Worldwide PC shipments fell 20.1% year over year in Q3 2026 to 62.7 million units, down from 78.5 million in the same quarter last year. This marks the second consecutive quarterly decline, following a 3.8% drop in Q2. Shipments also slipped 9.1% compared to Q2, despite Q3 typically being the stronger quarter.
IDC attributes the steep decline to inventory buildup in the first half ahead of memory-driven price hikes, which pulled volume from the second half. With supply constrained and prices high, Q3 had little demand left. HP shipped 10.3 million units, down 30.9%, while Dell fell 25% to 7.6 million. Lenovo remained first with a 23.8% share but was down 22.6% to 14.9 million. Together, the top three vendors lost 4.2 points of market share.
Apple and ASUS also declined, down 11.3% and 8.6% respectively, but both ended with larger market shares at 9.5% and 8.7%. IDC expects modest, short-lived promotions as channels worry about inventory, but warns worsening macro conditions could further dent demand through 2026 and 2027.
Source: TechPowerUp News · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing