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I made the mistake of making my game Android only (via libGDX). A lot of people are asking me for an iPhone/iPad version. Sigh. (Next time, I'll use Unity or Corona SDK.)

I've searched high and low, and cannot find much (relevant or recent -- beyond 2010) about market share of these two phones, globally.

Where can I find the relative market shares of these phones, globally, to some degree of accuracy? It doesn't have to be 100% accurate, as long as it remains recent (i.e. updated every few months). Ideally, this is something like Android's Platform Versions, albeit it tells me about different OSes.

I really want to know, because when I choose a development platform, it might matter (if I make the mistake of not using a cross-platform development tool).

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  • \$\begingroup\$ This question is pretty specific with respect to time... \$\endgroup\$ – notlesh Apr 30 '12 at 1:07
  • \$\begingroup\$ @stephelton updated to be generic regardless of time \$\endgroup\$ – ashes999 Apr 30 '12 at 2:02
  • \$\begingroup\$ I think this is also quite dependent on the region/country you're living in. \$\endgroup\$ – bummzack Apr 30 '12 at 7:04
  • \$\begingroup\$ @bummzack how can I make it more generic? \$\endgroup\$ – ashes999 Apr 30 '12 at 9:18
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    \$\begingroup\$ DO NOT consider web page statistics as valid data for number of users. Many phones, especially Android, will have their user-agent wrong. My phone says Linux, for instance. And how a phone is used can vary, for instance an Iphone user could use his phone more to view web pages than an user with an old Nokia. \$\endgroup\$ – Matsemann May 1 '12 at 19:35
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Here's a chart about mobile OS market-share. The current world-wide situation is described as follows:

At the worldwide level, Android OS and to a lesser extent Samsung are eating market share away from Symbian OS and even iOS. Nevertheless, for the time being, Symbian succeeds in keeping the leadership, followed by iOS with a narrow margin on Android. Blackberry's happy days seem however over.

The chart also allows you to see market-share by region which might be interesting if you're targeting a certain audience (for example U.S. or the Asian market). EU and U.S. seem to have a high iOS/Android market-share while Africa, South America and Asia seem to favor Symbian.

As with all statistics, this should be taken with a grain of salt, as it's not clear in what context the data was gathered. Especially in regard to game-development where a market-share in terms of app-sales would be much more interesting.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ This conflicts with the information in @Deza's response, unless I'm not taking the time to interpret it correctly. This is more in line with where I thought things were... \$\endgroup\$ – notlesh May 1 '12 at 16:20
  • \$\begingroup\$ My response, as Matsemann pointed out is for web statistics. I believe bummzack's is just the shear bulk of handsets sold. \$\endgroup\$ – Derek May 4 '12 at 16:54
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A simple google search turned up this: http://marketshare.hitslink.com/operating-system-market-share.aspx?qprid=8&qpcustomd=1 I can't vouch for its validlity though.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ +1 their about page explains much more; they collect stats from like 4000 websites or something. Maybe this will be the solution. \$\endgroup\$ – ashes999 Apr 30 '12 at 14:50
  • \$\begingroup\$ I thought Android had a much greater market share than that, and iOS a lot less... \$\endgroup\$ – notlesh Apr 30 '12 at 15:50
  • \$\begingroup\$ DO NOT consider web page statistics as valid data for market share. It can be valid data for web statistics, but no more. See my comment on the question. I can elaborate if needed. \$\endgroup\$ – Matsemann May 1 '12 at 19:41
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Here is another source: http://www.androidguys.com/2012/05/01/comscore-android-now-on-more-than-half-of-all-u-s-smartphones/

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  • \$\begingroup\$ Alas, this is US specific. \$\endgroup\$ – ashes999 May 1 '12 at 19:55
  • \$\begingroup\$ Here is another resource: ourmobileplanet.com/en This site lets you dynamically produce charts based mobile phone usage across different parameter for 40 countries. You can look at OS market share over the years for iOS, Android, and others. \$\endgroup\$ – amb May 18 '12 at 0:13
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the only reason that market share should matter is if your end goal is profit. many people who make games are in it for more then just profit which is the same distinction as a "job" and a "career". It should be your decision, and you decision alone of what platform to target based on what you want to do. not what has the higher market share. this is the same decision that sometimes triple-A title developers have to make, and because of this they have to leave out market share.

you should focus on what you know, and not what has the largest market share. if you want to target multiple platforms then do it, but I don't think market share should make the decision for you.

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    \$\begingroup\$ This is in no way an answer to the question. \$\endgroup\$ – notlesh Apr 30 '12 at 5:30
  • \$\begingroup\$ @stephelton I answered the question in an indirect way. the question-asker wanted to know the market share leader from month to month (not projects, but current) almost like the asker would reconsider the target if market share shifted, and I attempted to address that the concept, idea, and ability should drive the process not market share. so in essence I answered the question by saying that it should not be a determining factor \$\endgroup\$ – gardian06 Apr 30 '12 at 6:57
  • \$\begingroup\$ I agree with stephelton. I would like to know, really, how many people I "lost" by not having an iPad/iPhone version. But to be a GameDev.SE question, I must ask something slightly different :) \$\endgroup\$ – ashes999 Apr 30 '12 at 9:19
  • \$\begingroup\$ The OP asked for numbers; you gave him a soapbox. \$\endgroup\$ – notlesh Apr 30 '12 at 12:31
  • \$\begingroup\$ Albiet soapbox is sometimes the right answer. But not in this case, sorry. \$\endgroup\$ – ashes999 Apr 30 '12 at 13:24

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