iPhone 15 and 15 Plus Proving Less Popular With Buyers This Year

Apple's iPhone 15 Pro models were its most purchased smartphones in the U.S. in the first quarter of this year, according to the latest Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP) report.

iPhone 14 vs iPhone 15 Feature
The ‌iPhone 15‌ Pro and Pro Max accounted for 22% and 23% of all iPhones sold in Q1 2024, for a 45% combined share. The ‌iPhone 15‌ Plus took a 9% share of all iPhones sold, while the ‌iPhone 15‌ and iPhone 14 were the third most popular, each taking 14% of the share.

The ‌iPhone 15‌ Pro and Pro Max share hardly changed compared to the ‌iPhone‌ 14 Pro and Pro Max the same quarter a year ago. However, Apple saw sales of the base model ‌iPhone 15‌ decline relative to a year ago. The overall mix of ‌iPhone 15‌ models was lower, accounting for 68% of all ‌iPhone‌ sales.

By contrast, in Q1 2023 the ‌iPhone‌ 14 series had a 7% higher share of all iPhones sold, taking 75% combined. The percentages suggest that the ‌iPhone‌ 14 and ‌iPhone‌ 14 Plus were more popular than the ‌iPhone 15‌ and ‌iPhone 15‌ Plus over the equivalent quarter the previous year.

CIRP iphone 14 15 quarters compared
Noting the change, CIRP comments:

We see this as a continuation of a trend from the past couple of quarters, as the lower- priced current models give up some share to older models. The once flagship, now base iPhone 15, is no longer the leading-edge choice, as the Pro and Pro Max models take that role.

Last week, CIRP released a report indicating that new ‌iPhone‌ activations are down to a low not seen in the U.S. smartphone market for the last six years.

CIRP said that Apple's installed smartphone base was higher than recorded activations, but Apple's share of new ‌iPhone‌ activations fell from 40% to 33% over the past year, suggesting a shift away from the higher market shares Apple enjoyed in previous years.

Tag: CIRP

Popular Stories

apple watch ultra 2 new black

Apple Watch Ultra 3 Finally Coming After Two-Year Hiatus

Monday June 16, 2025 8:45 am PDT by
Apple will finally deliver the Apple Watch Ultra 3 sometime this year, according to analyst Jeff Pu of GF Securities Hong Kong (via @jukanlosreve). The analyst expects both the Apple Watch Series 11 and Apple Watch Ultra 3 to arrive this year (likely alongside the new iPhone 17 lineup, if previous launches are anything to go by), according to his latest product roadmap shared with...
iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro Launching in Three Months With These 12 New Features

Saturday June 14, 2025 5:45 pm PDT by
The iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are three months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of June 2025:Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone X through iPhone 14 Pro have a...
apple wallet drivers license feature iPhone 15 pro

iPhone Driver's Licenses: These 17 U.S. States Offer Them or Will Later

Thursday June 19, 2025 11:28 am PDT by
In select U.S. states, residents can add their driver's license or state ID to the Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, providing a convenient and contactless way to display proof of identity or age at select airports and businesses, and in select apps. Unfortunately, this feature continues to roll out very slowly since it was announced in 2021, with only nine U.S. states and Puerto...
iOS 18

Apple Releases iOS 18.6 Public Beta

Wednesday June 18, 2025 10:24 am PDT by
Apple today seeded the first betas of upcoming iOS 18.6 and iPadOS 18.6 updates to public beta testers, with the betas coming just a few days after Apple provided the betas to developers. Testers who have signed up for beta updates through Apple's beta site can download iOS 18.6 and iPadOS 18.6 from the Settings app on a compatible device by going to General > Software Update. When the...
iOS 26 on Three iPhones

Apple Says iOS 26 Won't Be Available on These iPhone Models

Tuesday June 10, 2025 6:58 am PDT by
Apple this week revealed that iOS 26 is compatible with the iPhone 11 series and newer. That means that iOS 18 is the end of the road for the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR, which were all released in 2018. However, those devices will continue to receive security updates for at least a few more years. iOS 26 is compatible with the following iPhone models: iPhone 16e iPhone...
new iphone lockscreen ios 26

iOS 26: Five Changes Coming to Your iPhone Lock Screen

Tuesday June 17, 2025 8:46 am PDT by
With iOS 26, Apple has made some additions to the iPhone Lock Screen that aim to make it more customizable than ever. Of course, things can always change before the software makes its way to the general iPhone-owning public, but here are five new things iOS 26 can do on the Lock Screen as of the current developer beta. Widgets Top or Bottom In iOS 18, the row of widgets on your Lock...
apple watch ultra snow

6 Features Coming to the Apple Watch Ultra 3

Tuesday February 25, 2025 9:00 am PST by
The Apple Watch Ultra 3 is expected to launch later this year, arriving two years after the previous model with a series of improvements. While no noticeable design changes are expected for the third generation since the company tends to stick with the same Apple Watch design through three generations before changing it, there are a series of internal upgrades on the way. By the time the ...
Craig Federighi No

John Gruber Reacts to Apple Declining His Interview After His Criticism

Wednesday June 18, 2025 8:10 pm PDT by
Every year between 2015 and 2024, at least one Apple executive agreed to be interviewed by Daring Fireball's John Gruber for a special WWDC episode of his podcast, The Talk Show. Last year, for example, Apple's software engineering chief Craig Federighi, marketing chief Greg Joswiak, and top AI researcher John Giannandrea joined Gruber on stage at the California Theatre in San Jose to discuss...

Top Rated Comments

oofio2461 Avatar
15 months ago
60hz and last year's chipset, apple has made the base iPhone into a joke even more each year.
Score: 34 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JohnRckr Avatar
15 months ago
Maybe because the only difference between them is dYnaMic iiSlanD

Truly breakthrough tech thank you Tim Apple
Score: 29 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Vimy Avatar
15 months ago
I don't think this is iPhone specific. The economy is just crap. Older iPhones are cheaper.
Score: 27 Votes (Like | Disagree)
abatabia Avatar
15 months ago
I hate to be that comment but….there’s only so many times you can basically repeat the same phone before you just lose interest and hang onto what you have. My 13PM is still a beast. My 14Pro is very meh, and my desire to even get the 16 is just not there yet.
Score: 26 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Darth Tulhu Avatar
15 months ago
This is yet one of those things where the existing hardware exceeds the needs of the majority of folks using these devices.

I have an iPhone 12 Pro, and upgrading is pointless.

The better camera, processor, RAM, etc are relatively superfluous to me; I'm not a pro photographer, my emails and texts won't get to me any faster...

Why pay WAY more for a device that won't add any real-world value?
Score: 25 Votes (Like | Disagree)
gatorvet96 Avatar
15 months ago
Shows that Apple is very successful in making people go up the product ladder to more expensive SKUs. It is very intentional and no one does a better job of that marketing scheme.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)