Three out of every five refurbished phone or second hand phone buyers in the first half of 2025 chose Apple iPhones, says Cashify’s latest annual whitepaper. As per the report, the popular models such as the iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 13 Pro Max, and iPhone 12 Pro have helped boost the ₹60,000+ refurbished phone category, which saw 33% year-on-year growth. Apple remains the undisputed leader in the resale market, accounting for 64.5% of all refurbished sales in 2024 and 62.9% in H1 2025, along with 33% of all trade-ins. Other brands like Xiaomi, OnePlus, and Samsung follow, while vivo showed notable growth from 2.1% to 3.2% in just six months.
While Delhi, Bengaluru, and Mumbai lead in trade-ins and purchases, tier-2 and tier-3 cities are quickly catching up, signalling a broader nationwide shift toward refurbished phones. Interestingly, the report highlights that 70% of Indians hoard 2-3 unused phones, creating what is being called the “Drawer Economy” — billions of rupees worth of idle devices sitting in homes. Consumer behavior is also changing: 33% now sell old phones to fund upgrades, while 40% are drawn by competitive buyback offers.
Moreover, 63% of sellers trade in their devices within six months of upgrading. Despite this growth, 77% of resales still happen through informal grey channels, underlining the need for trusted and transparent resale platforms.
“India’s $219 billion resale revolution isn’t just a market opportunity; it’s a chance to redefine how technology is consumed. The future of growth lies not in producing more, but in making every device last longer. The Whitepaper 2025 reveals that while trade-in programmes and resale offers have made old phones more valuable than ever, millions of devices still lie idle in drawers, depreciating in value, when they could be extending their life in someone else’s hands,” said Mandeep Manocha, co-founder & CEO, Cashify. Founded in 2013, Cashify is India’s re-commerce platform for buying, selling, and repairing used electronic gadgets, primarily smartphones.