Pre-owned smartphone shipments worldwide 2022-2027

In 2023, almost 300 million used smartphone units were shipped globally, a market that includes both officially refurbished and used smartphones. By 2027, there will be over 431 million more shipments, resulting in a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.8 percent from 2022 to 2027. 

Refurbished smartphone market

As observed by the number of shipments, the refurbished smartphone market is also forecast to grow in the coming years in terms of revenue. Indeed, in 2021, the size of the refurbished smartphone market amounted to roughly 50 billion U.S. dollars and will reach almost 144 billion U.S. dollars by 2031. Latin America and India were the leaders of the refurbished smartphone market, registering a market growth of 29 and 25 percent between 2020 and 2021, respectively, while the United States ranked third, with a market growth of 15 percent.

Refurbished smartphones in the United States

Despite the refurbished smartphone market growth in the United States, American consumers tend to buy new phones instead of reconditioned ones. Of those who do decide to go down the refurbished phone route, buyers have tended to prefer iPhones rather than Android smartphones, with the iPhone XR and the iPhone 11 the most popular refurbished smartphones among consumers in the country.