Worldwide shipments of wearable devices grew 2.6% year over year during the third quarter of 2023 (3Q23) and reached an all-time high for the third quarter of 148.4 million units, according to new data from the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Wearable Device Tracker. Total volume even surpassed shipments in 3Q21 (142.1 million) and 3Q22 (144.6 million) when sales were driven by pandemic-related spending. The growth is largely attributed to the rise of smaller brands and emerging categories.

"It's been a decade since the wearables market got off the ground and while there has been some consolidation, the market still has plenty of diversity in terms of brands and form factors," said Jitesh Ubrani, research manager, Mobility and Consumer Device Trackers at IDC. "Health and fitness tracking has come a long way since the original Fitbits and Pebble watches but the greatest driver of wearables has been the emergence of smaller and sleeker designs. Smart rings from newer brands such as Oura, Noise, BoAT, Circular and others are expected to jumpstart the new form factor in the coming quarters while also putting pressure on the incumbent brands to innovate on health tracking."

"Smartwatches and earwear still hold pride of place in the wearables market," added Ramon Llamas, research director, Mobile Devices and AR/VR. "These still resonate with consumers and continue to find their way to first-time users, especially among the most wary and price sensitive. This is where we can still see emerging vendors ship volumes high enough to rank among the leading brands. Combined with strong refresh cycles – including those who purchased a wearable as recently as 2020 – the wearables market has set up a strong fly wheel to keep volumes growing."

A graphic illustrating year-over-year growth for each of the major wearable device categories (earwear, smartwatch, wrist band, and other) over the previous five quarters is available by viewing this press release on IDC.com.

About IDC Trackers

IDC Tracker products provide accurate and timely market size, vendor share, and forecasts for hundreds of technology markets from more than 100 countries around the globe. Using proprietary tools and research processes, IDC's Trackers are updated on a semiannual, quarterly, and monthly basis. Tracker results are delivered to clients in user-friendly Excel deliverables and on-line query tools.

For more information about IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Wearable Device Tracker, please contact Jackie Kliem at 508-988-7984 or jkliem@idc.com.

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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.

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Worldwide shipments of wearable devices grew 2.6% year over year during Q3 2023 and reached an all-time high for the third quarter of 148.4 million units, according to new data from the IDC Worldwide Quarterly Wearable Device Tracker.