Best deal to dump a used iPhone 5s?

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Thinking of using my bonus to buy a new iPhone 6 Plus. I have a 32GB Space Gray 5s, locked to Verizon. It's in outstanding condition since it has always had a case on it, and I have the box and packaging.

So far, here's what the trade-in values look like:


Verizon: $325
Best Buy: $310
Glyde: $288
Amazon: $270
Apple: $260
Walmart: $250
Radio Shack: $225
Gazelle: $225
NextWorth: $220
uSell: $219
Target: $201


The going rate on eBay & Craigslist seems to be $400 minus any eBay & PayPal fees.

It also sucks that trading-in doesn't net you a sales tax savings, like it would with a car. For someone in Chicago paying 9.75% sales tax on an $800 phone, that could be almost $20 saved.

Is there any other avenue to take other than trading-in or eBay/Craigslist? Any other trade-in vendors I should look at? The B&M stores are the most appealing since I can just apply the trade-in value immediately -- the mail-in means I'm stuck with a gift card I have to use later.
 
Phones have such a high rate of fraud on ebay that I would take a slightly smaller payment from a more secure source.

But what do I know. I've only sold a phone once, it was on ebay and everything went fine. My old 3gs was purchased by someone with a very foreign-sounding name who bought tons of used phones on ebay. I assume he had some kind of business where he exports them for use in other countries.
 
I sent mine to Verizon, and had the 6+ purchase billed to my account. The credit arrived by email, and I just applied it to my account. Easy.

I sold my iPhone 3 on eBay a few years ago. The buyer waited until day 44 (out of the 45 day limit) after the sale and claimed that the home button didn't work, which would have rendered the whole thing useless. He only asked for $40 back of the ~$200 he paid me, which made no sense. I assumed he just wanted a discount. I denied his claim and eBay decided to allow him to return it to me, now damaged. Thankfully, he never sent it back and the claim expired.

If he had shipped it back to me and eBay refunded his payment, I would have been out that money and stuck with a broken phone that worked perfectly when I shipped it.

eBay's policies are weighted very heavily towards the buyer, and it's too easy to get scammed when selling electronics. I won't go that route again.
 
Originally Posted By: Bandito440
I sent mine to Verizon, and had the 6+ purchase billed to my account. The credit arrived by email, and I just applied it to my account. Easy.

I sold my iPhone 3 on eBay a few years ago. The buyer waited until day 44 (out of the 45 day limit) after the sale and claimed that the home button didn't work, which would have rendered the whole thing useless. He only asked for $40 back of the ~$200 he paid me, which made no sense. I assumed he just wanted a discount. I denied his claim and eBay decided to allow him to return it to me, now damaged. Thankfully, he never sent it back and the claim expired.

If he had shipped it back to me and eBay refunded his payment, I would have been out that money and stuck with a broken phone that worked perfectly when I shipped it.

eBay's policies are weighted very heavily towards the buyer, and it's too easy to get scammed when selling electronics. I won't go that route again.



Interesting. I've never sold a phone on eBay, but I have sold tons of other items (probably on the order of 150+ over the last decade).
 
I've been dumping all my used phones on ebay for YEARS. Never had an issue. 90% of them went internationally to other parts of the world where an iPhone is like $900.

I don't know what fraud you guys are talking about. What like parts swapping or something?

I take close pics of all the numbers and post it in the listing. No issues and I get top dollar, even after ebay & Paypal takes their cut.
 
Swappa!!!!

www.swappa.com

I sold my 32GB Verizon iPhone 4s there in April and got $200.

The only fees you pay are the Paypal fees and prices seem to be close to what they were going for on eBay.

Definitely the best place to sell your phone!
 
Originally Posted By: OneEyeJack
Would it be embarrassing to be caught in public with a 5 when the 6 is already out? The grace period is over, isn't it?


Almost as bad as being seen running a PureOne filter.
 
Originally Posted By: OneEyeJack
Would it be embarrassing to be caught in public with a 5 when the 6 is already out? The grace period is over, isn't it?


I still see tons of iPhone 4/4s devices in the wild. Lots of people just don't care about having the latest greatest, and don't feel a need to get rid of a perfectly usable phone.
 
Originally Posted By: dparm
Originally Posted By: Bandito440
I sent mine to Verizon, and had the 6+ purchase billed to my account. The credit arrived by email, and I just applied it to my account. Easy.

I sold my iPhone 3 on eBay a few years ago. The buyer waited until day 44 (out of the 45 day limit) after the sale and claimed that the home button didn't work, which would have rendered the whole thing useless. He only asked for $40 back of the ~$200 he paid me, which made no sense. I assumed he just wanted a discount. I denied his claim and eBay decided to allow him to return it to me, now damaged. Thankfully, he never sent it back and the claim expired.

If he had shipped it back to me and eBay refunded his payment, I would have been out that money and stuck with a broken phone that worked perfectly when I shipped it.

eBay's policies are weighted very heavily towards the buyer, and it's too easy to get scammed when selling electronics. I won't go that route again.



Interesting. I've never sold a phone on eBay, but I have sold tons of other items (probably on the order of 150+ over the last decade).

I have sold and will continue to sell on eBay, but I'll dispose of smart phones by other means. It was too much hassle for the little extra money.
 
Originally Posted By: itguy08
Swappa!!!!

www.swappa.com

I sold my 32GB Verizon iPhone 4s there in April and got $200.

The only fees you pay are the Paypal fees and prices seem to be close to what they were going for on eBay.

Definitely the best place to sell your phone!


2nd vote for swappa. I bought my current phone on there and sold my old phone. Very good transactions in both directions. The guys that run the place check out every single phone that gets listed before anyone can buy it.
 
Visited all of the B&M stores earlier today to confirm pricing.

A Verizon corporate store (flagship store on Michigan Ave) was the worst thing I've ever dealt with for a cell phone retailer. As soon as I asked for the trade-in price, she tried to upsell me to the Edge plan without even asking what I was looking for or what my contract was. Pretty clear that they love not subsidizing phones anymore....so why she was so rude to a person about to hand over $900 to buy a phone outright is beyond me.
 
Doesn't surprise me. Verizon is very arrogant.

I'm sure they all don't like subsidizing phones - turns a liability (the phone is on their books until the initial contract is up, IIRC) into an asset (loan) for them and also nets them more $$ because they are subsidizing less on the cheaper phones vs high end phones.

And the Edge, Jump, etc plans are pure gravy for them. Get you to pay for the phone, then when you want to upgrade, take the phone from you and sell it for more than what's left and the rest is pure profit. You're better doing it yourself and selling on places like Swappa.

You may also want to look into T-Mobile if the coverage would work for you. They are working on their network and with great customer service and support it may be worth the switch. Just something to think about.
 
Not really interested in switching carriers or plans, itguy. I'm happy with Verizon and the plan I have. Just want the bigger iPhone is all.
 
Originally Posted By: dparm
Originally Posted By: OneEyeJack
Would it be embarrassing to be caught in public with a 5 when the 6 is already out? The grace period is over, isn't it?


I still see tons of iPhone 4/4s devices in the wild. Lots of people just don't care about having the latest greatest, and don't feel a need to get rid of a perfectly usable phone.


It might be just as embarrassing if someone with a phallic forum handle realizes that theyre paying a premium to not use a subsidy from a carrier to get the newer tech, and meanwhile are allowing their older one to depreciate further.

I don't necessarily care to play this game, so as soon as t mobile is decent, I'm off... But to make silly comments about peoples' smartphone buying habits is a bit silly if the trade in value is a good deal.
 
Say what you want, the iPhone 5 was the first iPhone that actually performed acceptably. It's not a matter of having the latest and greatest, it's a matter of the darn thing working well enough to be useful.

Yes, the 4s was close, but not quite there.
 
Originally Posted By: itguy08
Swappa!!!!

www.swappa.com

I sold my 32GB Verizon iPhone 4s there in April and got $200.

The only fees you pay are the Paypal fees and prices seem to be close to what they were going for on eBay.

Definitely the best place to sell your phone!

+1, now we buy our iPhones from swappa instead of AT&T because we can save significant amount of money. AT&T wants $449 for a 5c and a new unit on swappa is going for $305. We usually buy used mint condition to save about another $50. Have been buying used mint 5 or 5c for about $250.

I never understood spending a bonus. I treat is as regular income. My account balances go up and I am one more step closer to early retirement.

Buy a 6 outright and take it to Cricket (AT&T), no better deal going.
 
Last edited:
I used this: https://www.trade-in.vzw.com/home.php5?c=en-us

I got $200 on an iPhone 4s and purchased a iPhone 6 and love the size and performance of it. It the first smartphone I have bought that was not a hand me down.

For you used buyers no way. That old iPhone 4s fell into toilet and down 2 two stories straight then bounced down a flight of stairs(otter box). They will resell it likely as it is in exceptional condition.

I am on the no upgrade at Verizon due to unlimited data.
 
Originally Posted By: Cujet
Yes, the 4s was close, but not quite there.


I'm still rocking a 4s, with the latest 8.1.1 OS. It's okay. For what I use it for, it's fine. I love the size of it. When I replace it, it'll go into an extra Defender case that we're not using, and our girls will use it to play games, music, etc.

I'm going to replace it with a 5s, for the better camera and for the faster hardware. Honestly, I'd rather have the 5s's hardware and camera in a 4s footprint, but that's just not available...5s is the closest thing going right now.
 
Originally Posted By: Hokiefyd
Originally Posted By: Cujet
Yes, the 4s was close, but not quite there.


I'm still rocking a 4s, with the latest 8.1.1 OS. It's okay. For what I use it for, it's fine. I love the size of it. When I replace it, it'll go into an extra Defender case that we're not using, and our girls will use it to play games, music, etc.

I'm going to replace it with a 5s, for the better camera and for the faster hardware. Honestly, I'd rather have the 5s's hardware and camera in a 4s footprint, but that's just not available...5s is the closest thing going right now.


Coming from a iPhone 4s>iPhone 6 you may change your mind on footprint. Its actually useful too look at things on web and using maps etc. My wife has an iPhone 5s and although hardware seems fine the screen makes it feel tiny.
 
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