Global PC shipments in the first quarter of 2026 are projected to increase 2.5% year-on-year to 65.6 million units, despite a global memory shortage.
Research firm
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Despite memory shortages due to increasing AI demand and an unstable global situation, preliminary figures from IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Personal Computing Device Tracker show that global PC shipments in the first quarter of 2026 reached 65.6 million units, a 2.5% increase compared to the same period last year.
The graph below summarizes the quarterly growth rate of PC shipments by region. The growth rates for the Americas (navy blue), Asia Pacific (orange), EMEA (yellow), and worldwide (light blue) are as follows.
Although PC shipments grew year-on-year in the first quarter of 2026, memory shortages and the worsening global situation are beginning to impact the PC market, as evidenced by the sharp decline in growth across all regions. IDC predicted that 'PC shipments will decline further for the remainder of the period due to continued rising system prices.'
Isaac Ngatya, Senior Research Analyst at IDC, noted, 'The conflict in the Middle East is creating new instability in the vulnerable computing device market, putting a heavy burden on global logistics with the double-edged sword of rising energy costs and soaring freight rates. Maritime routes, particularly those connecting Asia and EMEA, remain disrupted, while the shift to air freight is becoming more expensive. Ultimately, these surcharges will ripple through the entire value chain, increasing PC pricing pressure on end users.'
The table below summarizes PC shipments and market share for the first quarter of 2026. Of the top 5 companies in PC shipments, only HP experienced a negative year-on-year growth rate. ASUS had the highest year-on-year growth rate in the first quarter of 2026 (17.1%).
First quarter of 2026 Number of units shipped | First quarter of 2026 Market share | First quarter of 2025 Number of units shipped | First quarter of 2025 Market share | YoY comparison growth rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lenovo | 16.5 million units | 25.2% | 15.2 million units | 23.8% | 8.6% |
| HP | 12.1 million units | 18.5% | 12.8 million units | 20% | -4.9% |
| Dell | 10.3 million units | 15.7% | 9.6 million units | 14.9% | 7.7% |
| Apple | 6.2 million units | 9.5% | 5.7 million units | 8.9% | 9.1% |
| ASUS | 4.8 million units | 7.2% | 4.1 million units | 6.3% | 17.1% |
| others | 15.7 million units | 23.9% | 16.7 million units | 26.1% | -6.2% |
| total | 65.6 million units | 100% | 64 million units | 100% | 2.5% |
Note that the Worldwide Quarterly Personal Computing Device Tracker includes desktop PCs, laptops, and workstations as PCs, but does not include tablets or x86 servers.
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in Hardware, Posted by logu_ii