Apple has ruled the roost in the smartwatch market since the launch of the Apple Watch Series 7. The market grew 24 percent year on year (YoY) in 2021, and Apple outsold its nearest competitor by a landslide margin.

Counterpoint Research’s latest report shows that wearables priced under $100 drove most of the smartwatch market’s growth. In 2021, Apple’s market share slipped from 32.9 percent to 30.1 percent. However, the company sold nearly thrice as many watches as its nearest competitor—Samsung.

The research firm says the growth in 2021 has been “healthy.” In the fourth quarter alone, the industry shipped a total of 40 million smartwatches in the fourth quarter alone. Apple’s sales also accounted for half of the industry’s annual revenue, primarily because of the considerably higher unit selling price.

Samsung shot past Huawei to sell capture 10.2 percent of the market, up from its 8.9 percent share in 2020. The company grew over 200 percent quarter on quarter in Q3 2021. It also raked in a record number of sales that quarter. The growth has been attributed to Samsung’s transition to Google’s Wear OS.

Other smartwatch brands that remained competitive in 2021 include Huawei, Imoo, Amazfit, Garmin, Fitbit, Xiaomi, and Noise. In 2021, Huawei continued to fight back US sanctions. Its shipments dipped overall, but it enjoyed a good Q4 with its Watch GT 3 and Watch Fit Mini doubling the shipments.

Imoo remained the leader in the smartwatch market for kids despite a slight YoY decline in market share and unit sales. Amazfit’s average selling price rose by 11 percent because it sold more high-end GTR and GTS models. In a two-year timeframe, the company recorded a 20 percent YoY growth. Garmin started transitioning from user-specific smartwatches to more mass-market products. It ranked one spot higher than 2020 in market share and showed a 35 percent YoY growth.

Fitbit’s performance dipped in 2021 while Xiaomi continued to surge ahead. Meanwhile, Noise had the smallest share globally, although it is a leading brand in the local Indian market.

Do you think the research firm’s statistics accurately represent Apple’s dominance in the smartwatch market? Will the domination continue in 2022? Tell us what you think in the comments section below.