The augmented reality and virtual reality market picked up in 2024 with headset shipments growing 10% over the year, IDC has reported. This is a positive sign for companies like Meta as the market has been declining for the last two years. The analyst said that the launch of new products in the fourth quarter, and multiple new entrants during the year, helped the sector bounce back.
Meta dominated the AR/VR market, with a solid grasp of the market at a share of 74.6%. Apple (5.2%), Sony (4.3%), ByteDance (4.1%), and XREAL (3.3%) were Meta’s closest competitors during 2024. In the top five, only Meta and XREAL experienced year-over-year growth as a result of new products and a focus on gaming. At the same time, both companies also increased their average selling prices by offering more premium products.
The analyst found that commercial shipments had increased by 14.9%, with demand being driven by the Apple Vision Pro, the Meta Quest 3 and 3S, and the ByteDance PICO 4. Another important area that contributed to the growth, was Meta’s push into education, resulting in a 69.4% year-over-year increase in that segment in 2024.
Looking forward, Jitesh Ubrani, research manager, Worldwide Mobile Device Trackers at IDC, stated:
“In 2025, we anticipate even more glasses with displays and multi-modal artificial intelligence along and the introduction of Android XR hardware which is likely to lead to platform rivalries among the key players: Meta, Apple, Google, and everyone else.”
While new hardware is expected this year, IDC is not optimistic about shipments. It is forecasting an annual decline of 12% because supply indicators suggest some product launches will be delayed. With that said, it expects a compound annual growth rate of 38.6% between 2025 and 2029, which is excellent news for this market.
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