Western Digital R&D increased by 1.7% to $294.00M in Q1 2026 compared to the prior quarter. Year-over-year, this metric grew by 20.0%, from $245.00M to $294.00M. Over 3 years (FY 2021 to FY 2024), R&D shows a downward trend with a -5.3% CAGR.
Analysis
StatementIncome Statement
SectionOperating Expenses
CategoryGrowth
SignalContext dependent
VolatilityModerate
First reportedQ1 2014
Last reportedQ1 2026
How to read this metric
Higher spending signals a commitment to innovation and future product launches, whereas significant cuts may indicate a shift toward short-term profitability.
Detailed definition
Research and development expenses represent the costs incurred to discover new products, improve existing technologies,...
Peer comparison
Highly comparable across pharmaceutical and medical device peers, where R&D intensity is a key metric for long-term valuation.
Metric ID:
research_and_developmentHistorical Data
20 periods
| Q1 '21 | Q2 '21 | Q3 '21 | Q4 '21 | Q1 '22 | Q2 '22 | Q3 '22 | Q4 '22 | Q1 '23 | Q2 '23 | Q3 '23 | Q4 '23 | Q1 '24 | Q2 '24 | Q3 '24 | Q4 '24 | Q1 '25 | Q3 '25 | Q4 '25 | Q1 '26 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value | $555.00M | $598.00M | $578.00M | $575.00M | $572.00M | $598.00M | $552.00M | $523.00M | $476.00M | $458.00M | $431.00M | $444.00M | $494.00M | $538.00M | $519.00M | $502.00M | $245.00M | $294.00M | $289.00M | $294.00M |
| QoQ Change | — | +7.7% | -3.3% | -0.5% | -0.5% | +4.5% | -7.7% | -5.3% | -9.0% | -3.8% | -5.9% | +3.0% | +11.3% | +8.9% | -3.5% | -3.3% | -51.2% | +20.0% | -1.7% | +1.7% |
| YoY Change | — | — | — | — | +3.1% | +0.0% | -4.5% | -9.0% | -16.8% | -23.4% | -21.9% | -15.1% | +3.8% | +17.5% | +20.4% | +13.1% | -50.4% | -43.4% | -42.4% | +20.0% |
Range$245.00M – $598.00M
CAGR-12.5%
Avg YoY Growth-9.3%
Median YoY Growth-6.8%
R&D at Other Companies
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is Western Digital's r&d?
- Western Digital (WDC) reported r&d of $294.00M in Q1 2026.
- How has Western Digital's r&d changed year-over-year?
- Western Digital's r&d increased by 20.0% year-over-year, from $245.00M to $294.00M.
- What is the long-term trend for Western Digital's r&d?
- Over 3 years (2021 to 2024), Western Digital's r&d has grown at a -5.3% compound annual growth rate (CAGR), from $2.24B to $1.91B.
- What does r&d mean?
- The money spent on creating new products or improving existing ones to drive future growth.