How to Sell iPhones in Bulk: A Wholesale Guide

Selling one iPhone is simple. Selling forty is a different job. The phones are different models, some are locked to a carrier, a few are cracked, and every buyer wants the list in a different shape.

This guide is for whoever ends up holding the lot. It covers how to take stock of what you have, how buyers arrive at a number, what the handoff looks like, and how to build a lot on our wholesale lot builder from start to finish.

Who sells iPhones in bulk

• Repair shops: trade-ins, abandoned repairs and cracked units not worth fixing. See turning trade-ins and parts phones into cash.
• Carrier and phone stores: trade-in stock and returns piling up in the back.
• Resellers: you buy singles and sell in lots, so speed and a clear per-unit number matter most.
• Businesses: company phones and iPads that need to come out of management first. The business buyback checklist covers that.
• Estate and office clear-outs: a drawer of phones nobody has touched in years, some still signed in to someone's account.

The common thread is many units, mixed condition, and your time. Listing forty phones one at a time can take weeks. A prepared lot sells in an afternoon.

Step 1: take inventory, one line per unit

A buyer prices every iPhone off four facts: model, storage, carrier lock and grade. Get those right for every unit and the rest is easy. Get one wrong and the number changes at the meetup.

On a phone that turns on, one screen gives you three of the four. Apple's guide to Settings > General > About lists what is there: Model Name, Capacity (the storage), Carrier Lock status and the IMEI.

Keep one row per phone, even for six of the same model, because two identical phones rarely grade the same.

Check the lock, do not guess it

"No SIM restrictions" next to Carrier Lock means the phone is unlocked. If it names a carrier, it is locked, and Apple's unlocking page is clear that only that carrier can unlock it. Unlocked phones pay more than carrier-locked ones, so check every unit. Our free IMEI check on the homepage shows the lock status too.

Sort out Activation Lock first

Activation Lock is the one problem that stops a sale outright. A phone still signed in to someone's Apple Account with Find My on cannot be bought by us, and Apple's own advice for a preowned iPhone is not to buy one. If a phone powers on to an "iPhone Locked to Owner" screen, only the account owner can clear it.

Pull every locked unit out now. Chasing a former owner for a password is slow, and a locked phone mixed into a lot only muddies the count.

Grade each unit on its worst flaw

A spotless screen does not rescue a cracked back. Here is how we grade:

A battery at 79% health or below is a flat $20 off at any grade. It does not change the grade.

Note battery health separately, since it does not change a grade. The long version is in iPhone condition grades explained.

Step 2: understand how a lot gets priced

Buyers price lots in one of a few ways, and knowing which one you are looking at tells you how far to trust the number.

• Line by line. Each unit is priced on its own model, storage, lock and grade, and the lot is the sum. The easiest kind to check.
• One blended number. A single figure for everything. Quick, but you cannot tell whether your good phones are paying for the broken ones.
• Cherry-picking. An offer on the newest, cleanest units and a pass on the rest, which leaves you the hardest phones to sell.
• Quote now, re-grade later. Mail-in buyers typically re-inspect after the phones arrive and can send a revised offer, so read how a buyer handles differences before you ship.

What moves the number is the same everywhere: newer models, unlocked phones and better grades, with storage mattering more on recent models. Pages like the iPhone 15 Pro Max, iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 show how storage and lock change what we pay for a single phone.

Step 3: get a per-device quote instead of emailing a list

The usual routine: email a spreadsheet, wait a day for a callback, get one total with no breakdown, then argue unit by unit over the phones that dragged it down. Add five phones next week and start over.

A per-device instant quote fixes each of those. Every line has its own number. You can see what one grade up or down is worth before you commit. And you decide on the spot.

Our lot builder also quotes our best number up front. It does not open low to leave room for haggling, the way a one-phone chat quote might.

Walkthrough: building a lot on /Wholesale

1. Enter your email. It is the only thing asked at the start, and your quote is emailed to you as soon as you send the lot.
2. Pick a category and a model, or press Paste a list and drop in the list you already have. The page reads one device per line, even in shorthand or Spanish, and flags any line it could not finish.
3. Set each device: storage, carrier lock (and which carrier), grade and quantity. Some iPads also ask Wi-Fi only or Wi-Fi and Cellular.
4. Mark any issues, such as cracked back glass, a cracked camera lens or Face ID not working.
5. Watch the total. It updates as you add each line, and each device shows its price at the grades around the one you picked.
6. Press Done, then add your name, a phone number, how we get the devices (meet in person or drop off, or ship them in) and how you want to be paid.
7. Send it. You get an order number on screen and the quote in your inbox.

Most configurations price instantly. A few, such as a model too new to be on a price sheet or a unit with an issue that needs a look, have no instant price, and the page marks which. Someone will be in touch with you about those shortly. There is a lot minimum, and the page says so if a lot falls under it. The builder covers iPhones, iPads and Macs. For an Apple Watch or a single phone, use /sell. The instant lot quote guide goes deeper on the paste reader.

The handoff and payment

Meet in person at our secured facility or a public spot near you in Los Angeles or Orange County, or ship the devices in. On lots of three or more units, IMEIs are checked in hand at the meetup, so you do not send forty IMEIs ahead of time. Each unit is checked against its line, and because the lot is priced line by line, a unit that turns out different changes its own line, not the whole lot.

To make it quick, bring every phone signed out of iCloud, charged enough to power on, and bagged in the same order as your list, with parts-only units kept apart and labeled.

You choose cash (in person only), Zelle (usually same day), Cash App (usually same day) or PayPal, and you are paid the moment the devices check out. Sending a lot is a request for a quote, not a commitment. And do not wait too long: a phone in a drawer is usually worth less next season than this one.

Rather talk first? Call or text (562) 999-4994, in English or Spanish, or use the contact page.

Frequently asked questions

How do I sell a lot of iPhones at once?

List each phone's model, storage, carrier lock and grade, sign every unit out of iCloud, then enter or paste the list into our lot builder at /Wholesale. You get a per-device quote on the page and a copy by email.

Do you buy carrier-locked or cracked iPhones in bulk?

Yes. Unlocked phones pay more than locked ones, and damage lowers the grade and the offer. The one thing we cannot buy is a phone with Activation Lock still on.

How is a wholesale iPhone lot priced?

Our lot builder prices each line on its model, storage, lock and grade and adds them up. Most configurations price instantly, and for the rest someone will be in touch with you shortly.

Is there a minimum for a wholesale lot?

Yes. The lot builder tells you if a lot falls below the minimum, and a single phone can always go through /sell.

How do I get paid for a bulk iPhone sale?

You choose cash in person, Zelle, Cash App or PayPal on the lot form, and you are paid the moment the devices check out.