Repair or replace? The honest maths for an ageing phone
"Is it worth fixing?" is the question behind every repair enquiry, and most of the industry answers it badly — repair shops say yes to everything, phone retailers say no to everything. The truthful answer is three numbers and thirty seconds of arithmetic.
The three-number test
Number one: what the phone is worth working — check what your model sells for certified refurbished; that's its real value, not what you paid. Number two: the repair price — ours are published per model, fixed before you book. Number three: what it's worth broken — get a faulty-condition trade-in quote in sixty seconds.
The rule: repair when (value working) minus (repair cost) beats (value broken) by enough to matter to you. An iPhone 13 worth £220 working, £85 to re-screen, £100 broken: repairing wins by £35 and you keep your phone, your apps, your battery habits. A Galaxy A12 worth £60 working with a £110 screen price: replacement wins before you finish the sum.
The adjustments people forget
Age the phone honestly: a model still getting OS updates has years of life a discontinued one doesn't. Stack the faults: a cracked screen AND a tired battery is one question, not two — with us the dearest repair is full price and each extra is 20% off, which often flips the maths back toward repairing. And weigh the hassle honestly too: a repair keeps your setup exactly as it is; a replacement costs you an afternoon of migration even when it's 'free'.
One more: batteries are special. A battery replacement is so cheap relative to what it restores that it's almost always worth doing on any phone you otherwise like — it's the repair that most often turns 'time for a new phone' into 'this is fine for two more years'.
When replacement genuinely wins
Board-level faults on older phones, water damage that sat for weeks, budget handsets where any repair rivals the phone's value, and anything no longer getting security updates — these are honest replacement territory. The good news: broken phones still carry trade-in value, and the jump from a dying budget phone to a refurbished recent model with a 24-month warranty is usually smaller than people expect once the trade-in is knocked off.
Whichever way your numbers land, get them from someone who does both. We repair and we sell — so we make money either way, and can afford to tell you the truth about which one your phone deserves.
Ready when you are
Fixed price in seconds · doorstep collection · live tracking
Get an instant repair quoteFrequently asked
Is it worth repairing a 4-year-old phone?+
Often, yes — if it still gets OS updates and the repair is a screen or battery, the maths usually favours repairing. Run the three-number test: value working, repair cost, value broken. The numbers decide, not the age.
Should I fix my phone before selling it?+
Only when the repair costs less than the value it adds back. A cracked screen sometimes qualifies on recent models; most cosmetic wear doesn't. Get a quote both ways — fixed and as-is — and compare.
What's the most cost-effective phone repair?+
The battery, by a distance: £40–£70 restores all-day life and removes performance throttling on almost any phone, which is why it's the repair we recommend most and the upsell we push least.