Foldable smartphone shipments forecast to grow 10% year-on-year in 2025 to 20.6 million units: IDC Report

Consumer interest in foldable phones is set to significantly grow next year as Samsung is expected to debut a tri-fold phone and Apple is rumoured to be working on its first foldable iPhone, according to a report from the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker.
The report noted that worldwide foldable smartphone shipments are forecast to grow 10% year-on-year (YoY) in 2025 to reach 20.6 million units.
In addition to this, the foldable phone category is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 17% through 2029. This rate is less than 1% for the traditional smartphone segment, with IDC noting that consumers are keeping their phones longer and replacing them less frequently than before.
In a less active gadgets market environment such as this one, innovative handsets—like foldables—have the potential to spark customers’ interest and push them to consider a premium smartphone.
If Apple releases a new iPhone in 2026, this too could drive a surge in users buying foldable phones.
“Next year will prove exciting for the foldable category with multiple launches pushing the market to 30% YoY growth from just 6% in the prior forecast. Samsung will kick start 2026 with the Galaxy Z Trifold, introducing tri-fold innovation to mainstream global consumers, building off the momentum of the successful Galaxy Z Fold7 in 2025. Huawei’s foldables running on HarmonyOS Next will also see strong growth, with shipments expected to almost double in 2026,” said Nabila Popal, senior research director with IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, adding that the real game-changer would be when Apple enters the foldable space.
According to IDC, the iPhone-maker is projected to capture over 22% unit share and 34% of the foldables market value in its first year.