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Samsung vs Apple, in numbers

How much do their CEO's earn? What do their flagship phones cost? Find out this and more in our look at the two great smartphone rivals.
By
April 12, 2019
Apple vs Samsung: the Galaxy Note 9 and the iPhone XS Max.

Samsung and Apple are fierce rivals, responsible for some of the world’s most anticipated smartphones. They’ve stood toe-to-toe at the top of the global smartphone manufacturer foodchain numerous times over the past decade. But they are very different companies, with very different approaches.

Join us now as we take a birdseye view of both manufacturers to see how they compare. This is Samsung vs Apple, in numbers.

Founded

Samsung: March 1 in 1938, in Daegu (previously known as Taegu), South Korea
Apple: April 1, 1976, Cupertino, California, United States

Founders

Samsung: Lee Byung-chul
Apple: Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, Ronald Wayne

Number of employees

Samsung: 320,671 employees (as of December, 2017)
Apple: 132,000 full-time employees (as of the end of its 2018 fiscal year)

Apple vs Samsung: the Galaxy Note 9 and the iPhone XS Max face-up on a table.

CEO

Samsung: Koh Dong-Jin (also known as DJ Koh), Kim Hyun-Suk, Kim Ki-nam
Apple: Tim Cook

CEO salary

Samsung: 24.38 billion Korean won (~$21.29 million), to Kwon Oh-hyun (former CEO) in 2017.
Apple: $15,682,219 ($3 million salary and $12 million in bonuses) to Tim Cook in 2018.

Market share

Q1, 2017Q2, 2017Q3, 2017Q4, 2017Q1, 2018Q2, 2018Q3, 2018
Samsung
Q1, 2017
23.2%
Q2, 2017
22.9%
Q3, 2017
22.1%
Q4, 2017
18.9%
Q1, 2018
23.5%
Q2, 2018
21.0%
Q3, 2018
20.3%


Apple
Q1, 2017
14.7%
Q2, 2017
11.8%
Q3, 2017
12.4%
Q4, 2017
19.6%
Q1, 2018
15.7%
Q2, 2018
12.1%
Q3, 2018
13.2%


Best selling phone:

Samsung: E1100, 2009: 150 million units (feature phone). Galaxy S4, 2013: 80 million units (smartphone).
Apple: iPhone 6 and iPhone 6s, 2014: 220 million units.

Apple vs Samsung: the Galaxy Note 9 and the iPhone XS Max face down on a table.

Biggest acquisition

Samsung: Harman International Industries, 2017: roughly $8 billion
Apple: Beats Electronics, 2014: roughly $3 billion

Recent flagship phone launch prices

Samsung:
Galaxy S10: 
$899
Galaxy S10 Plus: $999
Galaxy Note 9: $999
Galaxy S9: $719
Galaxy S9 Plus: $839

Apple:
iPhone XS: $999
iPhone XS Max: $1099
iPhone XR: $749
iPhone X: $999
iPhone 8: $599
iPhone 8 Plus: $699

Apple vs Samsung: the Galaxy Note 9 and the iPhone XS Max face-up on a table.

Recent earnings

201820172016
Samsung revenue
2018
~$212.79 billion
(243.77 trillion Korean won)
2017
~$209.12 billion
(239.58 trillion Korean won)
2016
~$176.21 billion
(201.87 trillion Korean won )
Apple revenue
2018
$265.60 billion (fiscal year)

2017
$229.23 billion (fiscal year)

2016
$215.64 billion (fiscal year)
Samsung operating profit
2018
~$51.39 billion
(58.89 trillion Korean won)
2017
~$46.82 billion
(53.65 trillion Korean won)
2016
~$25.52 billion
(29.24 trillion Korean won)
Apple operating profit
2018
$70.90 billion (fiscal year)
2017
$61.34 billion (fiscal year)
2016
$60.02 billion (fiscal year)

Thanks for joining us on this Samsung vs Apple journey. Which company do you think has done the most for the smartphone world? Let us know in the comments.