6 Places to Sell Water Damaged iPhones or Phones
Learn about our editorial process
Learn about our editorial process
Learn about our editorial process
- How to find trusted buyback companies and compare quotes for your water damaged phone today
- Compare against repair costs to see if you’re better off selling
- Find out how to tell if your phone is water damaged
Best Buyback Prices for Your Water-Damaged Phone
BankMyCell compares over 100,000+ quotes and customer reviews from 20+ trusted buyback stores every 15 minutes via our data feeds, making us America’s #1 time-saving trade-in supermarket.
| Buyback Company | Price Difference vs. Best Price | Trustpilot Rating | Payout Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| BankMyCell Compare 20+ quotes | BEST OFFER | 4.4 out of 5 | Cash |
| Decluttr | -15% | 4.6 out of 5 | Cash |
| TheWhizCells | -30% | 4.1 out of 5 | Cash |
| Save Gadget | -57% | 3.7 out of 5 | Cash |
| Gadget Pickup | -59% | 4.6 out of 5 | Cash |
| Smartphones Plus | -84% | 5 out of 5 | Cash |
| BuyBack World | -85% | 4.1 out of 5 | Cash |
*Price check quotes based on a 2-year old Apple device (Dec 2024)
Turn Your Water-Damaged iPhone Into Cash Today
Solution: Check Quotes Using Our FREE Tool
The best places to sell your water-damaged phone online are buyback stores on BankMyCell. Here’s how:
- Find your device and select the “Broken” condition.
- Choose storage and carrier.
- Compare quote, ship for free, get paid.
Quick Check: Does Your iPhone Have Water Damage
- Open and remove your iPhone Sim Card Tray
- The Liquid Contact Indicator (LCI) is located inside Sim Card Tray Slot (see here)
- If the indicator is red your device likely has liquid damage
Quick Check: Should I Repair My iPhone Before Selling?
Attempting to repair water-damaged phones can be costly and uncertain, often leading to higher expenses than the device’s actual value.
- Check how much it costs to repair the damage on Apple’s repair estimate site
- Compare the price for a ‘good working condition’ here
- Work out the difference – Often the profit is less than just selling it faulty (liquid damaged)
Example Calculation:
- iPhone Repair $699
- Good Condition Resale Quote $920
- Faulty Condition resale Quote $300
You’ll only make $221 profit repairing and then selling (Good $920 – Repair $699 = $221).
But, if you just sold faulty straight away, you’d get a $300 profit – without the repair hassle.
When your iPhone succumbs to water damage, it can be very frustrating. It helps if you know how to tell that your phone is water damaged so you can plan the way forward. Fortunately, plenty of trusted companies allow you to get quotes for your water-damaged phone today.
You may also opt to fix the phone, but it’s crucial to compare the quotes against repair costs to see if you’re better off selling.
Get an Instant Water Damaged iPhone Quote
Just Select 'Faulty' From The Filters on This Page
Where Can I Sell My Water-Damaged Phone?
Plenty of established companies on BankMyCell will be happy to buy a water-damaged phone from you. Many customers sell their water-damaged phones for cash to these companies, and the companies even offer free shipping and free returns.
To find the details for these companies, select ‘broken’ on the BankMyCell search page to see the company details and their scores on Trustpilot. Then you just enter some basic personal information to lock in the cash sale price today.
Here’s an overview of some of them.
BEST Rated Water Damaged Phone Buyers
Average Customer Rating:
4.4 out of 5 on Trustpilot
Avg. Water Damage Quote:
TOP PAYOUT
*Compare everyone’s deals here, Guaranteed Top Payouts!
Description
Year of Establishment: 2018
BankMyCell is your go-to place for comparing cell phone trade-in values. From there, you will see who offers the most cash and lock the price for up to 20 days.
We accept devices with broken glass, damaged screens, cracks, or dents that are not fully functional.
Payment & Shipping Options
- Payment Methods: PayPal, direct deposit, and check
- Shipping Privileges: Free shipping pack and label, no cost for returns. We also provide an item collection service for your convenience.
- Timeline for Payment: 1-5 days
Average Customer Rating:
4.6 out of 5 on Trustpilot
Avg. Water Damage Quote:
-15% Less
Description
Decluttr is a fast, easy, and totally free way to sell your phones, gadgets, and other devices. Get an instant valuation for your phone on the BankMyCell website, ship the device for free, and get paid. Decluttr buys water-damaged phones and pays out via direct deposit, check, or PayPal.
Payment & Shipping Options
- Payment: Check, Direct Deposit or PayPal.
- Shipping & Returns: FREE
Average Customer Rating:
4.1 out of 5 on Trustpilot
Avg. Water Damage Quote:
-30% Less
Description
The Whiz Cells makes it easy for you to find out how much your device is worth. It also accepts water-damaged devices and provides free shipping and returns.
Payment & Shipping Options
- Payment: Direct Deposit or PayPal.
- Shipping & Returns: FREE
Average Customer Rating:
3.7 out of 5 on Trustpilot
Avg. Water Damage Quote:
-57% Less
Description
Save Gadget will accept and buy liquid-damaged devices and offers free shipping and returns. It offers an easy process to assess your gadget’s brand, model, and condition. After reviewing your device, it pays you for your device in 48 hours.
Payment & Shipping Options
- Payment: Check or PayPal.
- Shipping & Returns: FREE
Average Customer Rating:
4.6 out of 5 on Trustpilot
Avg. Water Damage Quote:
-59% Less
Description
Gadget Pickup will give you an instant quote based on the condition of your phone. It provides you with a free, trackable pre-paid shipping label to send your phone. In addition to purchasing water-damaged phones, it also pays within two days.
Payment & Shipping Options
- Payment: Check or PayPal.
- Shipping & Returns: FREE
Average Customer Rating:
5 out of 5 on Trustpilot
Avg. Water Damage Quote:
-84% Less
Description
Smartphone Plus offers an instant estimate for your water-damaged phone. They offer free shipping and returns. They send payment by check or PayPal to you within a day of receiving the device.
Payment & Shipping Options
- Payment: Check or PayPal.
- Shipping & Returns: FREE
Average Customer Rating:
4.1 out of 5 on Trustpilot
Avg. Water Damage Quote:
-85% Less
Description
BuyBackWorld buys devices with liquid damage for a decent price. They offer free shipping kits and more payment options for your convenience. They also provide a longer price lock feature, where your initial quote will be valid for 30 days, giving you plenty of time to ship your device.
Payment & Shipping Options
- Payment: PayPal, Check, and Venmo
- Shipping & Returns: FREE
*Price check quotes based on a 2-year old Apple Device (Dec 2024)
Can I Sell My Water Damaged iPhone?
Yes, these days, you can sell your water-damaged iPhone or other smartphones. It’s also important to note that Apple’s iPhone warranty doesn’t cover liquid damage. The good news is that there are buyback stores to sell your water damaged iPhone to.
Once you’ve established that your phone is water damaged, or if it doesn’t turn on after getting waterlogged, here are the most common types of damage that your iPhone might have sustained:
Display: If your iPhone stays in the water for an extended time, water may get into the screen and damage the display
Speaker: Apple iPhones have their speakers located on the outer body of the device. That means the speakers have direct exposure to water damage if your iPhone falls in liquid. To check for speaker water damage, play some music and pay attention to the sound quality or whether or not the speaker is producing sound. If everything seems normal, then your iPhone speaker isn’t damaged.
Charging-port: Just as your iPhone speaker is vulnerable to water damage, so is your charging port. Although newer iPhone models come with water-resistant capabilities, and Apple designed the charging port to resist water damage, the port can still sustain water damage under certain circumstances. To check your iPhone’s charging port for water damage, plug in the charger and check to see if it’s working.
Home-button: While newer Apple iPhone models have full-screen displays with no home button, the home button in older models controls most functions. If your iPhone’s home button doesn’t work after water exposure, it may have become water damaged.
Who Buys Water Damaged iPhones & Android Phones?
At BankMyCell, our comparison site has a list of places that buy phones with liquid damage. To sell a water-damaged phone, search for it on BankMyCell and select the ‘sell broken’ condition on the search page. That will display all the buyback companies that will purchase broken handsets of that model.
Fixing a water-damaged phone is often a 50/50 proposition at best. It’s not uncommon to have your water-damaged phone repaired and for everything to work fine. Then, a few days or weeks later, something may malfunction or fail to work as well as it used to.
Keep in mind that out-of-warranty repairs for 2- to 3-year-old iPhone devices will usually cost more than the used phones are worth trading in when fixed, so your best option is to sell now. Check out the Apple repair costs of popular models here:
| Model | Apple Repair Cost |
|---|---|
| iPhone 12, 12 Mini, 12 Pro | $399 - $599 repair cost |
| iPhone 11, 11 Pro | $399 - $599 repair cost |
| iPhone X, XS. XS, XR Max | $399 - $599 repair cost |
| iPhone 8 / 8 Plus | $349 - $399 repair cost |
| iPhone 7 / 7 Plus | $319 - $349 repair cost |
| iPhone 6 / 6S | $299 - $329 repair cost |
| iPhone SE (2nd) | $269 repair cost |
| iPhone SE | $269 repair cost |
| iPhone 5S/5C | $269 repair cost |
| iPhone 4/4S | $149 - $199 repair cost |
How Do I Tell If My iPhone Has Water Damage?
iPhones make it easy for you to tell whether or not your device has water damage. All you need to do is remove the SIM tray and look for a red color inside the SIM card slot. If you can spot a red color inside the slot, that means water has activated the Liquid Contact Indicator (LCI), and your phone likely has liquid damage.
The indicator’s color is usually white or silver, but it turns red when it contacts water or other water-based liquid. An LCI won’t activate because of temperature or humidity changes that are within the product’s environmental requirements.
Apple’s iPhone warranty doesn’t cover liquid damage – and despite newer models featuring increased water resistance, continued or prolonged exposure to water can still damage your device.
Overall, the following steps can help you to tell if your iPhone has water damage
- Remove the SIM tray and look for a red color inside the SIM card slot
- If your phone has liquid damage, that Liquid Contact Indicator (LCI) inside the tray will become activated and turn red. Otherwise, it should appear white or silver.
Unfortunately, Apple’s iPhone warranty doesn’t cover liquid damage, but your iPhone can still become water damaged after continued and prolonged exposure to water.
FAQs
Can you get money for an iPhone with water damage?
You can sell your iPhone with water damage at a trusted online buyback store in exchange for cash. Click here to see where to sell a water-damaged iPhone.
Can I trade in my iPhone with water damage?
YES, but with limited options. Most stores, like Apple, will recycle it for free. If you need an investment return on it, online buyback stores will buy it in exchange for cash. Check out your options here.
