How to sell your iPad: get the most for your Apple tablet
Is it time to say goodbye to your iPad?
Whether it is to upgrade to the new iPad, an iPad Pro or just to get some spare money back in your pocket, selling your iPad on can be a great idea to raise some extra funds.
As tablets go, Apple’s iPads manage to keep their well and that means it’s usually worth your while selling on your Apple slate when you’re done with using it.
Lots of people are looking for iPads too, which makes light work of selling on your tablet.
If you don’t know what you’re doing selling your iPad, you’re in luck – we’ve put together this guide to help you through each step to make it easy to sell on your iPad by a number of different ways.
When is it best to sell my iPad?
The sooner you can sell your iPad, the better. If you’ve got a reasonably recent version of the Apple iPad, it’s more likely to be worth a higher amount of money.
Apple updates its iPad range quite regularly and the price of your device will likely drop significantly after the launch of a new product. It’s a good idea to keep an eye on the latest rumors so you can know when to sell your iPad at the best time.
We usually find the best time to sell is likely a few weeks before the launch of a new iPad, but that does mean you’re without an iPad for a while and you won’t know get to know beforehand if the new iPad is worth the upgrade.
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How much will I get if I sell my iPad?
This is the big question – how much will your iPad be worth? Putting an exact number on it can be difficult and it all comes down to the condition of your device, how old it is and what model you had in the first place.
If you’ve got a recent iPad Pro model, it’ll be worth more than say the iPad Air 2 which came out a few generations before it. Then again if you have an iPad Mini 4, which is usually cheaper than the larger iPad models, it may be worth a similar amount as it's a newer device that came out in 2015.
Another thing to note is the storage size of your iPad. If you have a device that only has 16GB of storage, it won’t sell for as much as devices that come with 64GB/128GB/256GB of storage.
iPad models can also either come in Wi-Fi only or cellular versions, and if you have the latter it’ll be worth a little bit more money than the Wi-Fi restricted models.
What to do before selling your iPad?
Be certain what iPad you have and its exact spec
You want to work out exactly what model of the iPad you have. Is it an iPad Pro or an iPad Air? That can make a major difference when you’re selling the device.
You can find the name of the device in the Settings app, in the About section and under the Model subheading. You can then search online for that model number to find out what version of the iPad you have.
You'll also need to know how much storage the device has as well as what version of the software it’s currently running. You'll find that in the About section too.
Knowing these kind of details can make your iPad advert on auction sites a lot more attractive and professional in a sea of other options for people looking to buy an iPad.
Work out the condition of your iPad
Our number one tip here is to be honest with what condition your iPad is in. If you’re not honest with yourself you can at best end up disappointed when it’s not worth as much as you’d hoped and at worst mess up selling your iPad because you’ve lied about its condition.
Check over your device and take a look at how it looks - ask yourself if you would buy this iPad and be happy with its condition. Have you kept it in a case? If not, are there scratches on the back of it? Does it have any dents around the edges? Have you broken or scratched the screen?
Even if there’s only a little bit of damage, you want to know exactly what’s wrong with it so you can correctly list your iPad and not end up disappointed at the end of your sale.
Remember to reset your iPad
Before you make your sale, remember you need to back up your iPad to get all of your photos, music and video off of the iPad and then factory reset it.
How do I sell my iPad?
Auction and boot sale websites
The biggy for selling on your iPad is eBay, and you’ve probably already thought about listing it on the web’s largest auction site. The benefits of listing on eBay are numerous including a huge amount of people always on the search for a new tablet and the security of PayPal for purchases, but there are other options too.
Boot sale websites such as Gumtree, Sphlock or Facebook Marketplace offer a service that means you may not have to pay a charge to list your iPad online. Usually you can also list your iPad on these sites with collection only as an option so you can get the money in cash, trade your iPad in-person and not have to hang around at the Post Office to send it out.
In store
If you want a bit more security with your sale, you may want to go to a high street outlet to be able to sell your iPad.
Shops such as CEX, GAME and even Carphone Warehouse will allow you to sell your iPad to the retailer directly and it means it’s a safe and secure way of ridding yourself of your older tablet.
That said, these alternatives will likely offer you less money than if you were to sell directly to someone over the internet. That added security comes at a price, but if you’re not worried about the exact amount of money you’ll get from your sale then this is a great option too.
- How to sell your iPhone - our guide to getting rid of your Apple phone
James is the Editor-in-Chief at Android Police. Previously, he was Senior Phones Editor for TechRadar, and he has covered smartphones and the mobile space for the best part of a decade bringing you news on all the big announcements from top manufacturers making mobile phones and other portable gadgets. James is often testing out and reviewing the latest and greatest mobile phones, smartwatches, tablets, virtual reality headsets, fitness trackers and more. He once fell over.