According to forecasts by IDC, some 396 million wearables will be sold in 2020, which represents an increase of 14.5% over 2019. The marketing intelligence consultancy also predicts that this figure is set to grow to 637 million units sold by 2024.
Sales of 'hearables,' that is to say headphones, account for close to 60% of all sales, with 234.3 million units sold in 2020. This category takes into account any audio headwear including hi-fi units for home listening, wireless noise canceling and sports headphones, and even simultaneous translation earphones.
Other wearable categories with burgeoning sales are watches (91.4 million units or 23.1% of overall sales) and wristbands and fitness trackers (67.7 million units or 17.1% of overall sales).
IDC predicts that the wearables market will continue to grow by 12.4% per year to reach 637 million units sold in 2024.
