AirPods overwhelmingly dominate the global wireless headset market

AirPods held a disproportionate share of the global wireless headset market in 2020, according to a new report from Strategy Analytics.

With sales of over 300 million units, the True Wireless Stereo (TWS) Bluetooth headset sales market grew by almost 90% last year. Apple’s “AirPods” hold almost half of the entire market, with the rest made up of a large number of companies individually holding small stocks.

Despite Apple’s dominance, Strategy Analytics notes that its lead is diminishing as the competition intensifies:

“Apple has maintained a leading edge in the TWS segment in 2020, but its dominant share is declining as the competition intensifies. Strong competition is expected from Xiaomi, Samsung and Huawei in 2021,” said Ken Hyers, Director of Strategy Analytics. “The TWS headset market is already extremely crowded and despite good sales prospects there will inevitably be consolidation in the years to come.”

It is expected that there is still “a lot of potential in the broader Bluetooth headset market”, due to low penetration and an installation base that remains small. According to Ville-Petteri Ukonaho, associate director of Strategy Analytics, “less than one in ten people in the world own a Bluetooth headset, so there is still significant room for growth.” Additionally, as vendors move away from bundling wired headsets with new smartphones, Strategy Analytics foresees considerable growth potential in the market.