Middle East & Africa Wearables Market Records Strong Year-on-Year Growth, Spurred by Increased Demand for Smartwatches

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• Sheila Manek  Email: smanek@idc.com  Phone number: +971 4 446 3154

Dubai – The Middle East and Africa wearables market experienced strong annual growth in both unit and value terms for the whole of 2022, according to newly published insights from International Data Corporation (IDC). The latest edition of the firm's Worldwide Quarterly Wearable Devices Tracker shows that shipments to the region in 2022 grew 9.8% year on year (YoY) to total 14.89 million units, with the market's value increasing 25.4% to $2.86 billion.

The unit growth can largely be attributed to a 13.6% YoY increase in shipments of earwear devices, which accounted for 50.6% of total wearable shipments to the region in 2022. The earwear segment was dominated by Apple (first) and Samsung (second), with these two vendors accounting for a combined unit share of more than 40%. The Chinese vendor Xaiomi placed third.

The overall market's value growth was primarily driven by a 45.7% YoY increase in the value of smartwatch shipments to the region. These devices accounted for 60.6% share of the total wearable market's value in 2022. In unit terms, Apple led the smartwatch category in 2022, followed by Samsung in second place and Huawei in third, as the latter continues to update its product portfolio to compensate for the drop-off it has experienced in the mobile phone market.

"Continuous product releases and model updates are driving strong demand for smartwatches across the region," says Nourhan Abdullah, a senior research analyst at IDC. "On the contrary, the wristband category is still facing many challenges, with consumers increasingly preferring the higher specs of basic watches that are priced in a similar range. Looking ahead, the region is facing many economic challenges that are likely to constrain disposable income and hamper consumer demand for wearable devices, leading to an increase in demand for cheaper entry-level models."

From a country perspective, Türkiye was the region's biggest market for wearables in 2022, despite the country experiencing high levels of inflation and economic uncertainty. Saudi Arabia recorded another year of growth in 2022 to rank second, with increased demand for wearable technology — particularly advanced smartwatches — spurring the market.

For more information about IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Wearable Devices Tracker, please contact Sheila Manek at smanek@idc.com  or on +971 4 446 3154.

About IDC

International Data Corporation (IDC) is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events for the information technology, telecommunications, and consumer technology markets. With more than 1,300 analysts worldwide, IDC offers global, regional, and local expertise on technology, IT benchmarking and sourcing, and industry opportunities and trends in over 110 countries. IDC's analysis and insight helps IT professionals, business executives, and the investment community to make fact-based technology decisions and to achieve their key business objectives. Founded in 1964, IDC is a wholly owned subsidiary of International Data Group (IDG), the world's leading tech media, data, and marketing services company. To learn more about IDC, please visit www.idc.com. Follow IDC on Twitter at @IDC and LinkedIn. Subscribe to the IDC Blog for industry news and insights.

IDC in the Middle East, Turkey, and Africa

For the Middle East, Turkey, and Africa region, IDC retains a coordinated network of offices in Riyadh, Nairobi, Lagos, Johannesburg, Cairo, and Istanbul, with a regional center in Dubai. Our coverage couples local insights with international perspectives to provide a comprehensive understanding of markets in these dynamic regions. Our market intelligence services are unparalleled in depth, consistency, scope, and accuracy. IDC Middle East, Africa, and Turkey currently fields over 130 analysts, consultants, and conference associates across the region. To learn more about IDC MEA, please visit www.idc.com/mea. You can follow IDC MEA on Twitter at @IDCMEA.

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