The most popular Android phone in 2023 didn't even have 5G

Apple overtook Samsung as the top smartphone manufacturer in 2023, marking the first time in roughly a decade that Apple was the number one player. What were the most popular phones of the year, though?

Fortunately, tracking firm Canalys answered this question on X, posting a graphic detailing the top 10 most popular smartphones of 2023 in terms of shipments. Check out the infographic below.

Apple’s iPhones accounted for seven of the top 10 spots. But this still appears to be an improvement over 2022, when Counterpoint Research reported that eight out of the top 10 most popular smartphones were iPhones.

Canalys reports that this is the first time an iPhone Pro model is at the top of the charts. But we’re looking at 2022’s iPhone 14 Pro Max at the number one spot rather than the more recent iPhone 15 Pro Max. It’s a safe bet that this is due to the older model being on the market for the entire year whereas the iPhone 15 Pro Max was only available for roughly three months.

The most popular Android phone was Samsung’s Galaxy A14 4G, coming in at sixth. This put it ahead of the iPhone 15 Pro (seventh) and standard iPhone 15 (10th). It’s interesting to note that this device didn’t even have 5G connectivity, ostensibly speaking more to consumers valuing the low price point over features.

Meanwhile, the Galaxy A54 5G and Galaxy A14 5G landed in eighth and ninth places respectively. The A54’s performance in particular is still encouraging given its mid-tier positioning at $449 compared to the A14 line’s sub-$200 budget trappings.

Nevertheless, these results are also notable because we don’t see another Android brand on the list. This is particularly noteworthy for Xiaomi, as its Redmi phones were a fixture on these lists up until 2021.