The smartphone market is not growing as much as before, especially with the increase in prices of flagship models. On the other hand, the second-hand phone, or refurbished smartphone market, continues to grow much faster all over the world. But which brand and model is the most preferred in the refurbished second-hand phone market?

The iPhone effect in the refurbished second-hand smartphone market

The refurbished smartphone application, which has been implemented in our country in recent years, is the repaired and overhauled version of second-hand phone models. Models that are repackaged, have their problems fixed, and whose batteries are replaced are offered to smartphone consumers in need.

So, who is the leader in the second-hand and refurbished smartphone market that is growing day by day all over the world? As you might guess, the leader is Apple, namely the iPhone models.

Apple, which has traded leadership with Samsung in the smartphone market and is even approached by its Chinese competitors, is the undisputed leader of this market. According to the research, iPhone models increased their share in the second-hand phone market from 51 percent to 56 percent in 2024.

The most preferred refurbished smartphone model was the iPhone 11 series. The iPhone 12 models follow right behind. Newer iPhone models have only begun to be seen very rarely in the refurbished market.

Among other brands, only Samsung can get a large share in this market. Accordingly, Samsung’s market share, which was 27 percent in 2023, decreased to 24 percent in 2024. Vivo, Oppo, and Xiaomi have a 3 percent share of the market. The former giant Huawei follows them with Motorola with a 2 percent share.

According to the research, 5G smartphones have slowly begun to dominate the market in the recent period. In this sense, 42 percent of the market consists of 5G smartphone models. The biggest increase in the second-hand phone market was seen in refurbished smartphones. Accordingly, the sales of these models, which are cleaned, repaired, and repackaged, increased by 13 percent in 2024.

While second-hand phone sales grew by 5 percent, the brand new smartphone market grew by 3 percent. Meanwhile, Samsung and other brands’ seven-year update support policy may also affect Apple’s share in the second-hand phone market in the coming period.

It is not surprising that iPhone models are superior in the refurbished smartphone market. As you know, Apple offers 5 years of update support for each model. In this sense, the iPhone 11 model, although it was released in 2019, also received iOS 18 support. As you know, the iPhone 11 model is still among the most preferred models in the second-hand phone market. Other iPhone models have also slowly started to enter this market.

So, would you prefer to buy a second-hand or refurbished smartphone or a brand new smartphone? We are waiting for your comments and opinions.