A study by online smartphone comparison platform Sell Cell has found that Apple’s newest flagship device — the iPhone 17 Pro Max, ranks first in terms of resell, accounting for 11.5% of all trade-ins in the United States, just months after launch.
The report noted that the iPhone 17 Pro Max’s value has depreciated slower — by nearly 25.4% over a 145-day period, compared to its predecessor, the iPhone 16 Pro Max which saw its price fall 32.5% in the same period.
The study, made public in a blogpost last week, further noted that a majority of the trade-ins made are unlocked — suggesting that customers are looking to make big bucks and timing their resales to match strong market prices.
This analysis was based on internal SellCell trade-in data and secondary-market pricing trends across 40 independent iPhone buyers, as per the report.
Why are iPhone 17 Pro Max owners selling their device so early?
So, why are Americans selling their new iPhone 17 Pro Max phones? The answer is a combination of factors, according to the report. Here’s a look:
- Strong resale prices: As per the report, the leading reason is the strong prices, where mint condition iPhone 17 Pro Max devices are being offloaded at 7% hike (or $95 more) over other devices at the same 145-day period.
- Financial strategy: On average, resale value of the Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max is near $967.50, compared to the $1,200 original launch price. “Some owners may see an opportunity to recover a large portion of their spend when they choose to sell iPhone models while prices remain high,” the report felt.
- Testing: Another reason for the trade-ins may be experimentation, where some users decide to test a device before keeping it for long-term use.
- Value justification: The study further said that some users may purchase the expensive unit and then struggle to justify its cost against real-world usage. It cited previous study, which showed that many iOS customers are vary of new updates to the operating system.
- Economic factors: US-based research platform PYMNTS Intelligence found that 71% of Americans live paycheque-to-paycheque; while other industry studies showed that at least 50% of Americans sold second-hand items in 2025. Owners may be using their pricey iPhones as a short-term asset for quick cash when required, it added.
iPhone 17 beats predecessor on value?
The report called the iPhone 17 Pro Max’s retained value, “one of the most striking findings” in its study, especially when compared with its predecessor.
It added, “This performance helps explain why some early adopters may choose to sell sooner rather than later — not because the device has failed, but because resale prices remain unusually strong for a recently launched flagship.”
- Average depreciation sits around 25.4%
- The iPhone 16 Pro Max saw depreciation closer to 32.5% over a similar period.
- Stronger value retention of up to $95 per device vs last year’s iPhone 16 Pro Max, over the same 145-day post launch window, makes early resale financially viable.
- Mint-condition iPhone 17 Pro Max devices have depreciated roughly 7% less than the iPhone 16 Pro Max over the same 145-day period.
- This slower depreciation means the iPhone 17 Pro Max is holding noticeably stronger resale value than the previous generation at the same stage of its lifecycle, helping explain unusually early trade-in activity.
What does the resale trend data highlight?
- Around 86% of iPhone 17 Pro Max trade-ins are in Mint or Good condition, suggesting many owners are selling soon after purchase.
- Trade-in share for the iPhone 17 Pro Max rose from around 5.1% in late November to 11.5% by early February, more than doubling in just 12 weeks as the device climbed from eighth position to the number one spot.
- Share increased steadily week by week rather than spiking suddenly, suggesting sustained resale activity.
- The device moved from outside the top five to number one between late December and mid-January.
- Growth continued into early 2026, indicating ongoing early resale behaviour rather than a short-term promotion or launch spike.
“The rapid rise of the iPhone 17 Pro Max as the most traded-in device highlights how … strong value retention and high resale prices appear to be encouraging some owners to sell earlier than usual, treating premium devices more like financial assets than long-term purchases,” the study concluded.
It however added that rather than pointing to a single cause, “the surge in trade-ins likely reflects a combination of resale strategy, economic timing and changing upgrade habits”.
