With the holidays right around the corner, I wanted to start sharing some easy ways to save money and earn extra money without adding more hours to your already busy work at home schedule. There are plenty of opportunities for the taking. You just have to know where to look.
The new iPhone 6 release reminded me that we recently traded in a junk drawer full of old cell phones. We chose to lower our wireless bill, but there are plenty of opportunities to sell your smartphone for cash, too.
day of the week
New, undamaged phones bring the biggest deals Don’t wait too long to sell. uSell tells us that used iPhone offers are expected to drop by 20% over the next few weeks. With each new release, the price drops further. Don’t wait for a full drawer like us.
Where to sell used smartphones
Ebay It is always a popular auction site when it comes to smartphones and electronics. You may have even heard of many people pre-listing their new iPhone 6 on eBay before they even received it because demand was so high. This was also true of the most recent versions. As is always the case with eBay, there is some work involved. Check out our post on making a living on eBay for some great selling tips.
gazelle Probably the leader in selling used smartphones. Enter your phone version and status and you can currently lock your offer for 45 days. The site will take any phone worth $1 or more. You can accept your payment by check, Amazon.com gift card or PayPal. You can track your trade-in status online. Gazelle also takes tablets, iPods and Apple computers.
uSell Offers a different setup than the Gazelle. Enter your phone information and you’ll see several offers from individual buyers. Then you select the offer and uSell will send you your shipping kit. A payment will be made to you via check or PayPal within 5 days once the buyer receives your phone. They will send you status emails on the way. In addition to phones, uSell connects buyers and sellers for tablets, game consoles, textbooks, video games, gift cards and more.
locally – Local Facebook groups and Craigslist can be a quick way to unload your old smartphone if you want to handle things yourself. Be aware that this may be your worst option for getting good money. These buyers are used to haggling and will probably want to negotiate a lower price.
trade – Most providers offer a trade-in program. You will most likely receive a gift card that can be applied to your bill or in-store purchases. In addition to wireless providers, Walmart and Amazon offer similar programs. I say this often. Saving money is just as important as making money.
important step
Always wait until you have a new phone – Once you start preparing your phone for sale you will not be able to access important data. Wait until you receive your new phone to start working through the preparation steps.
Backup your data – There was a time when upgrading your phone was a labor-intensive task. You can spend hours manually typing phone numbers into your new phone. That is no longer the case. Most providers offer some type of cloud service to store your data. Pull up the app on your old phone or go online to sync. You will be able to sync the new phone with the cloud service once activated.
Disable and delete – Always make sure your smartphone is deactivated with your provider and any personal data is deleted. This is especially the case when dealing with private sellers.
Follow instructions – Most sites like Gazelle and uSell have a very specific way they want to ship phones. You may need to use a prepaid envelope with the order information on the outside. They may want to remove the battery and wrap it separately. Please follow the instructions. Some sites will stop paying if you don’t.
don’t lie – Another way to end up as a frustrated smartphone seller is to fib about the condition of your phone. Each item is carefully inspected upon receipt. Expect to pay less if you don’t mention a few cracks or problems.
You might not make huge cash selling your used smartphone, but $60 to $100 will buy a nice gift or put a nice spin on your savings account. This is definitely a good wage for 15 minutes of your time!
Have you sold a smartphone or tablet? Tell us about your experience in the comments.
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