Introduction

Smartphone Usage Statistics: Smartphones have become a vital part of everyday life, especially in developed countries, where about 75% of people have one. Worldwide, smartphones make up nearly 90% of all mobile phones, with over 7.2 billion smartphones in use as of 2024. This growth shows no signs of stopping, as the smartphone market grew by 7.8% in the first quarter of 2024.

By the end of 2023, around 70% of the global population owned a smartphone. Many people have more than one device, pushing smartphone subscriptions past 7 billion. It’s expected that this number could reach nearly 8 billion by 2028, showing that smartphones are still in high demand and important in our daily lives. We shall shed light on Smartphone Usage Statistics through this article.

The global smartphone penetration in was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total 20.3 percentage points. After the fifteenth consecutive increasing year, the penetration is estimated to reach 74.98 percent and therefore a new peak in 2029. Notably, the smartphone penetration of was continuously increasing over the past years.The penetration rate refers to the share of the total population.The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macro-economic, demographic and technological environment in up to 150 countries and regions worldwide. All indicators are sourced from international and national statistical offices, trade associations and the trade press and they are processed to generate comparable data sets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).Find more key insights for the smartphone penetration in countries like North America and the Americas.

The global number of smartphone users in was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total *** billion users (+***** percent). After the fifteenth consecutive increasing year, the smartphone user base is estimated to reach *** billion users and therefore a new peak in 2029. Notably, the number of smartphone users of was continuously increasing over the past years.Smartphone users here are limited to internet users of any age using a smartphone. The shown figures have been derived from survey data that has been processed to estimate missing demographics.The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macro-economic, demographic and technological environment in up to *** countries and regions worldwide. All indicators are sourced from international and national statistical offices, trade associations and the trade press and they are processed to generate comparable data sets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).Find more key insights for the number of smartphone users in countries like the Americas and Asia.

Percentage of smartphone users by selected smartphone use habits in a typical day.

The number of smartphone users in the United States was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total 17.4 million users (+5.61 percent). After the fifteenth consecutive increasing year, the smartphone user base is estimated to reach 327.54 million users and therefore a new peak in 2029. Notably, the number of smartphone users of was continuously increasing over the past years.Smartphone users here are limited to internet users of any age using a smartphone. The shown figures have been derived from survey data that has been processed to estimate missing demographics.The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macro-economic, demographic and technological environment in up to 150 countries and regions worldwide. All indicators are sourced from international and national statistical offices, trade associations and the trade press and they are processed to generate comparable data sets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).Find more key insights for the number of smartphone users in countries like Mexico and Canada.

Find the latest trends in smartphone usage with our Smartphone Penetration Statistics for South Africa in 2023. Discover top brands, models, and market insights. Expected Smartphone Penetration Rates in South Africa 2028 91.31, Smartphone Penetration Rate in 2023 82.5, Most Sought-after Smartphone Brand in South Africa Apple, Most Popular Smartphone Model iPhone 13, Brand with the Highest Market Share Samsung (48%), Most Likely Age Group to Access The Internet via Smartphones 25-34, Expected Mobile Phone Market Revenue in 2023 7.9 bn.

Smartphone usage in the United Kingdom has increased across all age ranges since 2012, most noticeably among those aged 55-64 years of age. Whereas just nine percent of mobile phone users aged 55 to 64 years used a smartphone in 2012, this number rose to over 90 percent by 2023 and reached 93 percent in 2024. Smartphones are becoming more accessibleAs well as becoming more ubiquitous, smartphones are also becoming more accessible. In terms of price, the global average selling price of smartphones has fallen from 336.8 U.S. dollars in 2010, to 276.20 U.S. dollars in 2015. However, estimates available from 2019 predicted that the average selling price of smartphones worldwide will increase again and reach 317 U.S. dollars by 2021. The average selling price for smartphones in Europe was at around 373 euros in 2019. Smartphone usage in the UK    Smartphones are the Swiss army knife of digital devices, with their capabilities limited by the creativity of developers as much as it is the technology contained in the phone. In 2017, communications were the most popular ways to use a phone, however, 87 percent of users report using camera apps frequently, 85 percent report frequent use of browser apps, and 68 percent report frequent use of navigation apps.

The average time spent daily on a phone, not counting talking on the phone, has increased in recent years, reaching a total of * hours and ** minutes as of April 2022. This figure was expected to reach around * hours and ** minutes by 2024.

This statistic shows the number of smartphone users in the U.S. from 2009 to 2040. For 2022, the number of smartphone users in the United States is estimated to reach 307 million.

Smartphone users - additional information

Advances in telecommunication technology have been significant in recent years. These advances have led to a level of connectivity never seen before. The number of smartphone users in the US has risen steadily over the last several years and forecasts estimate that smartphone penetration in North America will also continue to rise steadily into the future. The United States is one of the leading countries in the world with respect to adoption of smartphone technology.

In America the most popular smartphone brands are Samsung and Apple, while the most popular smartphone operating systems / platforms with respect to market share are none other than Google Android and Apple’s own operating system, iOS. Other operating systems, such as Symbian, Blackberry OS, Bada and Windows have struggled to maintain a foothold in the market as iOS and Android clearly dominate the field.

The first official smartphones came onto the market in the early 1990s. Initially a smartphone was classified by its ability to offer features like e-mail capability, internet access, QUERTY keyboards, personal digital assistant functions and perhaps a built-in camera. As of today, smartphones have progressed even more and we typically classify smartphones as having a high definition touchscreen, various apps, navigation tools and high-speed internet on the go. More recently sales of smartphones have even exceeded that of traditional feature phones as smartphone usage has continued to rise.

The proportion of smartphone users out of those using a mobile phone in the United Kingdom (UK) increased notably from 2011 to 2024, from less than half in 2011 with 44 percent to 93 percent of mobile phone users using a smartphone in 2024.

The number of smartphone users in Germany has only grown in recent years, amounting to 62.6 million smartphone owners in 2021. In 2009, this number was 6.3 million. Android in the lead Mobile devices have taken the world by storm since they arrived on the market and today daily life is practically unimaginable without them. However, at the same time studies are conducted to determine the effect prolonged usage has on health. Since the coronavirus (COVID-19) has been declared a pandemic and countries all over the world practice quarantine and social distancing, relying on smartphones for interpersonal communication has increased dramatically. Android phones were considerably more popular with German consumers than iOs. Not cheap In recent years, the sales volume of smartphones in Germany has decreased, amounting to almost 21.4 million devices sold in 2024. This may also be due to rising prices. In 2023, on average, a new smartphone cost 701 euros.

This forecast shows the number of smartphone users in France from 2018 to 2024. For 2020, the number of smartphone users in France is estimated to reach 47.18 million, with the number of smartphone users worldwide forecast to exceed 2 billion users by that time. From 2018 to 2024 the number of smartphone users in France is expected to grow by close to four million users. This equates to a growth in the share of users by 26.26 percent. The data was calculated in July 2018 and covers all individuals of any age who own one or more smartphones and use at least one of those devices every month.

The leading operating system on the the French market is Android with a 75.6 percent market share followed by Apple's iOS with a 18.8 percent share. Most individuals without a smartphone still owned a regular mobile phone and only 7 percent of the population did not own either. The most common smartphone owned in January 2017 was the Apple iPhone 7 followed by the iPhone 7 Plus. The three most common activities carried out weekly with a smartphone were the use of search engines, checking email accounts, and visiting social networks.

The global number of smartphone users in was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total 1.8 billion users (+42.62 percent). After the ninth consecutive increasing year, the smartphone user base is estimated to reach 6.1 billion users and therefore a new peak in 2029. Notably, the number of smartphone users of was continuously increasing over the past years.Smartphone users here are limited to internet users of any age using a smartphone. The shown figures have been derived from survey data that has been processed to estimate missing demographics.The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macro-economic, demographic and technological environment in up to 150 countries and regions worldwide. All indicators are sourced from international and national statistical offices, trade associations and the trade press and they are processed to generate comparable data sets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).Find more key insights for the number of smartphone users in countries like Australia & Oceania and Asia.

The number of smartphone users in the United Kingdom was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total *** million users (+**** percent). After the fifteenth consecutive increasing year, the smartphone user base is estimated to reach ***** million users and therefore a new peak in 2029. Notably, the number of smartphone users of was continuously increasing over the past years.Smartphone users here are limited to internet users of any age using a smartphone. The shown figures have been derived from survey data that has been processed to estimate missing demographics.The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macro-economic, demographic and technological environment in up to *** countries and regions worldwide. All indicators are sourced from international and national statistical offices, trade associations and the trade press and they are processed to generate comparable data sets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).

This statistic shows the amount of time was spent on daily smartphone usage in 2017. As of that time, almost half of the respondents spent **** or more hours on their smartphones daily.

The number of smartphone users in Norway was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total *** million users (+**** percent). After the thirteenth consecutive increasing year, the smartphone user base is estimated to reach **** million users and therefore a new peak in 2029. Smartphone users here are limited to internet users of any age using a smartphone. The shown figures have been derived from survey data that has been processed to estimate missing demographics.The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macro-economic, demographic and technological environment in up to *** countries and regions worldwide. All indicators are sourced from international and national statistical offices, trade associations and the trade press and they are processed to generate comparable data sets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).Find more key insights for the number of smartphone users in countries like Iceland and Sweden.

The number of smartphone users in Spain was forecast to increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total *** million users (***** percent). This overall increase does not happen continuously, notably not in 2029. The smartphone user base is estimated to amount to ***** million users in 2029. Notably, the number of smartphone users of was continuously increasing over the past years.Smartphone users here are limited to internet users of any age using a smartphone. The shown figures have been derived from survey data that has been processed to estimate missing demographics.The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macroeconomic, demographic and technological environment in up to *** countries and regions worldwide. All indicators are sourced from international and national statistical offices, trade associations and the trade press, and they are processed to generate comparable data sets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).Find more information concerning South Korea and France.

According to a survey conducted among teens and preteens in the United States, approximately ** percent of teens and preteens used their smartphones between ***** and **** hours daily as of November 2022. Around ** percent of respondents reported using their mobile devices between **** and **** hours daily, while **** percent reported engaging with their devices for more than ** hours per day.

This statistic shows the smartphone penetration as share of the population in the United States from 2010 to 2021. In 2018, 69.6 percent of the U.S. population used a smartphone.

Smartphone penetration in the U.S. - additional information
Almost two-thirds of Americans are predicted to own a smartphone by 2017, more than a threefold increase since 2010. A smartphone is a mobile phone that uses an identifiable open Operating System (OS) and has more advanced computing capability and connectivity than a basic phone. The OS is supported by third party applications (commonly known as apps) written by the developer community.

The operating system must be able to support a multitasking environment and user interface that can handle multiple applications at the same time. Two of the most popular operating systems on the market are made by Google (Android) and Apple (iOS) who had a combined stake of over 90 percent of the smartphone market share worldwide at the end of 2016.

The popularity of the smartphone has risen immensely since Apple introduced its first iPhone in 2007, with 43.5 percent of all Americans forecast to own an iPhone by 2016. The first iPhone was notably different from other smartphones at the time because it used a large touchscreen for direct finger input, rather than the need for a stylus, keypad, or keyboard.

The first smartphone to use the Android OS was the HTC Dream released in 2008. Although numbers of people using this OS were low at first, it has since grown to be the most used operating system, with an estimated 107.7 million Americans projected to own an Android phone by 2016.

The number of smartphone users in Switzerland was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total *** million users (+**** percent). After the ninth consecutive increasing year, the smartphone user base is estimated to reach **** million users and therefore a new peak in 2029. Notably, the number of smartphone users of was continuously increasing over the past years.Smartphone users here are limited to internet users of any age using a smartphone. The shown figures have been derived from survey data that has been processed to estimate missing demographics.The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macro-economic, demographic and technological environment in up to *** countries and regions worldwide. All indicators are sourced from international and national statistical offices, trade associations and the trade press and they are processed to generate comparable data sets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).Find further information concerning Austria and Germany.