Laptop and desktop PC manufacturers had a healthy year in 2025. Global PC shipments climbed by 10.1% to 75 million PCs in Q4 and, for the entire year, by 9.2% to 279.5 million PCs.
The data, presented by tech research and advisory group Omdia, shows that laptops and mobile workstations were the biggest sellers, hitting 58.6 million units shipped in Q4 and 220.4 million units shipped throughout the full year. That's a significant 8% jump year over year compared to 2024.
The bigger jump, percentage-wise, landed in the desktop PC sector. Desktop and workstation shipments hit 16.2 million units in Q4 2025, raising the total number of units shipped last year to 59 million. That's a 14.4% increase compared to 2024.
Lenovo, the PC manufacturer that I saw focus more on AI than ever at CES 2026 despite having a ton of new hardware to show off, sold the most PCs in 2025 with 71 million units. It grew 14.4% in Q4 2025 and, for the year, 14.6%.
HP arrived in second place with its suite of rebranded Omni PCs that shipped 15.4 million units in Q4 alone. That performance contributed to about 57 million sales throughout the year.
Dell landed in third place with about 42 million PCs sold throughout 2025, which is about 7% better than its sales in 2024. Remember, Dell is the only PC maker that has openly admitted that consumers are not buying PCs just because they have AI, which stands in stark contrast to Lenovo, which is focusing more than ever on AI PCs.
Looking back at 2025, these strong PC sales numbers are not exactly surprising. Microsoft killed Windows 10 on October 14, which undoubtedly forced (and is still forcing) a ton of Windows users to upgrade to something new running Windows 11.
Tariffs on PCs and the parts that go into them seemed to be a constant threat, which surely drove some to buy a new PC sooner than they wanted. And to wrap up 2025, we were treated to a new crisis: memory and storage shortages driven largely by AI's insatiable demand for massive datacenters.
The PC market isn't expected to have such a great 2026
According to Omdia's Principal Analyst, Ben Yeh, 2026 isn't projected to be as kind to the world's PC manufacturers:
Between Q1 to Q4 2025, mainstream PC memory and storage costs rose by 40% to 70%, resulting in cost increases being passed through to customers. Given tight 2026 supply, the industry is emphasizing high-end SKUs and leaner mid to low-tier configurations to protect margins.
Indeed, this shouldn't exactly come as a surprise to anyone who's been following PC markets for the past few months. Yeh adds that "supply-side pressures will be more pronounced and supply will not fully meet demand," while also stating that PC sales will largely "hinge on vendors' memory and storage procurement and negotiating leverage."
Are you expecting to see a decline in PC sales in 2026 due to ongoing market conditions (tariffs, shortages, etc.)? Why or why not? Let me know in the comments section below!
Follow Windows Central on Google News to keep our latest news, insights, and features at the top of your feeds!
