can see from the graph below, Apple’s share of the market has in fact decreased over the last 3 years, making space for emerging brands such as Xiaomi.

But how about other, lesser-known smartphone brands? How much of the Saudi Arabian market share do they hold?

The table below features all 9 smartphone brands that have at least 1% of the smartphone market in Saudi Arabia.

As you can see:

• Apple holds the largest market share in 2024 (38.4%) followed by Samsung (25.3%) and Huawei (10.3%).
• Xiaomi, Vivo and Oppo follow in 4th, 5th and 6th position, holding 6.5%, 4.2% and 3.5% respectively.
• These are followed by more emerging brands such as Tecno, Realme and Infinix, all of which each own less than 2% of the market share.

So has this always been the case? Or is it just recently that these smaller, emerging brands began to hold significant shares of the smartphone market in Saudi Arabia?

The graph below shows each of the country’s 9 largest smartphone brands’ market share overtime, from 2013 to the present day (2024).

Most Popular Smartphone Brands according to Search

Market share is an excellent way of determining a brand’s popularity, but this only provides popularity insight and data relating to actual sales - not interest on the whole. To find out which brands are truly the most sought-after by consumers, we must think like them. And what’s the first thing we do when we’re thinking about buying a product?... That’s right - we Google it!

That's why we used the Keyword Finder tool to analyze Google searches conducted in Saudi Arabia for all of the country’s largest smartphone brands. It’s important to note that both English and Arabic are widely spoken across Saudi Arabia, which is why we combined searches for both variants of each search term.

As you can see from the table:

• The most sought-after brand of phone in Saudi Arabia is Apple, with an impressive average monthly search volume of 100,500.
• This is followed by Samsung (37,000) and Huawei (27,700).

Most Popular Smartphone Models in Saudi Arabia

From the newest iPhone releases to the oldest flip phones - our phones have the ability to connect us, help us learn and even store precious memories. But which model of smartphone is the most popular in Saudi Arabia in 2024? To find out, we delved back into the Keyword Finder tool to discover which smartphone models are searched online the most.

Our research revealed the top 25 smartphone models of 2022. As the table reveals:

• The iPhone 13, iPhone 14 and 12 pro max are the three most searched-for smartphone models of 2024.
• This is followed by the iPhone 13 pro, Redmi Note 11 and iPhone 11 Pro Max.
• Models such as the Redmi Note 10, Poco x3 Pro, Vivo v23 Pro and Huawei Nova 9 are also amongst the most-searched, featuring in the top 15.

Time Spent on Mobile Devices in Saudi Arabia

From chronic scrollers to occasional swipers, how much time does the average Saudi Arabian adult spend on their phone each day?

A report published by Martech Vibe revealed that:

• A typical Saudi Arabian adult spends approximately 4 hours and 25 minutes using their mobile phones to access the internet every single day.
• 3 hours and 6 minutes of this is estimated to be spent on social media.
• To put that into perspective - the average Saudi Arabian adult sleeps for 6.5 hours per night, meaning they’re awake for 17.5 hours per day. This means that on average, Saudi Arabians spend over 25% of their day browsing the internet on their mobile phones!

We hope this roundup of the latest iPhone and Android statistics, facts and figures has been of interest! If you’re thinking about buying a new phone or would like to find out more about Ubuy’s offerings, head over to our website here.

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