AirPods Overwhelmingly Dominate Global Wireless Headset Market

AirPods held a disproportionately large share of the global wireless headset market in 2020, according to a new report by Strategy Analytics.

airpods pro in case

With sales of over 300 million units, the True Wireless Stereo (TWS) Bluetooth headset sales market grew by almost 90 percent last year. Apple's AirPods own almost half of the entire market, with the rest being made up of a large number of companies with individually small shares.

strategy analytics global wireless headset market vendors

In spite of Apple's dominance, Strategy Analytics notes that its lead is shrinking as competition intensifies:

"Apple maintained a commanding lead in the TWS segment in 2020, but its commanding share is shrinking as competition intensifies. Strong competition is expected from Xiaomi, Samsung, and Huawei in 2021," said Ken Hyers, Director at Strategy Analytics. "The TWS headset market is already hugely overcrowded and despite a strong sales outlook, there will inevitably be consolidation in the years ahead."

It is expected that there is still "plenty of potential in the broader Bluetooth headset market," due to low penetration and an install base that remains small. According to Ville-Petteri Ukonaho, Associate Director at Strategy Analytics, "less than one in ten people own a Bluetooth headset globally, so there is still significant room for growth." In addition to this, as vendors move away from bundling wired headsets with new smartphones, Strategy Analytics foresees considerable growth potential in the market.

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Top Rated Comments

djcerla Avatar
57 months ago

McDonald's sells more hamburgers than any other restaurant. Does that make them the best product too?
AirPods happen to be the best product, the most popular and a very sought after one, which translates in an almost unbelievable resale value. Your analogy is out of place.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
iZac Avatar
57 months ago
And now I have a pair of B&O E5 and AirPods with dead batteries, useful to neither man nor beast. while I have wired sets of B&O H6, form2 and some cheap Grados which still work perfectly. My new MW60s will be used in wired mode for as long as humanly possible.

Wake up, Soylent Green is People!
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
nburwell Avatar
57 months ago
Are we really surprised by this though?

Even still during the pandemic when I go grocery shopping, I see a ton of AirPods/Pro's in the wild.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
macsplusmacs Avatar
57 months ago
and just like the iPhone, i would bet apple is taking 80 to 90 cents out of every dollar in this market.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
otternonsense Avatar
57 months ago
With good reason. The AirPods Pro might be the most versatile and handy true wireless earbuds out there. And after the Spatial Audio update they got a noticeable bump in sound quality.

PS. I also have the Sennheiser Momentum TW2 and even though they destroy the APP in sound quality it's cumbersome to switch modes and the call quality is totally off, so I default back to the APP.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mrjetsondc Avatar
57 months ago
I waited a long time to buy a AirPods 2. Got them for 115 bucks on black Friday 2020. Brand new.
They are the greatest earbuds I’ve owned.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)