Trade In or Sell Your iPhone in Canada? How to Compare the Offers
By Vilicus Electronics · Updated
Trading in your iPhone is the easy option: you hand it over when you buy a new one and get credit off the price. Selling it takes a bit more effort, but you get cash you can spend anywhere, and it can pay more than the trade-in credit you'd actually get. The only way to know which is better for your phone is to compare two real numbers: the trade-in credit for your exact phone, and a cash offer for the same phone.
Here's what Apple Canada currently offers, what those numbers really mean, and how to compare them.
Apple Trade In values in Canada
These are the top values Apple's Canadian trade-in page listed for iPhones when we checked it on October 20, 2026. They're in Canadian dollars and are paid as credit or an Apple Gift Card, not cash. (Apple Trade In)
| iPhone | Apple's top trade-in value |
|---|---|
| iPhone 17 Pro Max | Up to $1415 |
| iPhone 17 Pro | Up to $1200 |
| iPhone Air | Up to $835 |
| iPhone 17 | Up to $835 |
| iPhone 16 Pro Max | Up to $1020 |
| iPhone 16 Pro | Up to $915 |
| iPhone 16 Plus | Up to $680 |
| iPhone 16 | Up to $660 |
| iPhone 16e | Up to $470 |
| iPhone 15 Pro Max | Up to $730 |
| iPhone 15 Pro | Up to $625 |
| iPhone 15 Plus | Up to $465 |
| iPhone 15 | Up to $435 |
| iPhone 14 Pro Max | Up to $595 |
| iPhone 14 Pro | Up to $480 |
| iPhone 14 Plus | Up to $335 |
| iPhone 14 | Up to $325 |
| iPhone 13 Pro Max | Up to $450 |
| iPhone 13 Pro | Up to $385 |
| iPhone 13 | Up to $285 |
| iPhone 13 mini | Up to $200 |
| iPhone 12 Pro Max | Up to $315 |
| iPhone 12 Pro | Up to $265 |
| iPhone 12 | Up to $180 |
| iPhone 12 mini | Up to $120 |
| iPhone 11 Pro Max | Up to $195 |
| iPhone 11 Pro | Up to $185 |
| iPhone 11 | Up to $150 |
| iPhone SE (3rd generation) | Up to $115 |
| iPhone SE (2nd generation) | Up to $55 |
Apple changes these values from time to time, so check its page for today's numbers before you decide.
What "up to" really means
The table shows the most Apple will give for each model. Apple says trade-in values vary with the condition, year and configuration of your phone, and the value you're actually given depends on the phone matching the description you gave when you got the estimate.
- In an Apple Store, a Specialist inspects the phone and gives you an exact value on the spot.
- Online, you get an estimate first and send the phone in later. If the inspection finds a different condition from what you described, Apple's trade-in partner can revise the offer, and you can accept the new price or decline it. (Apple Trade In terms)
- Apple also notes that the offer can differ between in-store and online trade-ins.
Carrier trade-ins are also based on condition. Rogers, for example, says its quote assumes the phone turns on, your account information has been removed, and the screen works and isn't cracked. Phones that don't meet its criteria can get a lower value or none at all. (Rogers)
So when you compare, use the estimate for your phone's real condition, not the top number in the table.
Trade-in credit isn't cash
A trade-in value only has its full worth if you were going to spend that money with the same company anyway. Here's how each one pays:
- Apple: credit toward a new Apple product, or the value on an Apple Gift Card. If you buy online and pay in full, Apple credits your original payment method after it receives your old phone and verifies its condition. Apple says the online trade-in process generally takes 2 to 3 weeks once you mail in or drop off your phone, and the credit can take a few more business days to process. If you pay monthly, the credit goes on your monthly bill. If your trade-in is worth more than your new device, you get the rest on an Apple Gift Card. (Apple Trade In)
- Rogers: in store, the value can go toward the down payment on your new phone; online, it's a bill credit. Any credit left over has to be used on accessories or another new device for the same account at the same time, or it's lost. (Rogers)
- Bell: in store, you get a trade-in certificate that must be redeemed right away in that store and can't be exchanged for cash; online, you get a bill credit. You need a new activation or upgrade. (Bell)
- TELUS: a bill credit after TELUS receives and assesses your old phone. (TELUS)
If you're not buying a new phone right now, a trade-in gives you little: at most an Apple Gift Card you can only spend at Apple. If you'd rather have the money for something else, selling is the way to get it.
Does trading in save you tax?
Not at Apple. Apple's Canadian trade-in page says sales tax is assessed on the full value of the new device purchase. (Apple Trade In) In other words, you pay sales tax (HST in Ontario) on the full price of your new iPhone whether you trade in your old one or sell it separately. Trading in at Apple gives you no tax advantage over selling.
If you're trading in with a carrier or another store, ask how they calculate tax before you assume a saving.
How to compare a trade-in with selling
Work through these five steps:
- Get Apple's estimate for your exact phone. On Apple's trade-in page, answer the questions about your model, storage and condition honestly. That's your trade-in number. If you're upgrading through your carrier, get its quote too.
- Get a cash quote for the same phone. A local buyer can give you a range from the model, storage and condition. Our instant estimate gives you a range for your iPhone.
- Look at private listings, carefully. Search Facebook Marketplace or Kijiji for the same model, storage and condition. Keep in mind that these are asking prices, not what phones actually sold for, and that a private sale means messages, a meetup with a stranger and the risk of payment scams. Our guide to where to sell an iPhone in Toronto covers the safety side.
- Compare like for like. A dollar of Apple credit is worth a dollar only if you'd spend it at Apple anyway. A carrier bill credit is tied to your account. Cash is cash.
- Decide what the gap is worth to you. If the cash offer is clearly higher, sell. If the numbers are close and you're buying from Apple or your carrier today, the convenience of a trade-in may be worth it.
When trading in makes sense
- You're buying a new iPhone from Apple or your carrier today and want it done in one visit.
- Your phone is too old or too damaged to be worth much to anyone. Apple will recycle a phone with no trade-in value for free.
- The trade-in estimate for your phone's real condition is close to, or above, the cash offers you can get.
When selling makes sense
- You want cash, or you're not buying a new phone from the same company.
- Your phone is cracked or worn. Trade-in values drop for damage. Many buyers will still make an offer on a cracked iPhone, and we buy most cracked iPhones (at a lower price). See Selling an iPhone With a Cracked Screen.
- The cash offer for your phone beats the trade-in credit you'd actually get.
- You don't want to wait for an online trade-in to be processed and credited (Apple says the process generally takes 2 to 3 weeks).
Before you trade in or sell
The prep is the same either way:
- Turn off Find My and sign out of your Apple Account. Apple's trade-in partner can revise your quote if Find My isn't removed, TELUS won't send an iPhone return label until it's off, and we can't buy a phone that's still locked to an Apple Account.
- Back up and erase it. Go to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Erase All Content and Settings, and if you use an eSIM, choose to erase it too. Apple's full checklist: What to do before you sell, give away, or trade in your iPhone or iPad.
- Make sure it's yours to sell. Apple's terms require that there are no leases, contractual commitments or other third-party interests attached to the phone, and Rogers and Bell require you to own it. We only buy phones that are fully paid off and not reported lost or stolen.
Selling your iPhone to Vilicus
We're a local cash buyer in Toronto and the GTA. We buy most iPhones from the iPhone 11 and SE up to the latest Pro Max, in any storage size, including cracked and scuffed ones (damage lowers the price).
- Get an estimate. Use our instant estimate or text or call us with the model, storage and condition. The estimate is a range based on what we've recently paid for the same model, so you can put it right next to Apple's number.
- We meet you. We come to you anywhere in Toronto and the GTA, or you can meet us.
- We check the phone together and pay cash on the spot. The final price is set once we've seen and tested the phone, and it can be higher or lower than the estimate.
Carrier-locked phones are often fine; just tell us the carrier when you reach out.