Global PC shipments topped 270 million units last year. Gartner on Jan. 21 released preliminary findings showing 2025 global PC shipments at 270 million units, up 9.1 percent from 2024. Fourth-quarter shipments were 71.5 million units, up 9.3 percent from a year earlier. The market is seen as shifting to full-fledged growth after a contraction in 2022 to 2023 and a modest recovery in 2024.

The growth was driven by demand for Windows 11 upgrades and inventory stocking ahead of memory price increases. Rishi Padhi (리시 파디), vice president of research at Gartner, explained that the PC market grew in the fourth quarter last year as consumer demand combined with corporate replacement demand from Windows 11 upgrades.

Average selling prices in the fourth quarter stayed at about the same level as a year earlier. Padhi said price increases for high-end GPUs and AI PCs toward the end of the quarter were offset by promotions and pricing pressure.

By vendor, Lenovo recorded 17.6 percent growth and held on to the top spot. Its annual shipments were 73,567,000 units, taking a 27.2 percent share. HP shipped 57,457,000 units, up 8.3 percent, and Dell shipped 41,392,000 units, up 4.9 percent.

In the fourth quarter, the top three vendors including Lenovo, HP and Dell all expanded their market shares from a year earlier. Lenovo grew 14.3 percent, HP 12.1 percent and Dell 18.2 percent. There was no major change in the rankings of the top six manufacturers.

Padhi said shifting tariff policies, expected memory price increases this year and rising costs for Windows 10 Extended Security Updates combined to make companies prioritise hardware replacement. He added that manufacturers also contributed to 2025 market growth by putting AI PCs at the forefront to actively target replacement demand.

He also pointed to limitations in AI PCs' practical impact. Padhi said many AI PC features, including local inference, have yet to deliver clear productivity improvements compared with cloud-based AI. As a result, he said, many companies are upgrading PCs as part of replacing IT infrastructure for the future, rather than seeking immediate business value through AI functions.