Here are the Top 5 Smartphone Brands In Nigeria In Q1 2025; any surprises?

Global smartphone data market analysts, Canalys, has published the statistics for the top 5 smartphone brands in Nigeria in Q1 2025. These are the brands whose phones Naija people bought the most from January through March of 2025.

The interesting thing is that based on my observations of the market from 2024, there are no surprises here at all. Everything is as expected. Let’s look through the list.

Number 5 spot: HMD Global

HMD Global has held on to the number 5 spot in Nigeria for a while and so this is no surprise. If you are not familiar with the brand, HMD global is the company that made Nokia-branded smartphones for a few years. They now make their own branded phones – HMD phones.

While HMD still holds the number 5 spot, all they have is 1% of the country’s smartphone sales for the period. It is a tenuous hold, which explains why a new brand jumped over them to take the number 4 spot.

Number 4 spot: Realme

Now, somebody might say this is a surprise and ask how Realme, a new entrant in the market, has been able to jump to the number 4 spot so quickly. But it should be no surprise to anyone.

Firstly, before their official launch in Nigeria in 2024, Realme had been selling phones quietly mostly in the north of the country. Secondly, they make and sell affordable smartphones, which puts them in good footing in Nigeria. Most smartphone sales in Nigeria happen below the N300,000 price mark. Thirdly, Realme is replicating the marketing tactics of the masters of the game, Transsion, and you can bet that is a good thing, because that strategy works.

Realme still has work to do, though, as all they have for now is 2% of Nigeria’s smartphone sales for the period in question. Of course, it is worth celebrating by fans and friends of the brand. Coming from being unlisted to 4th place is a solid win.

Number 3 spot: Samsung

Again, no surprise. Samsung has occupied this spot for a while, after falling from the number 2 spot some years ago. And, all other things being equal, they will not regain that number 2 spot. As a matter of fact, I am willing to bet that Realme has what it takes to take the 3rd place from Samsung. Why?

Simply put, Samsung smartphones do not offer the kind of value for money that phones from most other brands offer. For the same price, you will get smartphones from TECNO, Infinix, itel, Xiaomi, and Realme with more RAM, more storage, faster charging, etc than from Samsung. Go to the market and find out.

How much share of phones sales in Nigeria in Q1 2025 did Samsung grab? They grabbed 7%, which is not far from the 2024 figure of 6%.

Number 2 spot: Xiaomi

Xiaomi is the brand that kicked Samsung’s behind to the curb to take the number 2 spot, and they are holding on strong. Redmi is also a brand of Xiaomi phones, so if you see Redmi anywhere, that’s Xiaomi you see.

With 26% of sales, Xiaomi has a comfortable lead on Samsung – a growing, comfortable lead – and if the figures we are seeing are anything to go by, it looks like they are eating some of the share of the market held by the guys that have held the number 1 spot for so many years, Transsion.

Number 1 spot: Transsion

Transsion is the smartphone group behind TECNO, Infinix, and itel. This group has owned the Nigerian smartphone market since as far back as 2020. And they are sitting at the top by a comfortable margin. In quarter 1, 2025, they owned 56% of smartphone sales in Nigeria.

Why are Transsion sitting comfortably atop the list of the top smartphone brands in Nigeria in Q1 2025? It is due to a combination of factors, including prolific releases (Transsion brands release more phone models than any other brand in Nigeria), affordability and value-for-money, great grassroots marketing, and local support.

Again, Apple iPhones do not show up on the list and likely never will as long as the Nigerian phone market remains a budget market. iPhones are far too expensive to make a splash in Nigeria. It is similar to the challenge that Samsung is facing. Both Apple and Samsung are highly visible brands, but most Nigerians simply cannot afford N1million smartphones. It is simple market dynamics.

OPPO, another brand that makes good phones, is in this WhatsApp group, as well. No matter how good a brand’s phones are, if they are priced above the economic power of most people in the market, the company’s sales and market share will remain niche.

My Forecasts

The rest of 2025 will be interesting to witness. Realme will sell more phones if they keep up the energy. Xiaomi will, as well, though the dynamics with Xiaomi are beginning to change. I will not say more than that about Xiaomi for now.

In all, if you are looking for upsets, the brand to watch for the rest of 2025 is Realme and it is because they are a perfect fit to challenge the top players at the bottom end of the market. In the meantime, TECNO, Infinix, and itel will continue to run the Nigerian smartphone market without much fuss.