Apple smartphones are known for not losing much value after purchase, unlike Android smartphones. However, it seems that the Galaxy S23 also comes out with honors.
If you’re planning to buy a new smartphone in 2024, you may want to know how well previous models have retained their value over time. A new report from SellCell, an online platform that compares prices of used phones, reveals how the best smartphones of 2023 fared in terms of depreciation.
Previous studies have shown that Android smartphones are losing value faster than iPhones, and this information has just been corroborated by a new report. According to the new study, The iPhone 15 was the best phone to buy in 2023 if you wanted to minimize loss of value.
The iPhone is the champion for retaining its value
The iPhone 15 line, launched in September 2023, lost only 27.9% of its initial value in the first three months, 27.1% less than the average depreciation of other flagship phones. The iPhone 15 also beat its predecessor, the iPhone 14, by 5% in value retention. The most impressive model in the iPhone 15 range is the iPhone 15 Pro Max 256GB, which only lost 18.2% of its value in the first three months.
However, Samsung is not to be complained about either, since its latest smartphones also had an honorable performance. In the three months since launch, the Galaxy S23s have performed better than the Samsung Galaxy S22 series in 2022. The best performing model is the Galaxy S23+ with 256GB of storage, which only lost 35.3% of its value in the first three months. This makes it the fifth best phone to survive the 2023 depreciation, and the best among Android phones.
However, not all Galaxy S23 models have performed well in terms of value retention. The Galaxy S23 FE, which was a budget version of the Galaxy S23, was the most depreciating phone in 2023, losing 68.7% of its value in the first three months. During our test, we also noted that the smartphone was a little too expensive compared to other models in the seriesso it’s not really surprising that it is the one that has lost the most value.
Android smartphones lose value very quickly
Another disappointing phone in terms of depreciation is the Google Pixel 8, which launched in October 2023. The Pixel 8 128GB lost a whopping 56.9% of its value in the first three months, which is worse than the Pixel 7a, which lost 52.5% of its value in the same period.
The Pixel 8 also landed in the list of 15 most undervalued phones of 2023. Worse still, the worst performing version of Google’s smartphone is the Pixel 8 Pro 1TB, which lost 68.1% of its value in the first month. However, it did not lose further value in the second and third months.
The OnePlus 11 does a little better, but we’re still far from the iPhone. The Chinese smartphone lost 48.5% of its value in the first three months. So this is still not enough to make it a good choice for those who wanted to sell their phone later, because The OnePlus 11 also made the list of 15 worst undervalued phones of 2023.
If you plan to keep your smartphone for a long time to resell it, iPhones are therefore once again the best choice this year. However, their prices are generally also higher, so even if they depreciate less quickly, they could well cost you a little more money than other Android models.