Smartphone ownership in the U.S. 2011-2021

The percentage of U.S. adults who own a smartphone has more than doubled since 2011. Only 35 percent of all U.S. adults owned a smartphone in 2011, compared to 85 percent of adults who owned a smartphone, as of February 2021. The share of U.S. adults owning a smartphone increased by 50 percent over the highlighted period. 

Higher smartphone usage with males and higher-income groups

    As smartphone penetration overall has increased over time in the United States, this trend can be observed in the split by gender as well. The penetration rate is not equally high though for both male and female users, as the usage amongst males is around five percent higher than amongst females in the United States.
The smartphone penetration rate in the United States correlates appears closely related to with household income in the United States. In households with an annual income of more than 50 thousand U.S. dollars the smartphone penetration rate is 90 percent or higher, while on the other hand smartphone ownership in households with an annual income below this threshold is below 80 percent.

Apple leader in U.S. smartphone market

    Apple is the leading vendor in the United States smartphone market with almost 50 percent of U.S. mobile phone subscribers using an Apple device. Although Apple is the leading vendor in the United States, the Apple iOS operating system has a lower market share than its main competitor Google Android. As the Android operating system is used by the vast majority of smartphone vendors other than Apple, it combines the share of popular brands such as Samsung, LG, and Lenovo/Motorola.