Report: Here's the number one reason people leave Android for the iPhone

Earlier in May, we saw a report from Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP) detailing how Android are leaving the platform for the iPhone. That report showed a concerning rise in the number of people jumping ship compared to recent years.

Now, CIRP has published a follow-up report on its Substack (h/t 9to5Mac). The follow-up report details why those people surveyed left Android behind.

According to the data, the main reason people leave Android for iOS is that they’ve had problems with their Android phones. Interestingly, a little more than half of the responders claimed this.

CIRP explained this category using the following language:

Prior phone problems: Their old phone did not serve them, because it was aging, needed repair, or had some deficiency that affected their user experience.

In a way, this reason being number one is actually not too bad. A large chunk of these users could simply be platform agnostic and left Android behind because they had an old phone and wanted something new, and the iPhone was the best option at the time. Obviously, that wouldn’t account for everyone, but it could apply to a good number of them.

Check out the chart below for more data.

The reason people leave Android for iPhone

Here’s how CIRP explained the other three categories:

• New phone features: They wanted more and different ways to use their smartphone, like a better camera, enhanced accessory options, or a more intuitive user interface.
• Cost: They could spend less on a new iPhone than they expected or than on a comparable Android smartphone.
• Community connecting: They wanted a smartphone that integrates with family and friends, including using iMessage and FaceTime on iOS.

The most notable thing we see from this chart is that iMessage is not a big reason people leave Android. That falls into the “community connecting” category at just 6%. Here in the US, one would assume that would be one of if not the most significant reasons to exit the Android world.

Regardless of the reasoning, this chart just adds fuel to the fire of the problem Google faces. Google and its OEM partners need to figure out why people are leaving Android behind and address those problems head-on. If the numbers continue the way they are at the moment, Android could be the minority mobile operating system globally in just a few years.