Realme sold 300M phones globally — but couldn't hold 1% of China

Realme was founded in May 2018 as a sub-brand of OPPO targeting the budget-to-midrange market with a "dare to leap" positioning focused on large storage, fast charging, and gaming performance. It grew explosively overseas, becoming the fastest brand ever to reach 100 million global sales in just 37 months. By 2025 it had sold over 300 million phones worldwide and ranked among the global top 10 for six consecutive years.

In China the story was different. Realme's market share peaked at 3.1% in 2021 with 10 million units sold, then declined steadily: 670,000 units in 2022, and just 1.22% share in 2024. By the fourth quarter of 2025 its share had fallen below 1%. The brand was caught in an impossible position — squeezed between Xiaomi and Honor in the budget segment while competing internally with its sibling OnePlus for the same performance-focused, online-channel customer.

On July 16, 2026, Realme vice president Xu Qi published an open letter on Weibo announcing the brand was "pressing the pause button" in China. The decision followed a broader OPPO restructuring: Realme had already moved its team into OPPO's headquarters in early 2026, merged after-sales into OPPO's 5,000+ service centers, and consolidated its product line with OnePlus under a single division. Existing Realme users would receive system updates through ColorOS, with Realme UI phased out entirely.

Realme's global operations would continue, with a renewed focus on the Nordic region and other overseas markets. The China exit was framed as a strategic reallocation — concentrating resources where the brand could build a sustainable profit model rather than fighting a losing battle on its home front.