Smartwatch shipments in India were soaked for the first time in 2024 each year as consumers left their cheap and unknown brands. However, Apple reported 2.4 times the year’s growth, beating the broader trend.
According to data from the analyst company Counterpoint, India’s smartwatch shipments fell 30% year-on-year in 2024. Signs of slower sales emerged last year as the market is full of unknown brands. This trend has affected the established domestic players, and has resulted in slowing the pace of innovation.
As the broader market declined, Apple Watch saw a 141% increase in shipments last year. According to Counterpoint, this growth fell by 57% in 2023.
Counterpoint senior analyst Anshika Jain told TechCrunch that Apple Watch last year, due to better health insights, smartphone integration and other features that are not available on cheaper devices, “experienced users gradually become more gradual.” We moved to Advanced SmartWatches,” he said he saw the rise last year.
“We expect this growth trend to continue in 2025,” she added.
The growth in Apple Watch shipments is consistent with the growing domestic market share of the iPhone. Apple appeared last year as one of India’s top five smartphone vendors, gaining a roughly 10% share in the fourth quarter.
However, according to IDC, the significant growth rate of Apple Watch ultimately had little impact on the overall share of the 35 million smartwatches shipped in India last year. Counterpoint, which does not share absolute shipping numbers, told TechCrunch that Apple Watch accounted for around 2% of the Indian smartwatch market in 2024.
The success of the Apple Watch has increased the freight of the overall premium smartwatch (price above $230) in India, growing 147%. Series 10 is the top model, followed by Series 9. Apple Watch cumulatively captured 50% of the country’s premium smartwatch segment for each counterpoint.
Samsung and OnePlus were the other top players in the premium segment last year, earning a market share of 4% and 1%, respectively.