India : Cashify, India’s recommerce platform for buying, selling and repairing smartphones and other consumer electronics, today shared data on festive-season smartphone trends, highlighting growing activity in the premium segment.
Cashify’s data shows that smartphones priced above ₹50,000 are seeing the strongest growth across both trade-ins and refurbished sales. Trade-ins in this segment have more than quadrupled, while refurbished sales have more than doubled.
This growth comes at a time when India’s new smartphone market is seeing pressure on volumes, with rising prices making consumers more cautious about new-device purchases. Omdia reported a 26% YoY decline in smartphone shipments in Q3 2026, while Counterpoint Research expects festive-season smartphone volumes to fall 12% YoY.
Nakul Kumar, Co-Founder and CMO, Cashify, said, “As smartphone prices keep rising, consumers continue to aspire to own premium devices. What’s changing is how they access them. Recommerce is opening up more ways to make these upgrades possible. Consumers can put the value of their existing devices towards a new purchase, or choose a refurbished premium smartphone. Both options give consumers greater choice and flexibility in how they access the devices they want.”
Premium Smartphones Lead Festive Demand
Refurbished smartphones are also offering consumers a price advantage. Prices are ~26% lower at the ‘superb-grade’ level and ~36% lower at the ‘best-value-grade’ level. For refurbished iPhones, the price gap is ~25% at ‘superb-grade’, and Android devices are ~31% cheaper than purchasing brand new.
Trade-ins Contribute to Festive Upgrades
Cashify recorded a 25% uptick in exchange volumes, while the total value of exchanged devices rose by 40%, and the average trade-in value reached ₹15,105.
At the brand level, Motorola and Google recorded growth of 79% and 74%, respectively, in festive upgrade and trade-in activity. Samsung recorded the largest increase in volume. As the festive season progresses, the relative momentum across brands may evolve.
September and October account for 21% of Cashify’s annual trade-ins, while October to December accounts for 32%.
Demand Shifts Towards Newer iPhone Generations
iPhone 13 continues to account for the largest share of iPhone trade-ins, representing 23% of all iPhones traded in, although activity for the model has remained flat. Growth in trade-ins has shifted to the iPhone 14, 15 and 16.
On the refurbished side, the iPhone 13 continues to lead in volume, but demand is declining and shifting towards iPhone 15, 16 and 17.
The latest iPhone launch has also contributed to growth in the supply of previous-generation devices, including the iPhone 14, 15 and 16.
Refurbished iPhones priced above ₹50,000 have recorded nearly double the units and remain the only refurbished iPhone price band performing above a normal month.
Tier 3 and Smaller Markets Record Faster Growth
Cashify’s festive-season data indicates that Tier 3 and smaller markets are growing faster than the six metros. Compared with the previous festive season, these markets grew 49%, against 39% across the six metros.
Delhi and Bengaluru together account for 30% of refurbished sales, with both markets growing strongly. Pune, Chennai, Hyderabad and Gurugram are each running 4-7% above their normal rate. Trivandrum, Nashik and Rajkot have also nearly doubled.
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