It’s no secret that Apple products retain their value much longer than non-Apple products. Or is it? According to recent data from SellCell, things may be about to change.
The iPhone still holds its value better than its competitors, but the decline in value is accelerating with each new product launch, according to a report from SellCell. At the same time, the lifespan of Samsung’s flagship models is starting to get a little longer. In fact, be prepared for a lot of numbers. Since the launch of the iPhone 12, iPhone values have fallen by almost 5% year-over-year, and the iPhone 16 has lost value 8% faster than the iPhone 15. lost an average of 41.2% of its value in the first two weeks after release. This is a much larger loss than the 33% and 33.2% for the iPhone 14 and 15 models, respectively.
Looking at the year-over-year numbers for the iPhone 11, we see a total drop of 43.8% within the first year of release. This increases to 46.2% on iPhone 13 and 48.2% on iPhone 15.
In contrast, Samsung’s depreciation rate has slowed. The Galaxy S22 series lost 66.7% of its value in the year after its release, while the Galaxy S23 only lost 61.7%. This represents a 5.6% increase in value retention. Even with the Galaxy S24, which hasn’t been out for a full year, the average loss across all models after the first six months is only 50.4%, an increase of 3.7% compared to the S23 over the same period.
The reason why mobile phones are becoming less valuable is not because of a decline in quality, but because of increased competition. Samsung brings more and more value to each new release with improved features, new features, and improved build quality. Continuous improvements to Android have made it more approachable even to wary Apple users, drawing more and more customers from one side to the other.
This is an unexpected development in the market, especially given Apple devices’ reputation for holding resale value. This shows that Samsung is improving each iteration of its phones and providing more value to the market, but it doesn’t mean Apple is making worse products. The iPhone 16 is a great phone, and so is the Samsung Galaxy S24.
As the differences between the two platforms narrow, the mobile phone market may become primarily a matter of style preference rather than brand loyalty.
