IDC: PC Market Woes Continue: Shipments Fall 20.1% in Q3 2026

Worldwide PC shipments fell 20.1% year over year in Q3 2026 to 62.7 million units, according to preliminary results from IDC Research (IDC), the second consecutive decline and a deeper one than the 3.8% drop in Q2. Shipments also slipped 9.1% sequentially, upending the usual pattern in which Q3 outpaces Q2. Continued supply constraints and the inventory pull-in earlier in the year, as vendors and channels rushed to stock up ahead of memory-driven price hikes, left the quarter with little demand to draw on.

“What we’re seeing is the result of the strong first half pull-in. Vendors and channels loaded up on inventory early in the year to get ahead of price hikes, and that has thrown off the usual seasonality, where Q3 is typically larger than Q2,” said Jitesh Ubrani, research director for consumer devices at IDC. “Channels are now worried about carrying too much inventory into a market where high prices are suppressing demand. That could translate into promotions and some short-term relief for consumers, but we don’t expect pricing anywhere near what it was a year ago. Prices will remain elevated. With macro conditions worsening, the risk is that the outlook for the next few quarters gets worse before it gets better.”

Channel concern over high inventory and soft demand at elevated prices could bring promotions in the near term, but pricing will stay well above year-ago levels, according to IDC. The bigger risk is macro: conditions have worsened since last quarter, and a weaker economic backdrop could push demand lower and darken the outlook for the remainder of 2026 and into 2027.

The pain was not evenly shared. Lenovo, HP Inc, and Dell Technologies all fell faster than the market and together ceded 4.2 points of share as they were likely facing the effects of pull-in from earlier in the year.

Channel Impact^®
Channels are concerned about high inventory and low demand, so promotions are possible. However, prices are expected to remain elevated and well above where they were at the same time last year. Worsening macro conditions are the main concern. A weaker economy could soften demand further, and with prices still high and supply constrained, the outlook for the remainder of 2026 and going into 2027 could deteriorate.