It can be said that nothing epitomises the 21st century more than the mobile phone, with consumers queueing up to get their paws on the latest handheld device while arguing assertively with each other over which model is best - while landline phones look on forlornly from the corner. Now, a new study by moneyland.ch has revealed which mobile devices are the most popular in Switzerland. Here’s what they found:

Apple the most popular brand, but Samsung is closing behind

In the battle between Samsung and Apple, it was the Californian giant that won the hearts of the Swiss most. According to the survey, 46 percent of the Swiss population still use an Apple iPhone of some description, the same proportion the survey found in 2021.

However, Samsung is on course to overtake Apple in the next few years. While only capturing 40 percent of the Swiss market this year, preference for the company has risen significantly from the 33 percent market share it had in 2021.

Apple and Samsung benefit from affluent Swiss market

moneyland.ch noted that Apple and Samsung dominate the Swiss market, with 86 percent of the population having either an iPhone or Samsung or both. Interestingly, the more budget options on the market have failed to garner the same interest in Switzerland as they do in other countries, with Huawei, Xiaomi and Nokia only garnering 8, 6 and 3 percent of the market respectively - Motorola, Google Pixel and LG were found to be the least popular brands. 

"There's not much left for the other manufacturers," noted moneyland.ch mobile phone expert Ralf Beyler. “Swiss consumers have comparatively high purchasing power and tend towards more expensive models”, he explained, concluding that this attitude disproportionately benefits Samsung and Apple.

Preference in mobile phones varies by age and gender

While the study did not record any differences in preference between Swiss cantons, they found that women marginally prefer iPhones more than men (48 percent of women to 44 percent of men), while men are more inclined towards Samsung (41 percent of men to 39 percent of women). 

Age was also noted as a factor, with Apple being far more popular among 18 to 25-year-olds than other brands. 26 to 49-year-olds still had a slight preference for iPhones, while those over 50 were the only age group where people preferred Samsung over Apple.

Top mobile phone brands in Switzerland

In all, here are the five most popular phone brands in Switzerland - moneyland.ch explained that the reason why the numbers add up to more than 100 percent is the fact that some people own more than one brand of phone:

1. Apple iPhone (46)
2. Samsung (40)
3. Huawei (8)
4. Xiaomi (6)
5. Nokia (3)

For more information, check out the official report (in German).