In India, the average duration of smartphone financing reached 10 months in Q2 2026, with Tier 2 cities becoming the most reliant on financing, where EMI schemes represented 57.5 per cent of total purchases, according to a report released on Monday.
According to Counterpoint Research, non-banking financial companies are providing a broader selection of EMI tenure options to accommodate varied consumer budgets, while Tier 3 and smaller markets have continued to record penetration rates exceeding 50 per cent.
Amid lower financing penetration in online channels, overall smartphone financing is expected to account for 42 per cent of total smartphone sales in India in 2026.
Apple reported the longest average financing duration among smartphone brands at 17.2 months, while Samsung maintained its position as the top brand by volume of smartphones sold through financing, with vivo and Apple following behind.
The report projected that financing will represent more than half of smartphone sales in India’s primary retail channels, supported by robust affordability schemes led by non-banking financial companies (NBFCs).
"However, India’s smartphone financing ecosystem continued to evolve in Q2 2026 as brands increasingly focus on improving affordability through more flexible repayment structures," the report said.
Apple’s elevated average financing term indicates a rising reliance on longer-duration payment plans to reduce monthly ownership expenses and facilitate upgrades to more premium devices, the company stated.
Smartphone financing is primarily aimed at reducing the monthly cost of owning a device. According to Tarun Pathak, Research Director at Counterpoint Research, consumers today are more concerned with how much they must pay each month than with the handset’s initial purchase price.
Pathak noted that brands and financial institutions are rolling out more flexible financing schemes, such as EMI plans of up to 30 months, to keep monthly instalments manageable and broaden access to premium smartphones for a larger group of consumers.
This expansion is being fuelled by the wider penetration of NBFC financing in non-metro regions, increasing consumer desire to switch to higher-priced smartphones, and the introduction of more flexible affordability schemes offered by brands and retail partners.
