---
title: "Global PC shipments fall 21 per cent in Q3 2026 as Apple gains market share with MacBook Neo"
description: "Apple shipped 5.6 million Macs, down 11 per cent year-on-year, but its share of the shrinking market rose to 9.8 per cent."
url: https://mactoreality.com/global-pc-shipments-fall-21-per-cent-in-q3-2026-as-apple-gains-market-share-with-macbook-n
published: 2026-10-23T07:14:26Z
updated: 2026-10-23T07:14:26Z
author: "Mac to Reality Newsdesk"
category: Supply chain
tags: ["Business & leadership","Mac"]
publisher: Mac to Reality
ai_assisted: true
apple_heat_impact: 2
---

# Global PC shipments fall 21 per cent in Q3 2026 as Apple gains market share with MacBook Neo

*Apple shipped 5.6 million Macs, down 11 per cent year-on-year, but its share of the shrinking market rose to 9.8 per cent.*

**Key points**

- Counterpoint Research reported global PC shipments fell 21 per cent year-on-year to 57 million units in Q3 2026.
- Apple shipped 5.6 million Macs, an 11 per cent decline, but its market share rose from 8.7 per cent to 9.8 per cent.
- Counterpoint forecasts a 27 per cent year-on-year decline for Q4 2026, followed by flat growth in 2027.

Global PC shipments fell 21 per cent year-on-year to 57 million units in Q3 2026, according to [Counterpoint Research](https://counterpointresearch.com/en/insights/global-pc-shipments-plunge-21-percent-in-q3-2026), as component costs rose and consumer demand weakened. Apple shipped 5.6 million Macs, down 11 per cent, but its market share rose to 9.8 per cent, helped by the MacBook Neo.

“Apple and ASUS have demonstrated greater resilience, outperforming the broader market through differentiated product portfolios and competitive positioning,” said Minsoo Kang, Senior Analyst at Counterpoint. Lenovo led the market with 15.0 million units and a 26.3 per cent share, followed by HP (10.3 million, 18.1 per cent) and Dell (7.6 million, 13.3 per cent). ASUS shipped 5.2 million units, recording the smallest annual decline among the top five vendors at 7 per cent.

Counterpoint noted that Q3 2025 was a strong comparison period due to Windows 10 migration and tariff-related inventory adjustments. Contract prices for 8GB DDR4 RAM modules rose 24 per cent quarter-over-quarter in Q3 2026, and 1TB NVMe SSD prices rose 29 per cent, pushing system prices higher and extending replacement cycles. Associate Director David Naranjo warned: “Stabilization should not be mistaken for recovery.”

Counterpoint expects global PC shipments to fall 27 per cent year-on-year in Q4 2026, with full-year 2027 volumes remaining broadly flat. The firm did not disclose Apple’s revenue or average selling prices, or the exact split between MacBook Neo and other Mac models. For more context on Apple’s recent PC share gains, see [our earlier report](https://mactoreality.com/pc-shipments-plunge-20-1-per-cent-in-q3-2026-as-apple-gains-market-share).

## Sources

- [Counterpoint Research: Counterpoint Research report](https://counterpointresearch.com/en/insights/global-pc-shipments-plunge-21-percent-in-q3-2026)
- [9to5Mac: MacBook Neo helps Apple soften the blow of global PC market downturn, per report](https://9to5mac.com/2026/10/22/macbook-neo-helps-apple-soften-the-blow-of-global-pc-market-downturn-per-report/)

*This report was written by the Mac to Reality newsdesk with AI assistance from the sources listed above, under the editorial policy at https://mactoreality.com/editorial-policy.*