Purchasing inability: the gadget market in Russia has decreased by 20%
The Russian portable electronics market showed a record decline in 2025: year—on-year sales of smartphones decreased by an average of 20%, laptops by about 15%, and only the tablet segment is more or less stable, sellers of equipment told Izvestia. According to them, the decline may be even more significant, but the dynamics of the "gray" market is difficult to assess, they added. Experts attribute the decline to a decrease in the purchasing power of the population and a reduction in corporate purchases. Retailers have noted a decrease in lending and the redistribution of funds from stores to bank deposits. According to experts, prices for gadgets will rise in 2026, and sales will continue to decline, but not as sharply as in 2025.
How much have gadget sales decreased in Russia
Sales of portable electronics such as smartphones and laptops in the Russian Federation have significantly decreased in 2025, sellers and experts interviewed by Izvestia said. According to the "Refrigerator.<url>", compared with 2024, the sale of smartphones in money and in units decreased by 20%, laptops — by 13%.
— By the end of 2025, there has been a sharp decline in electronics sales. In the smartphone segment, there is a drop of about 25% in units and 27% in money. In general, there is no particular difference in the different product categories. Sales sank, plus or minus, at the same level in all categories," Andrey Tarasov, executive director of diHouse, told Izvestia.
According to the results of 11 months of 2025, the Russian smartphone market decreased by 22% in units and by 22% in money compared to the same period in 2024, MTS calculated. A total of 21.1 million devices worth 506 billion rubles were sold. The decline in the market is due to the high base of last year, saturation of demand and the fact that some consumers postponed updating devices in anticipation of new models and more profitable offers, the company said.
Smartphones costing up to 10 thousand rubles still occupy the largest market share - 31% of total sales, which is 1 percentage point more than a year earlier. The stability of this segment is due to stable demand from customers focused on basic functionality, MTS added.
The electronics manufacturer Fplus is also talking about a decline in sales of smartphones and laptops. In particular, sales of laptops in units fell by 17-18%, the market shrank to 2.9–3 million devices.
— At the same time, the average receipt for smartphones has not changed significantly compared to 2024, despite a moderate increase in the cost of models on the shelves. Apple and Samsung are the leaders in the smartphone market structure in monetary terms, with shares of 25% and 20%, respectively, followed by Redmi, Honor, Tecno and Realme, the company noted.
Against this background, the tablet segment looks more stable. By the end of 2025, tablet sales amounted to approximately 3 million devices for a total of about 60 billion rubles. The market remains stable and shows signs of moderate growth, according to Fplus.
The laptop segment came under pressure: by the end of January – September 2025, 2.3 million laptops were sold in Russia compared to 2.74 million a year earlier, which corresponds to a decrease of 14% in quantitative terms, M.Video-Eldorado noted. In monetary terms, the market shrank from 170.7 billion rubles to 136.8 billion rubles, which corresponds to a decrease of 20% year-on-year.
The market is falling, and quite a lot: This is a record decline in sales, which was not the case even in force majeure in 2022, said Eldar Murtazin, a leading analyst at Mobile Research Group. On average, the electronics market in units fell by 20%. This is largely due to both the lack of corporate purchases and the decline in purchasing power.
In the context of attractive deposit rates and a reduction in bank lending, there is a noticeable cooling of consumer demand, which explains the decline in sales. It first appeared in the real estate and car markets, and then spread to the segment of household appliances and electronics. Since the middle of last year, Russians have become more likely to postpone large purchases and place free funds on deposits in order to receive increased interest income, experts say.
One of its participants attributes the difference in market assessment to the fact that some gadgets are sold through "gray" channels and are not reflected in statistics.
— For example, from 30 to 70% of iPhone sales may go through channels that are not included in the reports of analytical agencies and customs statistics. As a result, the actual market volume in money is higher than the data show, and the "drop" is largely a consequence of a change in the supply structure, the Izvestia source claims.
However, not all market participants record a decrease in demand. Despite the difficult situation in the smartphone market, the turnover of phones on Wildberries has almost doubled this year, and laptops have tripled, said David Davidyan, head of the company's core business area. At the same time, sales of smartphones from premium brands Apple and Samsung grew the fastest. Last year, Tecno smartphones were in second place in terms of sales, but this year it's Samsung.
What awaits sellers and buyers of electronics in the new year
Electronics market participants hope that 2026 will be without sharp drops and the gadget sales situation will stabilize somewhat. Commercial Director of Refrigerator.<url> Alexey Pogudalov predicts a possible tightening of the regulatory environment (for example, in the field of pre-installed software and services), which may affect the range and prices. Technological fee (starting from September 1, 2026, manufacturers and importers of products with an electronic component base will pay it) it may also affect the cost of the product, he did not rule out.
— The situation looks realistic when prices for electronics will rise, and sales will decrease or remain at the level of 2025. A number of factors will contribute to the price increase, such as an increase in VAT, the introduction of a technological fee, and a shortage of memory on the global market," said Andrey Tarasov. — Depending on the type of electronics and the number of memory components used inside the device, users will see different price increases. For example, prices for computers and laptops are expected to rise by up to 30% in 2026, and by about 12% for smartphones.
Sales in the notebook category can be expected to decrease by at least 10% compared to 2025. Smartphone sales in 2026 will reach 21-25 million units and will roughly match the sales volume of the previous year, he added. According to Andrey Tarasov's forecast, the demand for smartphones will continue to decline next year, but the market will not collapse. At the same time, the demand for laptops will continue to decline smoothly.
"The average price of gadgets will increase due to technological inflation, which is spurred by the rising cost of components (flash memory and chips), as well as the development of implemented AI technologies and the expansion of the number of models that artificial intelligence uses in its work," Megafon believes.
In "M.Video-Eldorado expects gradual stabilization and further growth of the market in 2026. The company is pinning its hopes on pent—up consumer demand and a phased reduction in the key rate of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, which will attract public funds to the economy.
— Lower loan rates, lower deposits, and the emergence of new technological drivers, such as the launch of new generations of devices, can support the market recovery. The market is unlikely to show a sharp increase in quantitative terms, however, the demand structure will continue to shift towards more functional and long—term devices focused on a long cycle of use, the representatives of the united retailer predict.
Despite the likely continuation of stagnant trends, Wildberries expects further sales growth due to the preservation of the assortment and the prompt appearance of popular new products on the showcase of the marketplace, said David Davidyan.
However, Eldar Murtazin believes that in 2026 the market will fall by another 20% in units. Apparently, it will continue to fall in the following years. When this trend will change, the expert found it difficult to guess — the cost of gadgets is only increasing for various reasons. However, this is happening not only in the Russian market, but also in the global market.
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