How an Instant Wholesale Lot Quote Works

Getting a price on a lot of phones has usually meant a spreadsheet, an email and a wait. You send the list, someone calls back tomorrow, you get one total with no breakdown, and then you haggle over the units that pulled it down. Add five more phones next week and you do it all again.

An instant lot quote replaces that with a page. Here is how ours works on the wholesale lot builder: what you type or paste, how each line is priced, what a person prices instead, and why the number is not an opening offer.

The problem with "email us your list"

The trouble with the email routine is not that anyone is slow on purpose. It is the shape of it.

• You wait. A callback means phone tag while the stock sits.
• You get a total, not a breakdown. One figure for forty phones tells you nothing about which phones earned it.
• You negotiate unit by unit. If the first number is set low to leave room, every line becomes its own conversation.
• Any change resets the clock. Add a phone and the list goes back into someone's inbox.

A per-line quote on a page fixes all four, because the pricing happens while you build the lot instead of after you send it.

Step 1: start with your email

The first screen asks for one thing: your email address. There is no account and no sign-up. Your quote is emailed there as soon as you send the lot, so you end up with it in writing.

Step 2: build the lot, or paste it

You can build the lot by hand or paste it. With more than a handful of units, pasting is quicker.

By hand, you pick a category (iPhone, iPad, or Mac and MacBook), then a model, then set the storage, the carrier lock (and which carrier, if it is locked), the grade and the quantity. You can also mark issues such as cracked back glass, a cracked camera lens or Face ID not working. Some iPads also ask whether they are Wi-Fi only or Wi-Fi and Cellular.

By paste, you press Paste a list and drop in whatever you already have: a spreadsheet column, a text from a supplier, your shop software's export. It reads one device per line, however it is written: shorthand, typos, Spanish, a storage size that is a digit out. Here is what it made of a real test list:

Under the list, the page counts what it did: how many lines it read, how many are ready, and how many need a look. Every line you pasted comes back as a row, including the ones it could not finish, so nothing quietly drops out of your count. Add to my lot takes the ready rows, and the others stay on screen until you fill in what is missing.

Step 3: watch every line get priced

As each device goes in, it is priced on its own model, storage, lock and grade, and the lot total at the bottom updates. There is no button to press for a number.

Two things on the page are worth using.

• Neighboring grades. When you set a device, it shows the price at the grades around the one you picked. If you are unsure whether a phone is an A or a B, you can see what the difference is worth before you decide how to list it.
• A date on the prices. The page shows the date the prices are from, and every figure is confirmed in person when we see the devices.

To see how storage and carrier lock move a single phone's offer, look at a model page such as the iPhone 15 Pro Max or iPhone 13.

What does not price instantly

Most configurations price instantly. For the ones that do not, the page tells you which lines those are rather than leaving you guessing, and someone will be in touch with you about them shortly. That usually means one of these:

• A model too new to be on a price sheet yet. New iPhones are listed with the rest of the family, marked as a new release.
• An issue that needs a look, such as water damage, Face ID not working, a back camera that does not work, or a device still under a company's management (MDM).
• Damage that is not on the flat-rate list for that model.

One thing cannot be priced at all: a phone with iCloud or Activation Lock still on. The page marks those lines as ones we cannot buy.

And if the pricing itself cannot be reached for a moment, the page does not invent a number. It keeps your lot, lets you send it, and someone will be in touch with you shortly.

There is a lot minimum. If a lot falls below it, the page says so plainly and invites you to add another device.

Step 4: send it, and the quote is in your inbox

When the lot looks right, press Done. The last screen asks for 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: cash (in person only), Zelle, Cash App or PayPal.

Press send and you get an order number on screen, the quoted total, and a count of any lines we will be in touch about. A copy of the quote goes to your email straight away, so you have it in writing before anyone meets.

Why this number is not an opening offer

A one-phone chat quote can open low and leave room to come up. The lot builder does not work that way. It quotes our best number up front, because nobody with forty units wants forty negotiations.

So pushing does not move a lot quote. Facts do: the model, the storage, whether a phone is unlocked, and the grade. The bulk selling guide covers how to take stock of a mixed batch.

What "confirmed in person" means

At the handoff, which is at our secured facility, a public spot near you in Los Angeles or Orange County, or by shipping the devices in, each unit is checked against its line. On lots of three or more units, the IMEIs are checked in hand at the meetup, so you do not have to send them ahead.

Because the lot is priced line by line, a unit that turns out different from your list changes its own line, not the whole lot. You are paid the moment the devices check out, by the method you chose.

Tips for a quote that holds at the meetup

1. Check the lock on every phone. "No SIM restrictions" next to Carrier Lock in Settings > General > About means unlocked. Apple's unlocking page explains the rest.
2. Grade each phone on its worst flaw.
3. Give dead phones the DOA grade instead of mixing them into working lines.
4. Sign every phone out of iCloud and Find My before the meetup.
5. Use the exact storage. Capacity in Settings > General > About settles it, and a wrong size is an easy way to change a line.

Questions before you build? Call or text (562) 999-4994, in English or Spanish, or use the contact page. Repair shops should read the repair shop guide, and companies the business buyback checklist.

Frequently asked questions

How long does a wholesale lot quote take?

Most configurations price instantly on the page as you add them, and the total updates as you go. For the few that do not, someone will be in touch with you shortly.

Can I paste a spreadsheet into the lot builder?

Yes. Press Paste a list and paste one device per line. The page reads model, storage, lock, grade and quantity, even in shorthand or Spanish, and flags any line it could not finish.

Why do some devices not get an instant price?

Models too new to be on a price sheet, units with an issue that needs a look, and damage outside the flat-rate list have no instant price. Someone will be in touch with you about them shortly.

Will the price change when you see the phones?

Every figure is confirmed in person. Because each line is priced on its own, a unit that turns out different from the list changes its own line, not the rest of the lot.

Should I negotiate a wholesale lot quote?

Our lot builder quotes our best number up front and does not open low to leave room to haggle. What changes a line is a fact about the phone, such as its grade or carrier lock.