Smartphones
The highest-volume flip there is — margins are thin, turnover is instant.
Phones are the S&P 500 of flipping: enormous supply, transparent pricing, and same-day resale. The margin hides in details casual sellers skip — battery health, storage tier, carrier lock, and the exact model variant.
Why it flips
Upgrade cycles dump millions of one-generation-old phones onto classifieds every launch season.
Sellers price by age ("iPhone from 2022"), buyers pay by variant — Pro/Max/storage gaps are real money.
Cracked-screen phones sell far below the €80–150 repair that restores full value.
Start here
Battery health first: below 85% budget a €50–80 swap; sellers rarely mention it unprompted.
Verify IMEI before paying — blacklist-checking is free and instant, and stolen phones are worthless.
Storage tiers gap €50–150 at resale; the listing photo of the settings screen confirms both.
iPhones flip easier than Android: slower depreciation, universal demand, honest part costs.
Pro moves
Launch weeks are harvest: trade-in refusals and impulse upgrades flood the market below trend.
Screen-swap arbitrage on recent iPhones is the steadiest margin in electronics if you can do the repair.
Check iCloud/Google lock IN PERSON before handing over cash — an activation-locked phone is parts.
Bundle chargers and cases you got free into "complete set" listings for a 10–15% premium.
Live listings
No live listings for this topic right now — try the ready-made searches below.
Who this suits
- Work required · Working item
- None
- Work required · Repair candidate
- No repair guidance published
- Transport
- Ships by parcel
- Storage
- A shelf
- Entry budget
- £50–£250
- Price guidance
- FlipGap price guide from observed listings
Safety limits apply
Frequently asked
Which models are best to flip?
One-to-two-generation-old iPhones (currently 13/14/15) in 128GB+ are the sweet spot: strong demand, known part costs, fast sales. Flagship Samsungs work too but depreciate about twice as fast.
What are the red flags?
Activation lock, blacklisted IMEI, no original box combined with a too-low price, "screen replaced" without saying by whom, and any seller refusing a video of the phone booting.
Are broken phones worth buying?
Cracked glass with a working display: yes, that is the classic repair flip. Dead logic boards: only as parts, at parts prices. Water damage: walk away regardless of price.
Learn the system before you risk the money.
The Flip Gap turns product flipping into a repeatable workflow: source, verify, calculate take-home profit, buy safely, list well, and learn from every sale.
- Fee-aware deal maths
- A 30-day operating plan
- Checklists for every buy
Education, not an earnings promise. Always verify a deal yourself.
