Samsung, Lenovo and Apple hold leadership amid 32% fall in India’s tablet shipments in H1 2025

The IDC report suggests India’s tablet market is at a turning point, with growth increasingly tied to consumer adoption and brand strategies, even as commercial demand weakens due to reduced institutional spending

India’s tablet market recorded a steep fall in the first six months of 2025, with shipments dropping 32.2% year-on-year to 2.15 million units, according to data from the International Data Corporation (IDC). The decline was driven mainly by sharp weakness in slate tablets, even as detachable devices registered modest growth.

Commercial shipments plunge, consumer segment gains

The contraction was sharper in the April–June quarter (2Q25), when shipments fell 42.1% compared with the same period last year. This followed an 18.4% drop in the January–March quarter (1Q25). IDC attributed the overall decline to a slowdown in commercial demand, particularly from government-funded education and manifesto-linked programs.

While the commercial segment contracted by 61.7% in 1H25, the education market shrank by 66.7% and the enterprise segment by 26.2%. In contrast, consumer tablet sales rose 20.5% year-on-year, aided by vendor-driven promotions, online channel growth, and continued momentum in e-commerce and retail outlets.

Detachable tablets emerged as the only bright spot, posting an 18.9% increase, while slate tablets tumbled 44.4%, dragging overall shipments lower.

Market leadership and brand performance

Samsung retained its lead in the Indian tablet market with a 41.3% share in the first half of 2025, dominating both commercial (47.9%) and consumer (37.6%) segments. In the second quarter alone, the company accounted for 40.8% of shipments.

Lenovo secured second place with a 12.3% share, boosted by a strong presence in the commercial segment. Apple followed in third with an 11.8% overall share. The iPhone maker held 14.4% in the consumer space and strengthened its position in enterprise deployments, reaching 20.1% within that category and 7.3% in overall commercial share.

Xiaomi ranked fourth at 11.4%, supported by a 28.5% rise in its consumer shipments, while Acer closed the top five with 9.1% share despite seeing its volumes fall 73.1% year-on-year.

The IDC report suggests India’s tablet market is at a turning point, with growth increasingly tied to consumer adoption and brand strategies, even as commercial demand weakens due to reduced institutional spending.