The 5 Best-Selling Business Application Software Brands Of Q1 2019

Microsoft and Autodesk led the way in business application sales through retail channels during the first quarter, according to market research firm The NPD Group.

Top Business Applications

Microsoft retained the top spot in business application software sales through distributors and retailers in the first quarter of 2019 in the U.S. despite losing more than four points in market share.

That's according to The NPD Group of Port Washington, N.Y. The NPD Group tracks monthly technology sales-out information from the largest IT distributors and resellers in North America, down to the item level and with overlap removed.

Rounding out the top three for business application sales are Autodesk and Adobe, according to the market research firm. The total for the business application software space in Q1 (January 2019 through March 2019) was $1.06 billion, up 15.0 percent from $922.9 million in the same quarter one year earlier.

In the following slides are details on the five best-selling business application software vendors in Q1 of 2019, based on The NPD Group's data.

Source: The NPD Group, Inc., U.S. Tech POS monthly total channel, January 2019 – March 2019 vs. January 2018 – March 2017.

5. VMware

VMware's business application software sales were $29.8 million in the January to March quarter, up a hefty 84.3 percent from $16.2 million in the first quarter one year earlier. The company's dollar share of the market in Q3 was 2.8 percent, up from 1.8 percent one year ago.

4. Cisco Systems

Cisco's business application software sales were $127.6 million in the January to March quarter, up 16.9 percent from $109.1 million in the first quarter one year earlier. The company's dollar share of the market in Q1 was 12.0 percent, up from 11.9 percent one year ago.

3. Adobe

Adobe's business application software sales were $145.8 million in the January to March quarter, up a healthy 16.0 percent from $125.6 million in the first quarter one year earlier. The company's dollar share of the market in Q1 was 13.7 percent, up from 13.4 percent one year ago.

2. Autodesk

Autodesk's business application software sales were $227.8 million in the January to March quarter, up an impressive 70.7 percent from $133.4 million in the first quarter one year earlier. The company's dollar share of the market in Q1 was 21.5 percent, up from 14.7 percent one year ago.

1. Microsoft

Microsoft's business application software sales were $374.4 million in the January to March quarter, up 0.9 percent from $370.9 million in the first quarter one year earlier. The company's dollar share of the market in Q1 was 35.3 percent, down from 39.9 percent one year ago.