Prices & value
Keep it or sell it? A simple test for your old phone
A spare phone feels free. It costs roughly a third of its value per year, paid quietly.
The test, in four questions
- Have you used it in the last three months? If no, you will not.
- Is it still receiving security updates? If no, it should not be your backup for anything with a login.
- Would you give it to someone who needs a phone today? If yes, do that — it is worth more as a gift than as a quote.
- Is it worth more than ₹2,000? If yes, sell it now. If no, recycle it responsibly.
What a backup phone actually costs
Take a phone worth ₹18,000 today. In a year it is worth roughly ₹12,000. Keeping it "just in case" cost ₹6,000 — and for that money you could have bought a functional new budget phone outright if disaster struck.
| Value today | Value in 12 months | Cost of keeping |
|---|---|---|
| ₹40,000 | ₹27,000 | ₹13,000 |
| ₹18,000 | ₹12,000 | ₹6,000 |
| ₹8,000 | ₹5,000 | ₹3,000 |
| ₹3,000 | ₹1,800 | ₹1,200 |
Good reasons to keep one
- A dedicated work or business number you actually use.
- A travel phone you take somewhere you would not risk your main handset.
- A dashcam, security camera or music player with a specific setup already working.
- A child's first phone, with updates still arriving.
Note what these have in common: an active use, not a hypothetical one.
The update deadline
When a phone stops receiving security updates it should stop being used for banking, UPI and email. That removes most of the reasons to keep it, and it also marks the point where its resale value falls off — buyers apply the same logic.
If your phone is approaching the end of its update window, that is the moment to decide. Check what it is worth before the market decides for you.
If you decide to keep it, do these four things
A spare that is genuinely useful is worth keeping. A spare that sits in a drawer discharged is worth nothing to anyone, including you.
- Charge it to about 50% and store it somewhere cool. A cell left flat for months may never recover.
- Top it up every three months. A calendar reminder is enough.
- Keep it on the last software version it will receive, and stop using it for banking once updates end.
- Write down what it is — model, storage, IMEI — with the box, so a future sale does not start with guesswork.
And set a date to revisit the decision. Six months in a drawer usually answers the question for you, and the answer costs less if you look at it deliberately rather than three years later.
Frequently asked questions
- Is it worth keeping an old phone as a backup?
- Rarely. A spare typically loses 30–35% of its remaining value each year, which is usually more than a basic replacement would cost if you ever needed one.
- What can I do with an old phone instead of selling it?
- Give it to someone who needs one, or repurpose it for a specific active use — a music player, a security camera, a travel phone. Storing it "just in case" is the option that costs money.
- When should I stop using an old phone for banking?
- When it stops receiving security updates. That is also roughly when its resale value starts falling faster.
- My phone is worth almost nothing. What now?
- Quote it anyway — price book floors are often above zero. If it truly is worthless, recycle it through an authorised handler.
- How should I store an old phone I am keeping?
- At about 50% charge, somewhere cool, topped up every three months. A lithium cell left completely flat for months can degrade past the point of recovery.