Newly independent Honor is now bigger than Xiaomi in its home market

It’s been nearly a year since Huawei spun off Honor as an independent company. But while the former has floundered in all regions since, Honor has been on an upward trajectory, especially in its home market.

According to data from research firm Canalys, Honor is now the third biggest smartphone maker in China, ranking ahead of Apple, Xiaomi, and its former owner.

Honor shipped 14.2 million devices in Q3 2021, a 25% year-over-year increase and a 105% increase over the previous quarter. The company now holds 18% of the market share in China. Canalys attributed Honor’s growth to legacy Huawei users upgrading to new Honor devices. The research firm also highlighted Honor’s mid-range success with the Play 20 and X20 and the Honor 50 series. As the latter only recently launched in Europe, we’ll have to wait and see if it finds similar success in western markets, too.

China’s top smartphone makers

Looking at the overall picture, two BBK brands led China’s smartphone market in Q3 2021. Vivo topped the chart, shipping 18.3 million devices this quarter to claim a 23% market share. That’s an overall annual growth figure of 19%. Oppo, which now includes OnePlus shipments, placed second with 16.5 million units and a 21% share of the market.

Xiaomi resigned to fourth place behind Honor, shipping 10.9 million units with a meager 4% annual growth. It was the worst-performing OEM in China’s top five.

Finally, Apple’s strong global growth was mirrored in China’s market, too. The company saw 62% annual growth in the region, shipping 8.3 million units in Q3 2021.

If you’re wondering where Huawei’s placed, the company failed to rank within its home market’s top five but still shipped around five million units in the quarter.