India has always remained a competitive market for smartphone brands, driven by value and aggressive pricing. However, recently there has been a stark shift. In the second half of 2025, smartphone prices, especially those of flagship phones, have skyrocketed. While the budget and mid-range segment remains unaffected so far, based on what CMF India VP has mentioned, it is also set to change in 2026.
CMF phones could get more expensive pretty soon
Himanshu Tandon, the current CMF Vice President of Business, has revealed via an X post that smartphone prices will rise in 2026, especially in India. He says that every brand will launch its new smartphones in the country with an immediate price hike. As to why this will happen, Tandon has given two valid reasons.
The number one culprit here is the rise in component costs, especially memory chips. Due to the surge in demand for AI data centres, most of the available chip stock has already been booked by AI vendors, leaving very little behind for smartphone manufacturers. Hence, to offset the costs, the burden has been shifted to the consumers. Even Samsung has surged the price of its DDR5 memory chips by up to 60%.
Now, the next major reason why the ripple effect of price hike is the hardest in India is because of the Rupee depreciation against the US Dollar. Currently, $1 is equivalent to 89.91 Indian rupees. This has severely weakened the position of the Nation's currency and has resulted in direct inflation. Tandon claims that this is a major reason for higher import costs and, in turn, expensive smartphones.
So, all in all, the shortage of key smartphone components coupled with economic reasons, is why India is bearing the brunt of smartphone price hikes. This comes after Xiaomi confirmed price hike in 2026 for its upcoming models. While Tandon has not explicitly mentioned it in his post, this could be a subtle hint at the fact that CMF phone prices in India are increasing in 2026.
This is because he has mentioned the average amount of price hike for each category. The affordable or budget segment will see the least amount of hike at 4–6%, while the flagship category will witness the highest at 7–9%. The mid-range section will sit in the middle at 6–8%. Since CMF smartphones target the affordable and mid-range category, we can expect a Rs 15,000 to Rs 28,000 price hike across models.
That said, there is no doubt that smartphone prices will increase next year. As to how much, it is yet to be seen. So, for those who are looking to purchase a new smartphone in 2026 and beyond, be prepared to pay extra to own the latest piece of hardware.
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