NEEDHAM, Mass. — (BUSINESS WIRE) — March 18, 2021 — Persistent demand led the global PC monitor market to impressive heights during the fourth quarter of 2020 (4Q20). The market grew 16.9% year over year with shipments surpassing 39.2 million units, a number last exceeded during the fourth quarter of 2011. For the full year 2020, shipments grew 8.3% compared to 2019, according to the International Data Corporation ( IDC) Worldwide Quarterly PC Monitor Tracker. This was the strongest full year growth since IDC began tracking the monitor market in 2008.

The high volume in 4Q20 was fueled by a combination of strong demand due to working and learning from home requirements and display panel component shortages that further expanded shipments. Although some geographies have seen life move closer to pre-pandemic levels, ongoing restrictions of varying degrees continued to help funnel consumer budgets to furnish their homes for work or entertainment, even as low office occupancy inhibited commercial monitor spending. At the same time, a shortage of components like display driver integrated circuits (ICs) and rising shipping costs also contributed to shipment growth as some manufacturers opted to amass stock ahead of component price hikes that could last through the middle of 2021.

Company Highlights

The top 5 companies commanded a smaller share of the overall market in the fourth quarter compared to a year ago as IT budgets continued to prioritize other initiatives and office occupancy remained low. Notably, commercially focused Dell and HP Inc. experienced slight contractions for the full year 2020 while vendors with more focus on consumers and less dependent on mature markets collectively increased their market share compared to a year ago.