The Galaxy S26 Ultra just achieved a first for Android phone sales - Android Authority

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The most popular Android phones in a quarter tend to be cheap models. That’s not a surprise, as the lower prices make these phones more accessible than high-end models. However, the latest global market share report reveals a surprising top-seller for Android.

Counterpoint Research has posted its Q2 2026 global market share report, and it turns out that the $1,300 Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra was the most popular Android phone in the quarter. Samsung’s Ultra phone was ranked fourth. What’s also interesting is that the base Galaxy S26 landed in ninth place. By contrast, the Galaxy S25 Ultra was in ninth place back in Q2 2025 while the base S25 didn’t feature at all.

It’s not unheard of for Galaxy flagships to be the most popular Android phone in a quarter, but this usually applies to the first quarter of the year. In fact, Counterpoint Research says this is the first time an “ultra-premium” device has led Android sales in Q2. So what gives?

The tracking firm notes one major reason for this sales performance. Samsung launched the Galaxy S26 series much later than usual (February 25). This later launch “shifted more sales into Q2,” according to senior analyst Harshit Rastogi.

Other Android phones on the list were Samsung models too, namely the Galaxy A07 4G (fifth), Galaxy A17 5G (sixth), and Galaxy A17 4G (eighth). By contrast, Xiaomi made an appearance a year ago with the Redmi 14C 4G. Interestingly, Counterpoint observed that all Galaxy phones on the list promised at least six years of updates.

Otherwise, the top three phones on the list were all iPhones. The iPhone 17 was the top-selling phone in the quarter, followed by the iPhone 17 Pro Max and iPhone 17 Pro. The iPhone 16 brought up the rear in tenth place.

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