IDC, an analyst company, has announced that it expects wearable devices to return to growth this year following their first-ever contraction in 2022. While 2023’s first quarter won’t be very good with a year-over-year decline in shipments expected, the rest of the year should help the sector achieve 6.3% growth year-over-year with shipments expected to touch 442.7 million devices.
Some of the issues that wearable devices are undergoing at the moment are that there’s excess inventory which is depressing shipments and average selling prices. By the second half of the year, IDC expects these issues to be gone and for growth to return. Once the growth kicks off, it’s expected to last until at least 2027. IDC says that by 2027, worldwide shipments will reach 644.5 million with a compound annual growth of 5.4%.
Wearable devices include a broad range of products. Notable items include earwear, smartwatches, and wrist bands. IDC has outlined the expected 2023 and 2027 shipment figures and the 2022-2027 compound annual growth rates.
| Product | 2023 Shipments | 2023 Market Share | 2027 Shipments | 2027 Market Share | 2022-2027 CAGR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Earwear | 325.0 | 62.1% | 404.0 | 62.7% | 5.6% |
| Smartwatch | 162.2 | 31.0% | 205.3 | 31.9% | 6.1% |
| Wrist Band | 33.8 | 6.5% | 31.7 | 4.9% | -1.6% |
| Others | 2.2 | 0.4% | 3.5 | 0.5% | 12.5% |
| Total | 523.2 | 100.0% | 644.5 | 100.0% | 5.4% |
As people continue to be squeezed financially, and the threat of a global recession looms, it’ll be interesting to see whether IDC’s predictions about wearable devices come true. If you want to see what the company has predicted about AR and VR headsets, be sure to check out our previous coverage.