Samsung Electronics is regaining visibility in Japan's smartphone market, where Apple's dominance has solidified. In Japan, long dubbed a "graveyard for Korean phones," Galaxy's annual share has climbed back into double digits for the first time in three years. Industry officials say the strong sales of premium artificial intelligence (AI) smartphones, the expansion of budget models, and the boost from new foldables have combined to help Samsung Electronics lay the groundwork in Japan not just for a short-term rebound but for a renewed takeoff.
◇ "A signal that Galaxy's footing is coming back"
According to market research firm Counterpoint Research on the 10th, Samsung Electronics' market share in Japan's smartphone market last year (by units sold) was 10%, the second highest after Apple. As recently as 2024, Samsung's share was only 6%, but it rose 4 percentage points in a year. It is the first time in three years that Samsung has reclaimed the No. 2 spot.
The tide in Japan began to turn in the second quarter of last year. Samsung's share, which sat at 7% in the first quarter, jumped to 12% in the second quarter and climbed to 13% in the third quarter, a record high for the year. The quarterly rebound did not remain a blip; it fed through to a recovery in annual share.
Japan is a market with strong iPhone loyalty and a carrier-centric distribution structure. Foreign Android makers have found it hard to break in, and global smartphone companies have long considered it a fortress. Samsung Electronics also experienced long-running ups and downs in Japan. According to Strategy Analytics (SA), Samsung Electronics maintained a double-digit share in Japan's smartphone market through 2013, but fell into single digits from 2014. It briefly recovered to double digits with 10.1% in 2020 and 10.5% in 2022, but then slipped again before regaining the 10% range last year.
An industry official said, "The fact that Samsung Electronics has again crossed the 10% threshold in Japan means more than just the number," adding, "It is a signal that Galaxy's footing in the Japanese market is coming back."
◇ Galaxy S25 boom and wider channels… budget launches also helped
At the center of the rebound in share in the first half of last year was the Galaxy S25 series. According to the industry, the Galaxy S25 posted solid sales in Japan by holding the line on price, beefing up AI features, and adopting Qualcomm application processors (AP) across all models. In the premium segment dominated by iPhone, the strategy of putting AI front and center served as a differentiator.
Expanded sales channels also supported the share gains. Samsung Electronics widened its sales touchpoints beyond existing carrier channels like SoftBank and Rakuten to open online channels such as Rakuten Ichiba and Yahoo! Shopping. By moving away from a sales structure reliant on carrier stores, the company increased the paths for Japanese consumers to encounter and buy Galaxy devices.
A broader product portfolio also played a role. In addition to the flagship Galaxy S25 series, Samsung Electronics began targeting midrange demand by newly rolling out the budget Galaxy A25 from Feb. last year. With AI features expanding to budget models, the industry believes the company absorbed part of the demand for Chinese makers that had competed on cost performance. In fact, the decline in Xiaomi's share in Japan is cited in line with this trend. According to Counterpoint Research, in the second quarter of last year Xiaomi's share in Japan fell to 5%, down 3 percentage points from 8% a year earlier. Unit sales in the second quarter of last year also dropped 33% on-year.
◇ Foldables join the fray… growing presence amid Apple's lead
In the second half of last year, foldables further amplified the upswing. The third quarter, when the annual share hit a record high of 13%, coincided with the launch of the Galaxy Z Fold7 and Flip7. That was a 9 percentage point increase from the third quarter of 2024 (4%). The two models, which Samsung Electronics introduced in Japan on Aug. 1 last year, are seen as having driven the expansion in second-half sales.
In particular, the fact that the Fold7 and Flip7 quickly climbed into the top ranks on Japanese online sales channels right after launch shows that local consumers are responding differently than before. It also suggests that the products are starting to be recognized for competitiveness not only in bar-type smartphones but also in foldables. According to the industry, in the first week after launch (July 28 to Aug. 3 last year), the Fold7 ranked No. 1 and the Flip7 No. 2 in sales on Docomo Online Shop, run by NTT Docomo, the country's No. 1 mobile carrier.
Of course, the basic structure of Japan's smartphone market remains Apple-centric. Apple's annual share last year was 57%, maintaining a majority.
Gim Yong-seok, a distinguished professor at Gachon University, said, "Samsung Electronics succeeded in differentiating itself in the premium market by putting AI features front and center," adding, "What mattered was not just hardware specs but enhancing the user experience." He added, "That said, the basic structure of Japan's market is still Apple-centric, so while this performance can be seen as the starting point of a rebound, whether it firmly takes hold depends on the sustainability of AI competitiveness and the continued expansion of distribution channels."