Wearables to resume growth this year

Update: August 11, 2023

Although 442.7 million devices are forecast to be sold this year. Q1 will see a decline in shipments thanks to excess inventory which is depressing both shipments and ASPs.Wearables to resume growth this year

IDC expects these wrinkles to be ironed out by H2 with growth to continue well beyond 2023 as shipments reach 644.5 million in 2027 with a CAGR of 5.4%.

“What makes 2023 different is that it marks the start of replacement cycles and there are plenty of devices – available at different feature sets and price points – available,” says IDC’s Ramon Llama

Top 5 Wearable Device Product Categories by Shipment Volume, Market Share, and 2022-2027 CAGR (shipments in millions)
Product 2023 Shipments 2023 Market Share 2027 Shipments 2027 Market Share 2022-2027 CAGR
Earwear 325.0 62.1% 404.0 62.7% 5.6%
Smartwatch 162.2 31.0% 205.3 31.9% 6.1%
Wrist Band 33.8 6.5% 31.7 4.9% -1.6%
Others 2.2 0.4% 3.5 0.5% 12.5%
Total 523.2 100.0% 644.5 100.0% 5.4%
Source: IDC Worldwide Quarterly Wearable Device Tracker, March 7, 2023