With a new iPhone (or two) right around the corner, you’ve probably thought about giving your current model the boot a couple of times over the last few weeks. But don’t just stick it in a drawer next to your old iPod classic – you might be able to sell it for enough money to pay for a whole new phone. Just make sure to do it quickly, as prices are sure to drop as a new phone looms ever nearer.
There are lots of ways to sell your phone. For starters, you can go list it through standbys like Craigslist or eBay. Depending how much work you want to put into it, either of these options could yield you the highest dollar amount for your phone. But if you can’t deal with the stress of a bidding war, or you don’t want to perform a transaction that requires you to meet a stranger in public, there are plenty of other ways to get a healthy chunk of change for your old device.
I researched prices for more than 15 different resellers willing to pay for your old phone. You’ll find the best prices, as well as the most popular options, detailed in the chart below.
Graphic by Rani Molla
To keep things simple, I calculated the price for a 16GB black iPhone from AT&T in good condition (with normal signs of wear and tear). Where applicable, I indicated that the USB cable and power adapter are available to return with the phone as well. You’ll get slightly different prices for different capacity models on different carriers in different conditions, so this is just a guide for what you can expect under average circumstances.
As you can see, you’ll get the most money for your old phone across the board from Amazon (up to a whopping $ 347.50 for an iPhone 5), but you’ll be getting it in the form of an Amazon gift card. The same goes for Apple, Best Buy and Walmart , all of which offer gift cards instead of cash. And you probably shouldn’t sell your phone to Best Buy. Not only does it offer the lowest rates of the venues I surveyed, it doesn’t show the iPhone 5 available for trade-in on its website.
Sites like Gazelle, Glyde and NextWorth, on the other hand, make it a breeze to trade in your phone for cold, hard cash. They typically offer prepaid shipping labels so you can ship your phone and get paid in about a week. Gazelle even offers a price-lock guarantee, which allows you to lock in a price today without actually needing to send your phone in until October 15. If you play your cards right, that’ll be well after you have your iPhone 5S or 5C in hand.
And if you’ve been sitting on an old phone with a cracked screen, you can still probably make some money off of it. Many of the sites out there will still pay you (albeit at reduced prices) for damaged goods. One in particular, iCracked, will still pay a fairly decent amount for phones with cracked screens, and will even buy your water-damaged device.
If you’re still holding onto an original iPhone, or an iPhone 3G, I’m sorry to say that you won’t be able to sell either of these devices through many of the outlets listed above. You’re better off hitting Craigslist or eBay with those in an attempt to attract collectors, but don’t expect to command a very high price.
And remember, the longer you wait, the less you’ll get for your phone. So if you’re thinking about selling, it pays to spend a bit of time shopping around – just don’t spend too much time or it can cost you.
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