Compare and RecycleSanta hat

Is August the Best Time to Sell Your iPhone?

Thinking of selling your iPhone? August may be the best month - here’s what our data shows and why timing could boost your payout.

antonia hristov author profile photo

Written by Antonia, Head of Marketing | Consumer Electronics and Money-Saving

Last updated on 18 December 2025

Is August the best time to sell your iPhone? The short answer is yes, but we are going to delve into our data to provide you with more insight. Read on to find out exactly why this time of year is opportune for putting your older iPhone model back on the market and how much more you can get for your iPhone in August.

With any luck, the new iPhone will be released at a similar retail price to last year's iPhone 13 range starting at £779, but there's no escaping the fact that prices of brand new phones are rising in general. You will want to get as much money for your old iPhone as possible, so you need to act quickly as these prices are guaranteed to drop come September.

Why Is August the Best Time to Sell Your iPhone?

We keep track of averages and top prices every day to determine the dynamics of trade-in prices and how much you can get for your phone. On a yearly basis prior to the release of a new iPhone there is a great deal of competition between recyclers to acquire older models to refurbish and resell to consumers seeking to purchase a refurbished iPhone. If you sell your phone ahead of seasonal price drops, you satisfy recyclers' demand and give them time to offload older models via their redistribution channels. Plainly speaking, recyclers get the stock and you get the most for your device.

The Best iPhone Trade-in Deals in August 2022

Prices so far have been somewhat erratic accross the board for iPhones, with the newest iPhones from 2021 series not showing any movement. However, we've identified the biggest increases for select iPhone models and we anticipate the prices for these models will continue to increase throughout August so you can bag even bigger savings.

The best movers August 2022 vs July 2022:

Any Drops in iPhone Trade-in Deals?

There have been a few iPhone models that have decreased in value, however the drops aren't as significant yet as we anticipate after the release of iPhone 14 series. Most notable drops in prices are for more popular iPhones:

  • The iPhone 8 64GB dropped by 2% to £93*
  • The iPhone SE (2020) 256GB dropped by 5% to £182*
  • The iPhone XS Max 256GB dropped by 2% to £239*
  • The iPhone 11 256GB dropped by 1% to £301*
  • The iPhone 12 Mini 256GB dropped by 1% to £359*

*Average trade-in price correct on 09/08/2022 at 12:53am

Newest iPhones

Looking at the newest devices (devices that have come out within the last couple of years) we can see that prices have universally increased since last month, indicating that recyclers are keen to get stock in before the new devices are released (prices correct as of 2nd of August 2019).

DevicePercentage Change
iPhone 13 Pro Max 128GB£695 (-2%)
iPhone 13 Pro 128GB £664 (0%)
iPhone 13 Mini 128GB£386 (+1%)
iPhone 13 128GB£502 (+1%)
iPhone 12 Pro Max 128GB£577 (+4%)
iPhone 12 Pro 128GB£498 (+1%)
iPhone 12 Mini 64GB£313 (+1%)
iPhone 11 Pro Max 64GB£350 (+2%)
iPhone 11 Pro 64GB£312 (+5%)
iPhone 11 64GB£235 (+1%)

Looking back at 3 generations of iPhones, we can see that only the iPhone 13 Pro Max 128GB has lost a small percentage from July 2022. The rest of models have gained in resale value which has grown, which in some cases translates to an extra £20 compared to July 2022.

August, once again, is proving to be the best time to sell your iPhone. If you are in your upgrade window or are determined to get the newest iteration of the iPhone, you should consider selling your iPhone before September comes.

Sell your iPhone
upright standing iphone in grey colour next to a smartspeaker

Why the iPhone No Longer Surprises Us

The iPhone used to define innovation. Now every new model feels the same. Is Apple’s story running out of pages?

sneha kashyap author profile photo
6 Min Read
phone depreciation report by compare and recycle

Annual Phone Depreciation Report

See which Apple, Samsung and Google phones hold their value best over the first and second year on the market.

antonia hristov author profile photo
14 Min Read
google pixel phones on a green background with downwards arrows

Google Pixel Depreciation Report

With Pixels becoming a decent contender for your upgrade choice, we’ve crunched the numbers to reveal depreciation patterns of Google Pixel phones.

antonia hristov author profile photo
7 Min Read