Intel remains the largest manufacturer of x86 processors by volume, but AMD is closing the gap at a pace not seen in decades. Mercury Research’s second-quarter 2026 data shows Intel’s global x86 market share at 69.3%, itslowest since 1995, versus AMD’s record 30.7%. The pressure is even greater in servers: AMD reaches 34.5% in conventional calculations, and Mercury estimates it would hit 46.4% if the way both companies account for certain data center processors were standardized.
The key points of the x86 market in 20 seconds
- Intel drops to 69.3% of the x86 market, and AMD reaches a maximum of 30.7%.
- In servers, Mercury officially reports AMD at 34.5%, compared to 65.5% for Intel.
- Adjusting for accounting differences, AMD would reach 46.4% and Intel 53.6%.
- Intel is growing strongly in revenue, but AMD is increasing shipments even faster.
This snapshot is especially interesting because Intel’s loss of market share coincides with a strong recovery in its business. The company reported $16.1 billion in revenue during Q2, a 25% year-over-year increase, with its Data Center and AI division reaching $6.3 billion, a 59% increase.
AMD is not only growing at the expense of a weakened rival. Its quarterly revenue increased by 50%, reaching a record $11.536 billion, and its data center division more than doubled its sales: $6.718 billion, up 107% from a year earlier, driven by demand for EPYC processors and Instinct accelerators.
The paradox is clear: the server market is expanding, Intel is selling much more than a year ago, and yet AMD continues to take market share.
AMD reaches 34.5% of server processors
According to Mercury Research, shipments of server processors grew nearly 20% year-over-year in Q2 2026.
AMD benefited the most from this expansion.
The company achieved a 34.5% unit share, 7.3 percentage points higher than a year earlier and 1.3 points above the previous quarter. Intel maintains 65.5%.
This figure already marks a significant shift compared to just a few years ago when Xeon dominated nearly unopposed a large portion of enterprise data centers.
However, Mercury introduces an even more striking second perspective.
AMD and Intel do not classify all data center processors exactly the same way.
AMD accounts for certain chips intended for networking and storage within its Embedded business, while Intel includes similar products within its Data Center division.
Dean McCarron, president of Mercury Research, estimates that, by removing this difference to compare only equivalent markets, AMD would have about a 46.4% CPU share for servers and Intel 53.6%.
In this adjusted calculation, AMD gained 9.2 percentage points in a year and 2.9 points just in the last quarter.
It’s important not to conflate these numbers. The 34.5% is the conventional published share for servers, while the 46.4% is a normalized estimate by Mercury to correct for classification differences between Intel and AMD products.
Other market analyses align in the same direction. Data from Jon Peddie Research (JPR) places AMD at approximately 33.4% of server CPU units during Q2 2026, up from 27% a year earlier. Small differences are due to methodology and the scope of products analyzed.
Intel drops below 70% of the x86 market
The change is not limited to data centers.
Mercury Research reports Intel’s combined share of x86 processors for PCs and servers (excluding semi-custom, embedded, and IoT products) at 69.3% during Q2.
This is the first time since 1995 that Intel falls below 70%.
AMD hits a record 30.7% in the same measurement.
Compared to Q2 2025, Intel has lost 6.5 points, and AMD has gained exactly that amount.
Including semi-custom, embedded, and IoT processors, the split shifts slightly: Intel’s share drops to 65.9% and AMD’s rises to 34.1%. AMD’s significant business in semi-custom chips for consoles favors this calculation.
The trend is also evident in the PC market.
AMD has a combined share of 30.3%, compared to 69.7% for Intel. In desktops, Ryzen devices hold 34.9% of units, while Intel processors account for 65.1%.
In laptops, the gap remains wider, but AMD is growing faster. Its share reaches 28.9%, up 8.4 points from a year earlier, while Intel maintains 71.1%.
The desktop market performance was quite different. Shipments decreased by over 20% year-over-year during the quarter, impacted by high prices and component shortages. AMD also sold fewer desktop processors, but its decline was smaller than Intel’s, allowing it to gain market share.
Intel sells more servers, but AMD grows even faster
Losing market share doesn’t necessarily mean fewer units sold.
This distinction is especially important for understanding Intel’s current situation.
The company just reported one of its strongest recent growth periods. Total revenue increased by 25% year-over-year to $16.1 billion, with its Data Center and AI division growing 59%, reaching $6.3 billion.
Intel attributes part of this improvement to AI-related demand and has acknowledged the need to ramp up production capacity quickly to meet orders.
The manufacturer also launched Xeon 6+ during the quarter, its first server processor manufactured with Intel 18A technology.
The challenge for Intel is that the market is growing faster around AMD.
AMD’s data center revenue hit $6.7 billion, a 107% YoY increase. This division now accounts for approximately 58% of the company’s total revenue.
Not all of this is attributable solely to EPYC CPUs. The division also includes Instinct AI accelerators, whose weight is growing rapidly. Therefore, directly comparing AMD’s $6.7 billion to Intel’s $6.3 billion in Data Center and AI does not clarify which company sells more server processors.
Mercury’s data is more insightful precisely because it analyzes CPU shipments.
It’s clear that EPYC continues to gain ground.
AMD has leveraged advantages in core count, energy efficiency, and density per server over several generations—traits especially valued by cloud providers and large data center operators.
There’s also a renewal effect. A server can stay operational for five, seven, or even more years, so rapid technological changes in PCs take much longer to fully reflect in the data center installed base.
Intel and AMD now face another rival: Arm
The x86 battle does not occur in a closed market.
Intel and AMD are facing the rise of processors based on Arm, especially within large cloud providers.
Amazon Web Services continues expanding its Graviton family. Google is developing Axion, Microsoft has Cobalt, and NVIDIA has entered this market with its CPU Vera.
Apple demonstrated in personal computers that a complete transition from x86 to Arm was possible with its M-series processors. Qualcomm is attempting to extend a similar model within Windows via Snapdragon.
Therefore, AMD reaching 30.7% of the x86 market does not necessarily mean Intel and AMD will dominate all future CPU markets.
Some growth could shift toward other architectures.
In data centers, this is particularly relevant because hyperscalers have enough volume to justify developing their own processors. If a custom CPU reduces infrastructure costs or power consumption by just a few percentage points—savings that can be enormous across hundreds of thousands of servers—the impact is significant.
Intel is trying to respond by expanding beyond Xeon sales. The company is seeking clients for Intel Foundry, offering custom silicon design, and working on new strategies for AI accelerators and inference.
AMD’s strategy is different. Besides EPYC growth, it is turning Instinct into a second major revenue stream and preparing its Helios rack platform to compete in full AI systems.
The result is that the long-standing Intel vs. AMD rivalry continues, but it now exists within a much broader market context.
Intel remains the leader in x86 CPUs, and financial results show a considerable recovery. But the data from Q2 sends a clear signal: AMD now controls roughly one in three x86 processors sold, and in certain comparable server market calculations, it is close to half.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is AMD’s market share in x86 processors?
Mercury Research estimates AMD’s record market share at 30.7% in Q2 2026, compared to 69.3% for Intel, excluding semi-custom, embedded, and IoT products.
Does AMD already have 46.4% of the server market?
Not in the standard measurement. Its conventional share is 34.5%. Mercury estimates 46.4% after adjusting for differences in how AMD and Intel count certain networking and storage processors used in data centers.
Is Intel selling fewer server processors?
Losing market share does not necessarily mean selling fewer units. Total server CPU shipments grew nearly 20%, and Intel’s Data Center and AI revenue increased by 59%. AMD has simply increased shipments at a faster rate.
Why is AMD gaining market share from Intel?
This growth is related to increased adoption of EPYC in cloud and enterprise servers, along with competitive performance, core count, and efficiency. The trend also coincides with AMD expanding its presence in laptops and desktops.
