Global Shipments of PC Workstations Shrank Nearly 9% in 2023, but Recovery Expected as Several Market Drivers Coalesce in 2024, According to IDC

The global desktop and mobile workstation market reported a slight recovery as it exited 2023, with unit shipments growing 6.1% year over year in the fourth quarter (4Q23). According to the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Workstation Tracker, the 1.85 million units shipped in 4Q23 reversed five consecutive quarters of declining annual shipment growth.

For much of 2023, the workstation market was constrained by budget curtailments and inventory issues. The COVID-19 pandemic initially helped to drive demand but later contributed to excess shipments, culminating in record volume of over 7.6 million in 2022. The first half of 2023 thus saw a sharp contraction from weak demand and high channel inventory. Trends began to stabilize in the second half of the year as mainstream mobile workstation and entry fixed workstation demand improved, but nonetheless 2023 shipments shrank 8.8% year over year, marking the second worst percentage drop since IDC began tracking the market in 2008.

"2023 was undoubtedly tough in many respects, but we ended the year with some silver linings and expectations of better things going forward," said Jay Chou, research manager for IDC's Worldwide Client Devices Trackers. "For one, the market is still bigger than where things stood before the pandemic and is more resilient than the overall PC market. Beyond the short term, we expect several drivers to take place beginning in the latter half of 2024. With Windows 10 support expiring in late 2025, we expect enterprises to speed up the migration toward Windows 11, which should last through next year. We also expect new CPU and GPU launches to occur around this timeframe. Finally, current exploration around AI for work should translate into an expansion of use cases, including model development, across numerous industries."

Company Highlights

Dell remained firmly in the top position. Although Dell saw its shipment volume shrank slightly in 4Q23 versus a year ago, its steady performance enabled it to outperform the market for all of 2023. At number 2, HP Inc. underperformed against the market for most of 2023, but its 4Q23 volume growth was helped by channel replenishment of its entry systems. Third place Lenovo grew over 11% in 4Q23 but was still somewhat hampered by continued softness in the Chinese market.

A graphic illustrating the worldwide market share of the top 5 workstation companies over the previous five quarters is available by viewing this press release on IDC.com.

IDC expects workstation shipments to grow 5.2% in 2024 as the market replenishes stock and prepares for refresh projects. The momentum will build through 2025 when growth should top 7.9%. Growth will moderate after the dash toward Windows 11 migration by late 2025, but the market will still see a five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 2% for the 2022—2028 forecast period.

A graphic illustrating IDC's 2022—2028 forecast for the worldwide market is available by viewing this press release on IDC.com.

IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Workstation Tracker gathers detailed market data in over 90 countries. The research includes historical and forecast trend analysis among other data.

About IDC Trackers

IDC Tracker products provide accurate and timely market size, company share, and forecasts for hundreds of technology markets from more than 100 countries around the globe. Using proprietary tools and research processes, IDC's Trackers are updated on a semiannual, quarterly, and monthly basis. Tracker results are delivered to clients in user-friendly Excel deliverables and on-line query tools.

For more information, or to subscribe to the research, please contact Jackie Kliem at 508-988-7984 or jkliem@idc.com.

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About IDC

International Data Corporation (IDC) is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events for the information technology, telecommunications, and consumer technology markets. With more than 1,300 analysts worldwide, IDC offers global, regional, and local expertise on technology, IT benchmarking and sourcing, and industry opportunities and trends in over 110 countries. IDC's analysis and insight helps IT professionals, business executives, and the investment community to make fact-based technology decisions and to achieve their key business objectives. Founded in 1964, IDC is a wholly owned subsidiary of International Data Group (IDG), the world's leading tech media, data, and marketing services company. To learn more about IDC, please visit www.idc.com. Follow IDC on Twitter at @IDC and LinkedIn. Subscribe to the IDC Blog for industry news and insights.

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Worldwide shipments of desktop and mobile workstations grew 6.1% year over year in Q4 2023 but declined 8.8% for the full year 2023, according to the IDC Worldwide Quarterly Workstation Tracker.