Q3’s best-selling phones are out, and Samsung and Apple basically wrote the list again

The iPhone 16 Pro models didn’t have the same luck, dropping off more sharply in markets like the US and the UK – places where buyers jumped straight to the iPhone 17 lineup.

And thanks to that, the iPhone 17 Pro Max managed to land in tenth place for the quarter and became the best-selling phone in September 2025, despite being hard to find as the month wrapped up.

One thing I didn’t expect: the iPhone 16e sliding into the top five. Clearly, Apple has a massive audience that wants a more wallet-friendly option. And for the first time ever in a Q3, every single spot in the top five went to 5G phones, which just shows how deeply 5G has become the default choice.

Then we get to Samsung. After Apple claimed the first four spots, Samsung filled the next chunk of the chart with five Galaxy A-series models. Yep – not a single S-series phone even cracked the top 10 this time.

The Galaxy A16 5G became the top-selling Android phone globally, climbing past last year’s ranking and outperforming its own 4G version. The Galaxy A36 and A56 are also selling better than their predecessors, helped by new Galaxy AI features, faster charging, and longer software support.

Meanwhile, the Galaxy A16 4G and Galaxy A06 were the only LTE phones to place in the top 10, continuing to dominate in regions like Latin America and MEA, where they account for over half of each model’s total sales volume.

What these numbers actually tell us

These sales charts won’t magically convince anyone to switch phones overnight, but they do give us a solid sense of how the smartphone landscape is shifting. This is also the time of year when all the market wrap-ups start flooding in – and combined with the latest foldable sales data (where Samsung crushed it again), the picture of Q3 is pretty clear.

And honestly, Samsung had a stronger quarter than many expected. It even outperformed Apple for the third straight quarter, which is impressive considering how much hype surrounded the iPhone 17 lineup at launch.

No real surprises here – but timing matters

I don’t think any of these placements are shocking. Apple’s devices almost always dominate the top slots, and Samsung’s A-series continues to be its biggest volume driver. What made me raise an eyebrow is that the Galaxy S25 Ultra didn’t appear anywhere in the rankings – but when you realize this is Q3 data and the phone launched way back in Q1, it makes more sense.

Plus, we are already gearing up for the Galaxy S26 Ultra, which should arrive in just a month or two, so the shift in attention is natural.