According to IDC data, the number of foldable phone manufacturing plants worldwide is expected to increase by 10% compared to the previous year in 2025, reaching 20.6 million units.
In 2026, the market in this corner will grow even stronger when Samsung's tri-fold smartphone is expected to be available globally in the first quarter and Apple officially enters the market.
2021 will be very exciting for foldable phones with many products launched, pushing the market up by 30% compared to the previous forecast of only 6%. Samsung will launch in 2026 with the Galaxy Z Trifold, introducing tri-fold technology to global consumers, following the success of the Galaxy Z Fold7 in 2025.
Huawei's foldable devices running on HarmonyOS Next will also see strong growth, with shipments expected to nearly double by 2026. But the real game-changer for this product line will come by the end of the year when Apple enters the foldable phone market, said Nabila Popal, senior research director at IDC.
Another IDC expert assessed that Apple's entry into the foldable smarphone market can boost product awareness and attract consumer interest. Apple is often a catalyst for the widespread popularity of new products.
While foldable displays will continue to be a corner segment in terms of quantity, it will become an important value factor for most foldable device vendors, as the average selling price will be three times higher than a regular smartphone.
Like IDC, market research firm Counterpoint forecasts a 14% increase in foldable smartphone shipments compared to the previous year in 2025 and 38% in 2026, with the dominating book-style design.
The company also said that in 2026, the number of foldable smartphone wallpaper sales will increase by 46% compared to the previous year in 2026, driven by Apple's purchase of wallpaper for its first foldable phone. In which, Samsung Display will account for 57% of the market share, followed by BOE 22%, visionox 10%...
