Personal Computing Devices Market Insights

Global Personal Computing Device shipments grew 7.3% year-over-year in the fourth quarter of 2025, reaching 117.8 million units. PC shipments grew by 10.3% year-over-year with 76.9 million unit shipments and tablets grew by 1.9% year-over-year with 40.9 million unit shipments in the quarter. The results cap off a tumultuous year for the market, marked by the end of support for Windows 10, which drove a wave of upgrade demand for PCs, and early year tariff concerns that prompted vendors to pull forward more inventory than originally planned. While the holiday season typically drives stronger demand, the surge in late 2025 was further amplified by emerging memory shortages that led buyers and brands to secure inventory ahead of anticipated price increases in 2026.

“IDC expects that the PC market will be far different in 12 months given how quickly the memory situation is evolving,” said Jean Philippe Bouchard, research vice-president with IDC’s Worldwide Mobile Device Trackers. “Beyond the obvious pressure on prices of systems, already announced by certain manufacturers, we might also see PC memory specifications be lowered on average to preserve memory inventory on hand. The year ahead is shaping up to be extremely volatile.”

“Memory shortages are affecting the entire industry, and the impact will likely reshape market dynamics over the next two years,” said Jitesh Ubrani, research manager with IDC’s Worldwide Mobile Device Trackers. “Large consumer electronics brands are well positioned to leverage their scale and memory allocations to capture shares from smaller and regional vendors. However, the severity of the shortage raises the risk that smaller brands may not survive, and consumers, particularly DIY enthusiasts, may delay purchases or shift their spending to other devices or experiences.”

Looking ahead, IDC has made significant downward revisions to its PC and tablet outlook amid ongoing memory and supply chain disruptions. Global PC shipments are now expected to decline 11.3% in 2026 —a substantial reduction from the -2.4% outlook published in November 2025. Tablet shipments are similarly forecast to fall 7.6% this year.

These reductions are driven by a convergence of memory shortages, rising component prices, and broader supply constraints, all of which are expected to limit production well into 2027, making recovery timing a challenging and shifting target. It is also worth noting that at the time this forecast was published, the conflict in the Middle East had not yet escalated to its current level, adding yet another significant challenge for many industries, including technology and hardware.

“The overall tech industry, as well as many others, continues to face uncontrollable headwinds that, when compounded, result in massive disruption,” said Ryan Reith, group vice president, Devices and Consumer. “The lists of industry and geopolitical events that continue to grow is making decision‑making—and even survival in some sectors—nearly impossible. What has turned all of this from a million‑dollar question into a trillion‑dollar question is the complete uncertainty around when these pressures will subside.”

Even in the shadow of these shortages, the market retains pockets of resilience. Higher average selling prices (ASPs) are expected to lift total market value, with PCs growing 1.6% to $274 billion and tablets expanding 3.9% to $66.8 billion in 2026.

“The era of bargain-priced PCs and tablets is behind us for now, as rising ASPs and component costs shift the market’s balance of power,” said Jitesh Ubrani, research manager for IDC’s Worldwide Mobile Device Trackers. “Memory shortages will persist well into 2027. While we anticipate some easing of prices beginning in 2028, the market is unlikely to return to the pricing levels seen in 2025. Instead, we expect a new normal defined by structurally higher ASPs and a corresponding softening in long-term demand.”

Looking ahead, IDC anticipates vendors prioritizing supply chain resilience, more flexible component sourcing strategies, and explore down-spec’ing options to control costs while offering more affordable devices. These dynamics will play a notable role in defining end user adoption in the coming years.