Global PC shipments plunged 21 per cent in the third quarter as soaring component costs left buyers keeping their wallets firmly shut.
Beancounters at Counterpoint Research have added up numbers, divided them by their shoe size, and found shipments were 57 million units, down from 72.2 million a year earlier. Volumes fell 13.8 per cent compared with the previous quarter.
The number crunchers expect an even uglier fourth quarter, forecasting a 27 per cent annual decline. Apparently, making computers more expensive hasn’t persuaded people to buy more.
Higher memory and other component costs are pushing up system prices, making replacements harder to justify. Commercial fleet renewals and Windows migrations have provided some support, but consumer demand remains weak.
The comparison with last year makes the decline look worse. Purchases ahead of the Windows 10 support deadline and tariff-related inventory adjustments boosted third-quarter 2025 shipments.
Counterpoint Research senior analyst Minsoo Kang said: “The global PC market is facing mounting pressure as rising memory and component costs push system prices higher and force consumers to delay replacement purchases.”
Lenovo retained first place with 15 million shipments and a 26.3 per cent market share, despite volumes falling 23 per cent.
HP suffered the largest decline among the leading vendors, with shipments dropping 31 per cent to 10.3 million. Its market share stood at 18.1 per cent.
The Grey Box Shifter, Dell shipped 7.6 million PCs, down 25 per cent, giving it a 13.3 per cent share. Business customers could only cushion so much of the damage.
The Fruity Cargo Cult Apple shipped 5.6 million Macs, down 11 per cent. Job’s Mob nevertheless increased its market share from 8.7 per cent to 9.8 per cent, with the MacBook Neo helping soften the blow.
Asus recorded the smallest annual decline among the top five, falling seven per cent to 5.2 million units. Shipments rose 19.4 per cent from the previous quarter, while its annual market share increased from 7.8 per cent to 9.2 per cent.
Together, the five largest suppliers accounted for 76.7 per cent of shipments. Other vendors shipped 13.3 million machines, down 16 per cent.
Component inflation is squeezing the cheaper end of the market. Counterpoint said vendors are prioritising configurations that can absorb higher costs, leaving fewer affordable options for buyers who already have ample reasons to postpone an upgrade.
Counterpoint Research associate director David Naranjo said: “The PC industry is entering a period of structural adjustment, where rising component costs, higher system prices and longer replacement cycles are fundamentally reshaping market dynamics.”
The firm expects full-year PC shipments in 2027 to remain broadly flat compared with 2026, leaving the industry operating at a lower sales volume.
