Launched in 2003, the Nokia 1100 feature phone went on to sell 250 million units during its lifespan, earning the distinction of being the most popular mobile phone in history. This fact is widely echoed by industry visualizations and data compilations.
In second place sits another classic dialer from Nokia, the 1110, with a figure near 248 million devices in circulation. Close behind is the Apple iPhone 6 and 6 Plus lineup, which amassed about 222 million units. Rounding out the top five are the Nokia 105 with around 200 million units and the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, totaling roughly 174 million units.
Continuing the list are the iPhone 5s at about 165 million units, the Nokia 3210 with around 161 million, the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus near 160 million, and the trio of iPhone 11 series at about 159 million. The iPhone XR, XS, and XS Max stand at roughly 151 million, followed by the Nokia 6600 at about 150 million. The Nokia 1200 and Nokia 5230 also sit around 150 million units each, along with the Samsung E100 and the iPhone 5, which hover near 150 million and 146 million units respectively.
Despite Nokia’s dominance in the mobile phone market before the iPhone era, no current Nokia smartphone ranks among the ten most popular models. By the end of 2023, the most widely used phones were the iPhone 14 Pro Max, iPhone 14, and iPhone 14 Pro, with distribution figures of roughly 31 million, 26 million, and 24 million units, respectively.
The list then includes the iPhone 13 at about 22 million units, followed by the Samsung Galaxy A14 at around 20 million units, the Galaxy A14 5G at about 14 million, the Galaxy A54 5G near 14 million, the Galaxy S23 Ultra close to 13 million, the Galaxy A04e at around 11 million, and the Xiaomi Redmi 12C also near 11 million units.
Vivo previously introduced a budget smartphone that boasted impressive specifications, contributing to the ongoing discussion about what consumers expect from value-focused devices in North America and beyond.