Apple's Mac shipments declined 11.3% in the third quarter of 2026, but the company increased its market share as worldwide PC shipments fell more sharply, according to IDC's latest preliminary estimates.
Apple shipped an estimated 5.9 million Macs between July and September, compared with 6.7 million a year earlier. That put Apple's market share at 9.5%, up from 8.5% in the third quarter of 2025. Apple retained fourth place in IDC's vendor rankings.
Across all brands, shipments dropped to 62.7 million units from 78.5 million a year earlier, a decline of 20.1%. The downturn followed a 3.8% annual decrease in the second quarter. Third-quarter shipments were also 9.1% below the second-quarter total, despite this usually being a busier period for the industry.
Lenovo led the market with 14.9 million shipments, followed by HP with 10.3 million and Dell with 7.6 million. ASUS, in fifth place with 5.5 million shipments, recorded an 8.6% decrease, making it the only top-five vendor with a smaller percentage decline than Apple.
IDC says earlier orders contributed to the weak quarter, as manufacturers and distribution partners secured stock sooner than usual to limit exposure to rising memory costs. The research firm also cited component shortages and higher prices linked to the expansion of AI data centers. Apple raised prices in June, with Tim Cook citing sharply rising memory expenses during the company's July earnings call. IDC does not expect prices to return to year-ago levels and warned that a weakening economy could further depress demand through the end of 2026 and into 2027.
Source: MacRumors · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing