Omdia has released a new foldable smartphone shipments forecast, and it’s quite positive. According to this, the foldable smartphone market is expected to grow by more than 20% annually through 2028.
The foldable smartphone market is set to double to 36 million units by 2028
The company says that the foldable smartphone market will actually double to 36 million units by 2028. It is stated that “leading vendors introduce innovative form factors.”
“In a year defined by supply chain constraints and market uncertainty, foldable smartphones stand out as the industry’s most compelling growth story,” said Zaker Li, Principal Analyst at Omdia.
To give some examples of that, he said the following: “Huawei pioneered this new wide-format design with the Pura X Max in May 2026, followed by Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 8 in August. With other leading vendors set to launch similar products in the coming months, this new category is driving a fresh wave of growth in the foldable smartphone market.”
Wide-format foldable smartphones are the new growth drivers
The company also stated that wide-format foldable smartphones are emerging as new growth drivers. This is indicated by the success of the Galaxy Z Fold 8, and also Huawei’s Pura X Max. “This new wide-format foldable design features a shorter and wider aspect ratio, giving the device a more tablet-like format when unfolded,” said Omdia.
Omdia said that a “wider external sub-display allows more horizontal content to be shown during everyday use, while the unfolded internal display delivers a full-screen, tablet-like experience for multitasking, media consumption, and mobile productivity. This form factor is expected to become an important trend for the next generation of foldable smartphones.”
According to Omdia’s numbers, global foldable smartphone shipments reached 18.2 million units in 2025. That means that the YoY (Year-on-Year) growth slowed to 6%, which is the lowest rate in recent years.
Flip-type foldables are not doing well
During the first half of 2026, shipments reached 5.1 million units, which means they’re down 21.6 YoY. Flip-type foldable smartphones declined 47% compared to H1 2025. Book-type foldable smartphone shipments remained flat. Book-style foldable shipments accounted for 69% of the global segment.
The wide-format book-type foldable design is expected to support future growth, however. The demand for flip-type foldables is expected to weaken further.
Huawei is the number 1 book-type foldable smartphone OEM, and it’s not even close
When it comes to the top 5 book-type foldable smartphone companies in H1 2026, on a global scale, the list may surprise you. Huawei is first with 57% of the market, and is followed by Samsung with 18%.
HONOR is third-placed with 9%, while OPPO and Vivo take fourth and fifth place with 7% and 6%, respectively.
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