market share

noun

Updated on: 11 Apr 2018

Definition of market share

: the percentage of the market for a product or service that a company supplies

See market share defined for English-language learners

Examples of market share in a Sentence

The company has gained market share in the past year.
companies working to increase their market shares

Recent Examples of market share from the Web

Industry research firm Frost & Sullivan estimates that Lytx has about 60 percent market share in fleet video telematics.

— mike freeman, sandiegouniontribune.com, "San Diego's Lytx brings in new investors to support growth in fleet video technologies," 6 Apr. 2018
The company has the largest market share of any state in the country, according to analyses by the American Medical Association.

— leada gore, AL.com, "Marines identify 4 killed in helicopter crash," 6 Apr. 2018
Combined, DoorDash and Postmates would have about 23 percent market share, according to data from Second Measure, a startup that analyzes debit and credit card transactions.

— jason del rey, Recode, "Postmates and DoorDash have discussed a merger to fend off Uber, GrubHub and Amazon," 6 Apr. 2018
Of the ten biggest supermarkets in China by market share, only three have yet to claim a broader allegiance to either of the Messrs Ma.

— The Economist, "Online retailers go offline in China," 5 Apr. 2018
In attempts to gain market share, rides are given out for free or mere pennies.

— Time, "The Trouble with Sharing: China's Bike Fever Has Reached Saturation Point," 2 Apr. 2018
So far, electric cars have only a small market share due to higher cost, limited range and lack of places to charge.

— Washington Post, "Daimler, BMW to merge car-sharing, other digital services," 29 Mar. 2018
Like other anchor department stores, Macy’s has struggled to compete in shifting retail landscape and has been losing market share, according to Coresight Research.

— janelle nanos, BostonGlobe.com, "Macy’s hopes Backstage will put it back in the spotlight," 17 Mar. 2018
The primary force blocking past efforts has been the state's small but powerful liquor store industry, which feared losing market share to supermarkets and big box retailers on the second busiest shopping day of the year.

— tony cook, Indianapolis Star, "Sunday alcohol sales could start March 4 in Indiana now that House has approved the move," 20 Feb. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'market share.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of market share

1954

Financial Definition of MARKET SHARE

market share

noun

What It Is

Market share refers to a company's portion of sales within the entire market in which it operates. This metric indicates a company's size within its market.

How It Works

The formula for market share is:

Market Share = (Particular Company's Sales Revenue in Time Period X) / (Relevant Market's Total Sales Revenue in Time Period X)

Let's assume Company XYZ sells $50 million a year in widgets. If the total amount of widgets sold from all companies within the market totals $100 million, then Company XYZ has a market share equal to 50%.

Market Share = ($50 million) / ($100 million)

Why It Matters

As the market for a good or service grows, many analysts view the maintenance or increase in market share as a sign of a company's competitiveness. Increases in market share might come from innovation, broadening demographic appeal, lower prices, or simply advertising.

Sometimes a company garners too much market share and becomes part of an oligopoly or even becomes a monopoly. If this is the case, it could violate anti-trust laws and be ordered to divest assets or take some other action to increase competition.

Source: Investing Answers