Demand for new PCs took a hit after months of price increases, with Counterpoint Research reporting that global PC shipments fell 21 percent year-over-year in the third quarter of 2026. This is in line with previous reports from IDC and Omdia. It’s not just PCs: that same quarter, smartphone shipments also hit their lowest level in 14 years.
Counterpoint linked the decline in PC shipments to rising component prices. Through the second quarter of 2026, PC shipments had increased for more than two years in a row. But in recent months, RAM, SSDs, and chips from Intel, AMD, and Qualcomm have become more expensive, leading to price increases on everything from MacBooks to Raspberry Pis. Counterpoint senior analyst Minsoo Kang noted that some companies are shifting to “prioritize configurations that can better absorb component inflation,” leaving fewer affordable options for price-sensitive buyers. Some companies are even reviving older technologies, such as DDR4 RAM and 4GB GPU, to help mitigate price increases.
Counterpoint also says that the third quarter of 2025 included “purchases ahead of the Windows 10 support deadline and tariff-related inventory adjustments,” adding to last quarter’s sharp year-over-year decline. The PC market may not recover anytime soon, as Counterpoint Associate Director David Naranjo says: “With global shipments expected to fall 27% in the fourth quarter of 2026 and remain broadly stable in 2027, stabilization should not be confused with recovery.”
