Yes — you can sell a broken phone, and we'll buy it. A cracked screen, a battery that dies by lunchtime or a phone that won't switch on at all doesn't make your old handset worthless. Every phone we buy has a dedicated Faulty price alongside its Excellent and Good prices, so you can see exactly what your broken phone is worth in seconds — no haggling, no "revised quote" when it arrives.
What counts as a broken or faulty phone?
Our Faulty condition covers the common failures: a cracked or smashed screen, a cracked back panel, a phone that won't turn on or won't charge, water damage, a worn-out battery, faulty cameras, speakers or buttons, and screens with dead pixels or burn-in. If your phone has one — or several — of these, select Faulty when you get your valuation and the price you see is the price you're paid.
Two things we do need: the phone must be yours to sell, and it must be free of activation locks — switch off Find My iPhone / iCloud lock on Apple devices and remove your Google account on Android before sending. A locked phone can't be resold or recycled properly, so we can't pay out on one.
What is a broken phone worth?
More than you'd think — broken phones are repaired, refurbished or recycled for parts, and recent models hold real value even when faulty. Check your exact model's live Faulty price on our per-model pages: sell your iPhone, sell your Samsung or sell your Pixel. Every page shows all three condition prices side by side, drawn from the same pricing we actually pay.
Should I repair my phone before selling it?
Usually not. A screen replacement on a recent iPhone typically costs more than the difference between our Faulty and Good prices — and a third-party repair can even reduce a phone's value, because refurbishers prefer original parts. Unless the repair is free under warranty, sell it as it is and let the price difference speak for itself.
How selling your broken phone works
The same three steps as any trade-in: get your instant valuation at phones.co.uk/trade-in, selecting Faulty as the condition. Your price is locked for 14 days, so a dying phone can't lose value while you decide. Post it free, and once it passes our checks — which for Faulty means confirming the phone matches the condition you described, not marking it down for the faults you've already declared — you're paid the same day.
Before you send it: wipe your data
Even a phone that won't turn on carries your data. Where the phone still works: back up, sign out of iCloud or your Google account, and do a factory reset. If it won't power on, remove your SIM and any memory card, and change your main account passwords as a precaution — every phone we process is data-wiped as part of grading, working or not.
Broken phone FAQs
Do you buy phones with cracked screens?
Yes — cracked screens are the single most common fault we buy. Select Faulty for your valuation.
Do you buy phones that won't turn on?
Yes, including water-damaged phones. As long as it's lock-free and matches the model you selected, the Faulty price stands.
My phone is old AND broken — is it still worth anything?
Often, yes. Check your model's page — and if it's not listed, it may have dropped below a payable value, in which case recycle it responsibly rather than binning it.
What if my phone has more than one fault?
Faulty is Faulty — one fault or five, it's the same price tier. Just describe the condition honestly when you send it.
Ready? Get your instant broken-phone valuation — price locked for 14 days, free postage, same-day payment. And if you're upgrading, our trade-in values guide shows what working phones fetch too.