iPhone Loyalty Hits 96.4% as Android Users Four Times More Likely to Switch - MacRumors
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iPhone Loyalty Hits 96.4% as Android Users Four Times More Likely to Switch

Customers are more loyal to Apple than ever, according to a smartphone loyalty survey conducted by phone trade-in site SellCell. 96.4% of customers surveyed said they planned to stick with an iPhone for their next upgrade, and 3.6% said they would choose a different brand. That's up from 91.9% in SellCell's 2021 survey and 90.5% in 2019.

smartphone brand loyalty survey 2026
Android users were less loyal to their brand, and are almost 4x more likely to switch than iPhone users. 86.4% of people surveyed said they would stick with an Android device, while 13.6% said they planned to switch.

Of the 3.6% of iPhone users who said they would move to another platform, 69.7% said they would choose a Samsung smartphone, and 20.2% said they would choose a Google smartphone. While most Android users said they would switch to a Samsung or Google device, 26.8% said they would choose an iPhone over an Android smartphone.

Most iPhone users said they would stick with an iPhone because they prefer Apple (60.8%), while 17.4% said they were invested in the Apple ecosystem. About half of iPhone users contemplating switching said they would do so because the iPhone is too expensive or other brands offer better value, but 22.5% said other brands have better technology.

iPhone users were more likely to be loyal over time, and 83.8% said they had used an iPhone for more than five years. By comparison, just 33.8% of Android users said they had stuck with a brand for over five years.

SellCell's survey was limited to 5,000 U.S. respondents. The site says there was a roughly equal representation between iPhone and Android users, with two separate surveys that included the same question structure. More information from the survey is available from SellCell's website.

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Top Rated Comments

14 weeks ago
As a cross-platform developer, I believe this. The amount of hoops you have to jump through to do something on an Android device that iOS gives you with one function call is stunning. And Google insists that you drop support for devices that are older than about two years whereas an iOS app will probably run for a decade or more. Then there's the tight integration in the ecosystem. I can copy a text or images on my iPhone and it magically shows up in my Mac's clipboard.
Score: 26 Votes (Like | Disagree)
H.E. Pennypacker Avatar
14 weeks ago
if you have green text bubbles. We can’t be friends.
Score: 25 Votes (Like | Disagree)
14 weeks ago
EU: “It’s anticompetitive that only Apple can sell the Apple iPhone. So, as a part of the gatekeeper regulations under the DMA, they will be forced to allow other companies to sell iPhones. It’s the only way companies that don’t make the iPhone can compete.”
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
14 weeks ago
I unloaded my iPhone 13 for a Pixel 10a, I know anecdotal. Love the Pixel 10a, great camera and I prefer Google's core apps.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
capamac Avatar
14 weeks ago
“About half of iPhone users contemplating switching said they would do so because the iPhone is too expensive or other brands offer better value” — this is me. Switched from iPhone to an A17 Galaxy coz the Samsung cost less than a third of the iPhone 17e, and it’s faster than the iPhone I retired, and it runs current OS/apps, while the old iPhone does not.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
eltoslightfoot Avatar
14 weeks ago
This is why Apple shouldn't worry so much about being "behind" on AI. They are doing just fine without it.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)