69% Of 2026 Smartphones Now Sell Above Launch Price, Only 7% Have Cut Prices: Techarc
· Free Press Journal
Most smartphones launched in India this year now cost more than they did on day one, according to a new report from market research firm Techarc. Of the phones launched in 2026, 69 percent sell above their own launch price and only 7 percent have cut prices, the firm said .
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A reversal of last year's pattern
Techarc describes the finding as an inversion of India's usual pricing cycle. The 2026 cohort shows the reverse of what the 2025 cohort did, when price cuts outnumbered increases, according to the firm. Faisal Kawoosa, Techarc's chief analyst, said the discount ladder has inverted, and that it has done so regressively.
Where prices have risen
Measured against last festive season, mid-range phones priced between Rs. 12,000 and Rs. 25,000 are 24.4 percent more expensive, Techarc said. Entry phones, priced up to Rs. 12,000, are 18.5 percent dearer. Only the Luxe segment, above Rs. 1,00,000, has become cheaper, by 3.5 percent.
Kawoosa said the segments carrying the festive lift are the ones where list prices rose most this year. Mid-range phones saw buyer activity rise 2 times during the 2025 festive window, and Premium phones, priced between Rs. 25,000 and Rs. 50,000, rose 2.13 times. Together the two bands account for 93 percent of expected festive demand, the report said.
What it means for festive discounts
Kawoosa said brands will be discounting against an inflated base, and buyers who tracked prices last season will notice. In his words, a flat price is already a concession this year. In practice, a headline discount on a 2026 launch may only bring the price back to, or near, where the phone started.
Entry buyers stretching their budgets
The report also found that Entry was the only price band where buyer activity fell during last year's festive window, to 0.72 times its pre-season rate. Techarc concludes that entry-level buyers use festive discounts to move up to a mid-range phone and not to save money. It also found that overall buyer activity rose 1.8 times during the October-November 2025 window, then fell back to 0.97 times its pre-season level within a month.
How the study was done
Techarc analysed 301 smartphones sold online in India between January 2025 and August 2026, using lifetime buyer ratings, monthly price tracking and specifications for phones listed on Amazon and Flipkart. The firm says ratings show how quickly models move relative to each other and do not count units sold. The price findings therefore describe phones in Techarc's online sample and not the entire market, including offline retail.