iPhone Air's Resale Value Has Dropped Dramatically, Data Shows

The iPhone Air has recorded the steepest early resale value drop of any iPhone model in years, with new data showing that several configurations have lost almost 50% of their value within ten weeks of launch.

According to a ten-week analysis published by SellCell, Apple's latest lineup is showing a pronounced split in resale performance between the iPhone 17 models and the ‌iPhone Air‌. SellCell examined real-time trade-in pricing from more than 40 U.S. buyback companies, comparing average values across weeks since launch against each model's original MSRP. All devices in the study were assessed in good condition for consistent comparisons.

The data shows that the ‌iPhone 17‌ series has averaged 34.6% depreciation after ten weeks, outperforming the iPhone 16 range at the same point last year, which saw a 39% decline. The iPhone 15 series remains the strongest performer over the past several cycles, retaining more value at the ten-week mark with an average depreciation of 31.9%. The iPhone 14 range sits at 36.6% over the same period.

By contrast, the ‌iPhone Air‌ shows significantly weaker retention, averaging 44.3% depreciation across all storage configurations. The Air's declines range from 40.3% to 47.7%, making it the weakest-performing iPhone range since the iPhone 14 Plus and certain iPhone 13 mini configurations registered similar drops in 2022. The steepest fall is attributed to the 1TB ‌iPhone Air‌ model, which SellCell identifies as the worst performer in the entire dataset.

SellCell's model-level breakdown shows a sharp divergence between the Pro segment and the Air. The best-performing model, the 256GB ‌iPhone 17‌ Pro Max, has declined 26.1% after ten weeks, while the 512GB ‌iPhone 17‌ Pro Max has fallen 30.3%. All Pro and Pro Max configurations remain below 40% depreciation, which points to sustained demand in the secondary market. The standard ‌iPhone 17‌ fell between 32.9% and 40.8%, placing it roughly in line with the performance of recent non-Pro tiers. The ‌iPhone 17‌ lineup as a whole collectively retains 9.7% more value than the Air after ten weeks.

The ‌iPhone Air‌ occupies the entire bottom of the ten-week rankings. Depreciation among the ‌iPhone 17‌ models appears to stabilize by week ten, mirroring patterns observed for the iPhone 15 and ‌iPhone 16‌ generations. The ‌iPhone Air‌, on the other hand, continued to decline through week ten, which SellCell suggests could indicate longer-term uncertainty in the secondary market. The comparisons underscore how unusual the ‌iPhone Air‌'s trajectory is relative to other iPhone models.