How much is a used phone worth today

Model, storage, colour

An iPhone 13 with 128 GB and one with 256 GB have two prices, and so do a base model and its Pro. Before looking at any price, take the exact model and the storage from the phone's own settings (About), not from the box and not from memory. Colour matters little, but a listing that leaves it out wastes everyone's time.

Compare only with listings for the same model and the same storage. It is the first rule and the one most often broken, because half the listing titles leave the storage out.

The battery is part of the price

On an iPhone, battery health is a number in the settings, and it is the first thing a buyer of a used phone asks for. Below eighty per cent Apple considers the battery due for replacement, and the cost of that replacement comes off the phone's price. On Android the figure is not always to hand: charge cycles count, where the phone shows them, and so does an honest answer about how long it lasts.

If you are selling, give the number. If you are buying, ask for it and for a screenshot: no honest seller finds that question strange.

Condition: screen, body, cameras

The screen decides the condition. A scratch you see with the screen off but not with it on is one thing; a crack is another; a dead pixel or a shadow only shows with the screen on against white, and that is the photo to ask for. Then the body: dented corners mean the phone has been dropped. Then the cameras: a scratched lens cover ruins photos and cannot be hidden.

Good descriptions say what is there: "screen perfect, bottom-right corner dented, always in a case". "Like new" is an opinion; the photo with the screen on is evidence.

• Screen on, against white and against black.
• The four corners and the edges.
• The camera glass held up to the light.
• The charging port and the speakers (dust, corrosion).
• Replaced parts: a non-original screen or battery must be declared.

The locks that make a phone worthless

A phone still tied to an account (iCloud Activation Lock, a Google account) cannot be used and is worth nothing to whoever buys it. A phone locked to a network is worth less than an unlocked one. Never buy a phone whose IMEI is reported lost or stolen, at any price.

As a buyer, ask: is it signed out of every account? Is it unlocked? Can you send the IMEI? As a seller, do three things before taking the photos: sign out, reset, take the SIM out.

The price falls every month

A used phone's price falls with time, and it falls sharply when the new model comes out, because that is when many people list the old one at once. For a seller, waiting almost never pays: the phone that is worth something today is worth less in three months. For a buyer, the good moment is a few weeks after a launch, when there are plenty of listings and sellers are in a hurry.

Where to look, and how to read the price range

eBay, Vinted and your country's classifieds site carry private sellers' listings, and those set the range. Refurbishers ask more because they give a warranty, so their price is the ceiling. Shops that buy in used phones pay less, so theirs is the floor.

Take the listings for the same model and storage in the same condition, postage included, and see what range they cover. An offer inside the range is normal, one below it needs a second look (why so cheap?), and one above it you can leave.

All offers: Smartphones

What NotDone does

NotDone reads the listing, recognises model and storage when they are stated, adds postage to the price and compares the offers of other sellers for the same phone in the same condition. Then it tells you whether to buy, sell, keep or wait. The app is not out yet; the comparison of offers is already on this site, model by model.

Questions