Smartphone Sales: 2025 Review
In 2025, new U.S. smartphone sales reversed the multi year pattern of declines, delivering the strongest annual performance since before the pandemic.
Mobility
Circana Unlocked Smartphone Demand Report 2025
Close to 20% of the installed base of U.S. smartphones were purchased as unlocked through channels outside of the classic carrier channels. Three quarters of unlocked customers purchase another unlocked smartphone when replacing their smartphones.
Circana Certified Pre-Owned Smartphone Report 2025
An estimated 11% of U.S. consumers use a pre-owned smartphone, with nearly 30% of these owning a certified model (manufacturer or non-manufacturer certified), down 1 point from last year. Meanwhile, new smartphone volumes have grown more than 10% year-over-year from last year’s rock-bottom performance, driven by strong carrier subsidies.
Promotions Marketplace
Circana Connected Intelligence’s Promotions Marketplace report is a monthly updated tracker providing insights into a wireless carrier and national distributor's promotional incentive practices. The report provides a detailed list of all promotional activities captured via Circana’s retail and online store visits conducted on a periodical basis. Captured promotions are categorized (i.e., service plan, accessories, device discounts, BOGOs, Gift Cards, etc.) and dated (start date/end date) for easy navigation and analysis purposes.
Service Plans Marketplace
The Circana Connected Intelligence Service Plans Marketplace Report provides a complete view of all mobile broadband service plans offered by the nationwide postpaid and prepaid carriers. This report features each carrier's service plans on smartphones and mobile broadband products in separate tabs, which provides sectional navigation to postpaid and prepaid plans. The data is gathered from multiple sources (online and retail store surveys) during the last week of each month.
Key Highlights from the December 2025 Marketplace Reports:
Mobile Device Marketplace
Circana Connected Intelligence's Device Marketplace report provides a comprehensive view of the US mobile device landscape through the online tracking of mobile phones and other cellular-powered products such as tablets and mobile hotspots. The monthly updated report provides device spec and pricing information on the aforementioned products available through all major postpaid and prepaid service providers' digital channels as well as national distributor outlets (including Best Buy, Walmart, Target online stores) and manufacturer direct online store of Apple.
Promotions Marketplace
Circana Connected Intelligence’s Promotions Marketplace report is a monthly updated tracker providing insights into a wireless carrier and national distributor's promotional incentive practices. The report provides a detailed list of all promotional activities captured via Circana’s retail and online store visits conducted on a periodical basis. Captured promotions are categorized (i.e., service plan, accessories, device discounts, BOGOs, Gift Cards, etc.) and dated (start date/end date) for easy navigation and analysis purposes.
Service Plans Marketplace
The Circana Connected Intelligence Service Plans Marketplace Report provides a complete view of all mobile broadband service plans offered by the nationwide postpaid and prepaid carriers. This report features each carrier's service plans on smartphones and mobile broadband products in separate tabs, which provides sectional navigation to postpaid and prepaid plans. The data is gathered from multiple sources (online and retail store surveys) during the last week of each month.
Key Highlights from the November 2025 Marketplace Reports:
Mobile Device Marketplace
Circana Connected Intelligence's Device Marketplace report provides a comprehensive view of the US mobile device landscape through the online tracking of mobile phones and other cellular-powered products such as tablets and mobile hotspots. The monthly updated report provides device spec and pricing information on the aforementioned products available through all major postpaid and prepaid service providers' digital channels as well as national distributor outlets (including Best Buy, Walmart, Target online stores) and manufacturer direct online store of Apple.
Mobile Predictions
Our mobile predictions for the first half of 2026