Global PC Shipments Fall 4.9% in Q2 2026 as Apple Gains Ground Despite Market Pressure
The global PC market hit a rough patch in the second quarter of 2026, with shipments falling 4.9% year over year as memory shortages, rising component costs, and weaker consumer demand weighed heavily on the industry.
According to preliminary data from IDC, worldwide traditional PC shipments reached 68.2 million units in Q2 2026, down from 71.7 million units in the same quarter last year. The drop marks the first decline after nine straight quarters of growth, signaling a clear slowdown for a market that had been recovering from earlier post-pandemic weakness.
The biggest pressure point continues to be memory supply. Tight availability and higher prices have made it harder for PC makers to keep systems affordable, especially in the budget and mainstream laptop categories where price sensitivity is high. Geopolitical uncertainty and broader macroeconomic challenges have only added more strain.
Interestingly, while unit shipments are down, revenue has not followed the same path. PC vendors have been raising prices fast enough to offset part of the demand slowdown. IDC noted that the real concern is the growing gap between shipments and revenue, with buyers purchasing fewer PCs while average selling prices continue to climb.
This creates a difficult situation for both brands and retailers. Higher prices may protect revenue in the short term, but they also risk slowing PC upgrade cycles even further. With memory shortages expected to remain a problem until early 2028, the second half of 2026 could bring more pressure as vendors face tougher demand conditions and potentially higher inventory levels at elevated prices.
Lenovo remained the world’s largest PC vendor in Q2 2026, shipping 16.6 million units and taking 24.4% market share. However, that was still a 2.1% decline from the 17 million units it shipped in Q2 2025.
HP saw a sharper drop, with shipments falling 9% year over year to 13 million units. Dell also declined, shipping 9.3 million units compared to 9.8 million units a year earlier, representing a 5% decrease.
ASUS was nearly flat, shipping 5 million units and posting slight growth of 0.2%. Other PC makers combined shipped 17.5 million units, down 10.5% from the previous year.
Apple was the standout performer. The company shipped 6.7 million Macs during the quarter, up from 6.1 million units in Q2 2025. That gave Apple a 10.1% year-over-year increase, making it the only major PC vendor in the top five to record meaningful growth during the downturn.
Apple’s performance is notable because it is facing many of the same market pressures as the rest of the industry, including higher memory and component costs. However, demand for its latest Mac lineup, including the MacBook Neo, appears to be strong enough to overcome those challenges.
Even with a price increase, the MacBook Neo has reportedly remained popular across retail channels. That suggests Apple’s product strategy, brand loyalty, and supply planning are helping it capture demand at a time when many Windows PC vendors are struggling to generate the same level of consumer interest.
Several major PC brands introduced new systems at CES 2026 and Computex 2026, many of them aimed at budget-conscious buyers. Lenovo, HP, Dell, and ASUS have been preparing laptops powered by Intel’s latest Wildcat Lake Core Series 3 processors, which are designed to compete directly with affordable MacBook models. AMD refreshes are also positioned to offer strong value in the same segment.
However, availability remains a major issue. Many of these newer laptops have yet to appear widely in retail channels, and online listings are still limited in several regions. Systems based on older Intel Core Series 2 and Core Series 1 chips have become more common, but pricing has not yet reached a level that feels compelling for many buyers.
The problem is not necessarily performance. The challenge is a combination of supply, timing, and pricing. If consumers cannot easily find the newest systems at attractive prices, they may delay purchases or choose competing products with clearer value.
This is where Apple appears to have gained an advantage. The company has been working aggressively to secure more memory supply, helping it keep its Mac lineup better positioned during a difficult supply environment.
For traditional PC makers, the current market conditions raise important questions. Waiting for memory shortages to ease by 2028 may not be a viable strategy. Brands will need to rethink how they price, market, and distribute their next-generation laptops and desktops if they want to prevent further shipment declines.
Artificial intelligence could become one of the biggest opportunities for the PC industry. As more users look for local computing power to reduce reliance on expensive cloud subscriptions, AI-capable PCs may help spark a new upgrade cycle. But that will only happen if vendors can deliver systems that feel useful, available, and affordable.
The Q2 2026 PC market results show a clear divide. Most major PC vendors are fighting falling shipments, rising costs, and weaker demand. Apple, meanwhile, has managed to grow in the same difficult environment, proving that strong product appeal and supply execution can still drive momentum even when the broader market is under pressure.
Unless PC manufacturers move quickly with stronger pricing strategies, better availability, and clearer reasons for consumers to upgrade, the market could face an even tougher road ahead.
