Samsung Electronics, South Korea’s largest technology company and the maker of Galaxy smartphones, controls 81% of its home smartphone market. Yet the company loses its lead among one group that could matter most over the long term. South Koreans in their 20s are more likely to use an iPhone than a Galaxy device.
According to a nationwide survey by Gallup Korea, a South Korean polling firm, 81% of smartphone users use Samsung Galaxy devices, while 19% use Apple’s iPhone. The survey covered 1,675 people aged 13 and older across South Korea, excluding Jeju Island.
The overall result shows how deeply Samsung is embedded in everyday life in the country where the company was founded. Galaxy usage stood at 84% among men and 78% among women. Samsung’s advantage also widened with age, reaching 62% among people in their 30s, 84% among those in their 40s, 97% among those in their 50s and 100% among respondents aged 60 and older.
The pattern reversed among people in their 20s. In that age group, 53% used an iPhone and 47% used a Galaxy device. Apple’s strongest support came from women in their 20s, 67% of whom used an iPhone. Teenage girls were the only other group in which Apple held a majority, with an iPhone usage rate of 58%.
The generational divide shows that Samsung’s industrial strength and domestic presence do not automatically determine what younger consumers carry. In South Korea, smartphones have become closely tied to personal style, social circles and digital habits, particularly among younger users. That has given Apple room to build a distinct cultural position even in a market where Samsung remains overwhelmingly dominant.
The divide may also become harder to reverse. When respondents were asked which brand they expected to buy next, 78% chose Galaxy and 21% chose iPhone. Users of both brands were highly likely to remain with the same company, reflecting the growing influence of connected devices, apps, cloud services and other features that make switching platforms less attractive.
Samsung remains far ahead in South Korea’s smartphone market. But Apple’s lead among people in their 20s suggests that the more important contest is no longer only over current market share. It is also over whether younger consumers remain inside Apple’s ecosystem as they grow older, potentially carrying today’s generational split into the broader market.
