- HarmonyOS PC shipments expected to increase tenfold to 1.4 million units in 2026
- Global PC market expected to fall 12% in 2026, while Chrome sinks 28%
- Rising memory and storage prices put heavy pressure on low-cost PC vendors
Huawei’s HarmonyOS is rapidly expanding beyond smartphones and tablets, emerging as a notable platform for business desktops and laptops.
In 2025, HarmonyOS PCs sold just 141,000 units, but forecasts suggest that number could increase tenfold to 1.4 million in 2026.
This growth comes even as the global PC market shrinks, highlighting a potential shift in platform adoption that could allow HarmonyOS to overtake ChromeOS within two years.
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PC market pressures create opportunities
The global PC market is expected to decline 12% in 2026, with shipments of desktops, laptops and workstations falling to 245 million units.
Rising memory and storage prices have put pressure on vendors, particularly on products priced under $500, which are expected to drop 28%.
Windows PCs are expected to drop 12%, and ChromeOS devices face an even steeper drop of 28%, largely due to education-focused demand and tighter component allocation.
Macs are forecast to fall just 5%, benefiting from premium prices and integrated supply chains.
HarmonyOS remains smaller in business desktops and laptops, but its growth trajectory stands out.
Analysts note that a tenfold increase from a small base demonstrates momentum in segments where cost-sensitive consumers and regional adoption favor Huawei’s platform.
“The supply-driven crisis in 2026 will not affect all PC platforms equally,” said Kieren Jessop, research director at Omdia.
“HarmonyOS-based PCs are emerging as a notable growth segment, and are projected to expand tenfold year-on-year from a small base as Huawei ramps up its PC ecosystem in China.”
The expansion of the operating system is closely tied to Huawei’s device ecosystem, which could allow it to leverage smartphones, tablets and peripherals to accelerate adoption on PCs.
Huawei’s operating system, HarmonyOS, was launched in 2019 as a response to the United States banning Huawei from using Android.
In 2024, the company launched HarmonyOS Next and moved its PCs to the new system, just as it did with its phones.
This strategy has proven to be successful, with HarmonyOS and the Next version now on nearly a billion devices.
Although HarmonyOS remains small compared to Windows and ChromeOS, the platform’s year-over-year growth and strategic ecosystem integration suggest it could claim a larger share of the global market by the end of 2027.
If Huawei maintains production capacity and component supply, its presence in business laptops and desktops may create a new alternative for cost-sensitive buyers.
In emerging markets, Huawei’s HarmonyOS will likely become a competitor in otherwise declining segments.
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