China’s export ranking in 2023 by country
China exported about $3.38 trillion of goods in 2023, according to the figures it reports to the UN Comtrade database [1]. The United States was its largest export market by a wide margin, followed by Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea and Vietnam.
| Rank | Destination | China’s exports, 2023 | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States | $501.2 billion | 14.8% |
| 2 | Hong Kong | $274.5 billion | 8.1% |
| 3 | Japan | $157.5 billion | 4.7% |
| 4 | South Korea | $149.0 billion | 4.4% |
| 5 | Vietnam | $137.6 billion | 4.1% |
| 6 | India | $117.7 billion | 3.5% |
| 7 | Russia | $110.9 billion | 3.3% |
| 8 | Germany | $100.6 billion | 3.0% |
| 9 | Netherlands | $100.2 billion | 3.0% |
| 10 | Malaysia | $87.4 billion | 2.6% |
By product, electrical machinery and electronics (customs chapter 85, which includes phones) was by far the biggest group at about $896 billion, followed by machinery and computers (chapter 84) at about $511 billion and vehicles (chapter 87) at about $193 billion [1].
Where China’s smartphones go
Smartphones are one of China’s single largest exports. In 2023 China exported $136.7 billion of them (customs code 851713), which matches the $137 billion total on the infographic by RobinWheeliams on this page, based on OEC data [1][2][3]. The UN Comtrade figures confirm the infographic’s shares to within a fraction of a percentage point.
| Destination | China’s smartphone exports, 2023 | Share |
|---|---|---|
| United States | $38.4 billion | 28.1% |
| Hong Kong | $31.0 billion | 22.7% |
| Japan | $8.2 billion | 6.0% |
| Netherlands | $6.6 billion | 4.8% |
| Czechia | $4.9 billion | 3.6% |
| United Arab Emirates | $4.5 billion | 3.3% |
| United Kingdom | $4.1 billion | 3.0% |
| Singapore | $2.7 billion | 2.0% |
| Italy | $2.7 billion | 2.0% |
| Mexico | $2.6 billion | 1.9% |
| Saudi Arabia | $2.6 billion | 1.9% |
| Russia | $2.6 billion | 1.9% |
The United States and Hong Kong together took just over half of all the smartphones China exported. Further down, South Korea took 1.6%, Canada 1.5%, Australia 1.4%, Thailand 1.3%, Vietnam 0.9%, Turkey 0.8%, Germany 0.8%, India 0.6% and South Africa 0.5% [1].
Why Hong Kong and the Netherlands rank so high
Hong Kong took almost a quarter of China’s smartphone exports, which is far more than its 7.5 million people could use. Hong Kong has long been an entrepôt, a port that imports goods and re-exports them elsewhere [4], so a large share of those phones moves on to other markets. Export figures record where goods are first shipped, not where they end up.
The same caution applies to other trading hubs on the list, such as the Netherlands, home to the port of Rotterdam, and the United Arab Emirates. Their shares are large for the size of their populations and are likely to include phones that are passed on to neighbouring markets, so they are better read as gateways than as a measure of how many phones people there buy.
China is the world’s largest smartphone exporter
China is the dominant exporter of smartphones. Among countries reporting 2023 figures to UN Comtrade, China’s $136.7 billion was about five times the next largest, Vietnam at $26.5 billion. Hong Kong ($26.3 billion, mostly re-exports), the United Arab Emirates ($25.4 billion) and India ($14.3 billion) followed [1].
Of the countries near the top, Vietnam and India are the ones with large phone factories of their own. Hong Kong’s export figure is the other side of the entrepôt trade described above: phones shipped in, then sent on [4].
China’s smartphone exports since 2023
The 2023 picture has already changed. China’s smartphone exports fell to $132.6 billion in 2024 and $120.6 billion in 2025 [1]. Shipments to the United States dropped from $38.4 billion in 2023 to $35.2 billion in 2024 and $23.3 billion in 2025, and the US share fell from 28.1% to 19.3%. In 2025 Hong Kong overtook the United States as the largest destination, at $26.3 billion (21.8%), while Japan’s share rose to 7.5% [1].
China’s total exports kept growing over the same period, from $3.38 trillion in 2023 to $3.58 trillion in 2024 and $3.78 trillion in 2025, although exports to the United States fell to $421 billion in 2025 [1].
Questions about China’s export ranking in 2023
What are the major export countries of China?
In 2023 China’s largest export markets were the United States ($501 billion), Hong Kong ($275 billion), Japan ($158 billion), South Korea ($149 billion) and Vietnam ($138 billion) [1].
What is China’s biggest export?
Electrical machinery and electronics, worth about $896 billion in 2023. Within that group, smartphones alone were worth $136.7 billion [1].
Where does China export the most smartphones to?
In 2023 the United States took 28.1% of China’s smartphone exports and Hong Kong 22.7%. In 2025 Hong Kong moved into first place as shipments to the United States fell [1].
How many smartphones does China export to India?
Very few by value. India took $0.86 billion, or 0.6% of China’s smartphone exports in 2023, and India is itself the fifth largest smartphone exporter among reporting countries [1].
Which country exports the most smartphones?
China, with $136.7 billion of exports in 2023, about five times as much as Vietnam, the next largest reporting exporter [1].
Sources
- UN Comtrade, UN Comtrade database: China’s reported exports, total and HS 851713 (smartphones), by partner, 2023 to 2025; world exporters of HS 851713, 2023.
- OEC, Smartphones trade in China. The source named on the infographic.
- u/RobinWheeliams, [OC] Where Do China’s Smartphones Go? A Look at Global Export Destinations, r/Infographics.
- Wikipedia, Hong Kong.
Last reviewed 7 November 2026
