Apple's Worldwide Mac Shipments Up in Q2 2020 Amid Overall PC Market Growth

Apple's worldwide Mac shipments were up 5.1 percent during the second quarter of 2020, according to new PC shipping estimates shared this afternoon by Gartner.

gartner 2Q20 global

Gartner's Preliminary Worldwide PC Vendor Unit Shipment Estimates for 2Q20 (Thousands of Units)

Apple shipped an estimated 4.4 million Macs in Q2 2020, up from the 4.2 million shipped in Q2 2019, with shipments growing even amid the ongoing public health crisis.

Apple's market share during the quarter grew to 6.7 percent, up from 6.6 percent in the year-ago quarter. Apple's rising shipments came as the overall PC market saw growth of 2.8 percent.

Apple continues to maintain its position as the number four PC vendor in the world, trailing behind Lenovo, HP, and Dell. Lenovo was the top PC vendor during the quarter with 16.197 million PCs shipped and 25 percent market share, followed by HP with 16.165 million PCs shipped and 24.9 percent market share.

gartner 2Q20 trend

Apple's Market Share Trend: 1Q06-2Q20 (Gartner)

Dell was the number three vendor 10.65 million PCs shipped and 16.4 percent market share, but Dell was the only one of the major vendors to see a drop in shipments. Acer shipped 4 million PCs and ASUS shipped 3.6 million PCs, with both vendors trailing Apple.

Apple also saw Mac shipment growth in the United States, shipping 2 million Macs in Q2 2020, up from 1.9 million in Q2 2019 for 4.3 percent growth. Apple also continues to be the number four vendor in the United States, coming in after HP, Dell, and Lenovo. Overall U.S. PC shipments were also up 4.6 percent year over year.

gartner 2Q20 us

Gartner's Preliminary U.S. PC Vendor Unit Shipment Estimates for 2Q20(Thousands of Units)

According to Gartner, PC shipment growth during the quarter was driven by purchases necessary for working from home and online education. The upward tick in shipments is not expected to continue.

"Additionally, mobile PC growth was particularly strong, driven by several factors including business continuity for remote working, online education and consumers' entertainment needs. However, this uptick in mobile PC demand will not continue beyond 2020, as shipments were mainly boosted by short-term business needs due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic."

IDC also released its own PC shipment estimates this afternoon, and its estimations are wildly different. IDC's data suggests Apple shipped 5.6 million Macs during Q2 2020, up 36 percent from the 4.1 million estimated to have shipped in Q2 2019.

IDC believes that the overall worldwide PC market saw 11.2 percent growth with 72.3 million total PCs shipped, while Gartner believes there were 64.8 million total PCs shipped during the quarter.

It's important to note that data from Gartner and IDC is estimated and not reflective of Apple's actual sales, which accounts for the large discrepancy in estimated shipments.

In the past, we were able to check estimated shipment data when Apple provided quarterly earnings releases with actual Mac sales information, but Apple no longer breaks out unit sales for iPhone, iPad, and Mac, which makes it impossible to know precise sales numbers.

Tags: IDC, Gartner

Top Rated Comments

PickUrPoison Avatar
36 months ago

I literally can't believe HPQ is still in business.
If they can survive Carly Fiorina they can survive Covid.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
konqerror Avatar
36 months ago

More interested in why Dell is down, what did they do?
COVID caused people without laptops to go to stores and buy them, whereas companies who were shut down cancelled and delayed corporate refreshes.

Dell doesn't have much of a retail presence, they're more focused on corporate, followed by direct online sales. People didn't want to wait 2-3 weeks to get things shipped.

Same thing happend to Lenovo in the US (whereas Lenovo has a bigger retail presence in China/Asia). People like ThinkPads, but my Best Buy shows exactly 1 low-end ThinkPad in their store.

In contrast, HP is the master of unloading cheap consumer junk. They're the primary brand of Wal-Mart, for example. Most of the computers in Costco seem to be HPs. That's why their sales surged.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
theorist9 Avatar
36 months ago
Wait, this can't be right. We know the Mac is dead, and that we're all going to be using iPads. We know this because people on the internet said so.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
XXPP Avatar
36 months ago

Who would of thought [that worked] keyboards would see an increase in sales [/s]
Nobody cares. Butterfly keyboards was excellent.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
The Clark Avatar
36 months ago

More interested in why Dell is down, what did they do?
Maybe now that Mac has better keyboards there's literally no reason to buy a Dell?
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
PickUrPoison Avatar
36 months ago

More interested in why Dell is down, what did they do?
Pissed off the analyst who made up these numbers?
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iOS 16

iOS 16.4 Now Available for Your iPhone With These 8 New Features

Friday March 31, 2023 8:55 am PDT by
Following six weeks of beta testing, iOS 16.4 was released to the public this week. The software update includes a handful of new features and changes for the iPhone 8 and newer. To install an iOS update, open the Settings app on the iPhone, tap General → Software Update, and follow the on-screen instructions. Below, we have recapped eight new features and changes added with iOS 16.4,...
CarPlay Phone Call

General Motors to Phase Out Apple CarPlay Starting This Year in EV Transition

Friday March 31, 2023 8:43 am PDT by
General Motors (GM) will phase out Apple CarPlay and Android Auto in its vehicles starting this year, shifting to a built-in infotainment system co-developed with Google (via Reuters). GM owns Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC in the United States. It will stop offering Apple CarPlay and Android Auto starting with the 2024 Chevrolet Blazer, which goes on sale this summer. The company plans ...
iOS 17 on Phone Feature

Three New iOS Features Coming to Your iPhone Following Apple Music Classical

Thursday March 30, 2023 7:13 am PDT by
With the Apple Music Classical app and an Apple Pay Later early access program now available, the list of previously-announced iOS features that have yet to launch is beginning to shrink. However, there are still a few features we are waiting for. Below, we have recapped three more iOS features that are expected to launch in 2023, including an Apple Card savings account for Daily Cash,...
wwdc 2023

Three Products We Might See at WWDC 2023

Friday March 31, 2023 3:37 pm PDT by
Apple this week announced the official dates for the 34th annual Worldwide Developers Conference, with the annual WWDC keynote event set to take place on Monday, June 5. The keynote is where Apple unveils new versions of iOS, macOS, watchOS, and tvOS, and sometimes, we get hardware announcements. Rumors this year suggest there are at least three new devices that are set to be unveiled in the ...
iPhone 15 Pro Multi Purpose button Mute Switch Feature Green 2

iPhone 15 Pro Solid-State Button Sensitivity Can Be Customized to Cater for Cases and Gloves

Thursday March 30, 2023 11:36 pm PDT by
iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max users will be able to customize the sensitivity of the solid-state buttons on their device, thanks to a new sensitivity toggle in Settings. That's according to details provided by a hitherto reliable source that shared additional details on the MacRumors forums. Earlier this week, the same anonymous tipster revealed that the iPhone 15 Pro models will use...
apple mixed reality headset concept by david lewis and marcus kane

Kuo: Apple Mixed-Reality Headset May Not Appear at WWDC as Mass Production Pushed Back Yet Again

Thursday March 30, 2023 4:50 am PDT by
Apple has again pushed back mass production of its mixed-reality headset and the device may not appear at this year's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo today said. Apple headset concept by David Lewis and Marcus Kane In a tweet, Kuo explained that Apple "isn't very optimistic" about whether the headset will be able to create an "iPhone moment." As a result,...
iPhone 15 Pro Periscope Mock Feature

Periscope Camera Lens Exclusive to iPhone 15 Pro Max Will Be Supplied by Largan

Thursday March 30, 2023 1:18 am PDT by
The periscope camera lens that will be exclusive to the iPhone 15 Pro Max will be solely supplied by Largan, according to the 相機鏡頭中獲利-apple-camera-lens-suppliers-face-two-risks-high-53db8da990b2">latest no by Apple industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. Rumors about the iPhone getting a periscope lens have been circulating since early 2020, when Kuo first mentioned the possibility. The analyst...