IDC Personal Computer Market Forecast Changes For 2026
International Data Corporation (IDC) has issued a significant downward revision for the personal computing market in 2026. Global PC shipments are now expected to decline by 11.3% this year, a sharp contrast to the -2.4% projection released in November 2025. Tablet shipments have also been adjusted to a forecast decline of 7.6%. These shifts are primarily attributed to severe memory shortages and supply chain instability that experts believe will persist through 2027.
The expected shipment decrease takes place because of two main reasons which include both technical challenges and geopolitical developments. Manufacturers face multiple urgent challenges which they must solve.
- Component Scarcity: The ongoing memory module availability issues continue to restrict production output.
- Rising Costs: The higher component prices create market changes which force a market transformation.
- Geopolitical Headwinds: The Middle Eastern conflict escalation has created new transportation difficulties which had not been predicted during the late 2025 planning period.
- Supply Chain Volatility: The industry continues to alter its recovery goals because unpredictable market conditions create challenges.
The market value is projected to increase as Average Selling Prices (ASPs) will rise despite declining shipment numbers. The period of affordable budget hardware has ended because manufacturers have started passing their higher component expenses to customers.
The total value of the PC market will reach $274 billion in 2026 which represents a 1.6% market expansion. The tablet market will increase its value by 3.9% which will bring its total to $66.8 billion. The analysts believe that memory prices will decrease in 2028 however hardware prices will stay above 2025 levels. The market establishes its new standard through a combination of elevated prices together with reduced customer demand.
Technology vendors respond to the existing challenges through changes in their manufacturing approaches. The present industry operates with supply chain strength and adaptable resource acquisition as its core business model.
Some manufacturers are exploring "down spec'ing" which involves them cutting back on particular hardware requirements to maintain budget friendly device costs while dealing with their costly component inventory.
End users will experience slower hardware adoption because consumers and enterprises will be forced to evaluate whether they need to upgrade their devices despite facing substantial price increases. The supply chain situation creates persistent challenges for both vendors and buyers because they lack information about when global supply chain problems will stop.
