How many of you are addicted to your phones? Not because you have to spend your leisure time playing games, watching things, managing emails, texting to communicate, managing meetings, and a lot of business stuff.
Nonetheless, there is nothing new that people line up whenever the smartphone is announced.
Now, here is the thing, the prospect of upgrading your current device to a newer one can be exciting, but you need clarification about what to do with the current one.
What happens is, usually people set it into draws or give it away to a friend or a family member, but you know what the better option is? You can trade in or sell your current phone to lower the cost of your new phone on platforms like Mobile Monster.
In this blog post, we will walk you through how platforms like Mobile Monster work for trade-in or selling, and what their respective pros and cons are. Ultimately, this will help you to decide which option is best.
Difference Between Trade-in vs. Selling
In technical terms, trade-in refers to a used article accepted by a retailer in partial payment for another.
In layman’s terms, with trade-in, the device goes to the company, and with selling the device goes to an individual.
Let’s comprehend more details separately:
- Trade-in: It is a quick process with less effort on your part. What’s the bummer with trade-in? You will get less money if compared to selling.
- Selling: Undoubtedly selling is easy, but isn’t always as quick as a trade-in. Here, your efforts come with a reward.
Now that you are familiar with what they actually are, let’s see how both works.
How Does Trading in Your Phone Work?
If you had purchased your device from a manufacturer or a wireless carrier, look no further and choose trade-in.
It is suggested because the carrier will provide a pre-paid return kit or a shipping label. How beneficial these are? You don’t have to pay to ship the device.
The moment, your carrier receives your phone, they’ll provide a final value (based on the condition of the device)
Picture this, you are planning to upgrade to an iPhone 15, Apple has an in-house gadget appraising program under which they will offer a $430 trade-in value for an iPhone 14, $250 for an iPhone 12, and so on.
Once you are satisfied with the estimated trade-in value, you are asked to answer a few questions regarding the condition, year, and configuration.
Despite this, some programs tend to ask about functionality, any damages, whether it holds a charge, or even if any accessories are included.
A final quote based on the answers will be provided, if agreed, pack the device, and ship it. Therefore, the trade-in amount shall be applied toward the cost of the new device you intend to purchase.
Instead, the trade-in value could be in the form of a refund to the credit card, or a gift card.
Pros and Cons of Trading In
Still, confused about whether to trade in or sell? Take into account the following pros and cons to make a decision:
| Pros | Cons |
| Simple yet convenient | Older phones may not be eligible for trade-in. |
| Less stress on pricing | Comparatively, less price |
| No logistics hassles | Shipping hassles involved |
| Secure process | ———- |
| Don’t need to meet and bargain with buyers | ———- |
It’s time to know a bit about selling.
How Does Selling Your Phone Work?
Selling a phone requires more effort than usual but can result in a higher payout for the device. Extra cash helps to recoup some of the cost of a new device, hence, making purchasing a new one affordable.
Do You Know?:
6.6% of people upgrade their smartphones every six months.
How to sell? What you have to do is list your device on marketplaces like eBay, Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, local classifieds, OfferUp, Nextdoor, etc.
For instance:
eBay will take a 12.9% + $0.30 out of your final sale price out of the final sale price. But, lets you come across genuine leads and provides shipping discounts. Therefore, sites will accrue a certain percentage.
Upon taking this into account, research a bit, see the difference, and compare between manufacturers or mobile carriers offering value for your device.
On the contrary, individuals are open to reaching a local audience for less hassle. Take note, that local scope may limit the number of buyers one can reach.
Pros and Cons of Selling
Know the following pros and cons associated with selling:
| Pros | Cons |
| Higher Payout | Hard to discover buyers. |
| Easy | Take days to sell the phone. |
| Offers for broken and damaged phones are available. | One can face delays in shipping sometimes. |
| ———- | Less price for older models |
| ———- | No Guaranteed Payment |
Factors to Consider When Deciding to Trade-In or Sell
The final decision should be based on a few factors. Both choices have their own set of pros and cons.
Statistic:
According to SellCell’s 2022 Earth Day survey, statistics reveal that people have varied habits especially when concerning disposing of old phones after upgrading to the new one.
However, 57.4% of iPhone owners trade in or sell their handset to upgrade, vs. 43.2% of Android owners.
Factors like comfort, time spent, and pricing can be influential. Other than that, budget and preferences considering the situation should be taken into note.
There’s no right or wrong choice here, meaning neither is inherently better than the other.
Moreover, ask questions like how quickly do you want the new device? how much money are you willing to spend?
Once you get your answers, other factors will be a lot easier to figure out.
Final Take
Conclusively, it is easier to get over the dilemma of what to do with your old device. Bordering on upgrading to the latest gadget, one may get confused about phone trade-in or selling.
Now that you know everything about them, you know both come up with their unique promises and pitfalls.
So, embrace the possibility of tech transition and contemplate the future of your trusted and most used companion “Smartphone”.
Also Read: 5 Professional Trading Strategies Every Trader Should Know
