Google’s Pixel line of smartphones continue to make inroads in the market, crossing a major milestone thanks to the new Pixel 9 lineup.

According to Counterpoint Research, Pixel 9 series shipments in the US increased 20% over the Pixel 8. The only other company that saw an increase in shipments was Motorola—coming in at 21%—while all others declined.

Maurice Klaehne, Senior Analyst said, “The Pixel 9 series had a staggard launch this year starting at the end of August with the Pixel 9 and 9 Pro XL, followed by the 9 Pro and 9 Pro Fold in the beginning of September. This helped increase shipments in the quarter compared to the October launch of the Pixel 8 series. The Pixel 9 Pro XL cracked the top ten best-selling premium smartphones in the quarter. We expect GenAI smartphones to perform well in Q4 as more software updates for both iOS and Android get released.”

Interestingly, Apple was one of the smartphone companies to see declining shipments, and unusual scenario for the iPhone maker.

Research Director Jeff Fieldhack said, “Apple sell-in was muted in Q3, however we did see September sales up 6% as Apple benefitted from an earlier iPhone 16 launch. At launch, we saw many users of older iPhone generations upgrade, helping initial sales. We believe Apple Intelligence will motivate upgraders in the future, but this upgrade period was not a significant driver.”

According to Statcounter, the increase in shipments helped Google cross into double-digit market share territory, with the company now sitting at 12.9% of the US smartphone market. That puts it in third place, behind Apple and Samsung.

While Google has sold the Pixel for years, the Pixel 6 is widely seen as a turning point when the smartphone truly began to compete favorably with top-end phones from Apple and Samsung. Google is certainly capitalizing on its opportunity, and will likely continue to steal away market share from its larger rivals.