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iPhone Air Resale Value Crashes Nearly 50% in 10 Weeks – What SellCell’s New Data Means for iPhone 17 Owners

December 6, 2025
by
iPhone Air Resale Value Crashes Nearly 50% in 10 Weeks – What SellCell’s New Data Means for iPhone 17 Owners

December 6, 2025

Apple’s ultra‑thin iPhone Air is making headlines again—but this time, it’s not for its design. A new wave of reports based on fresh data from trade‑in comparison site SellCell shows the iPhone Air is shedding value at a pace not seen in years, even as the rest of the iPhone 17 lineup holds up surprisingly well. [1]

Today (December 6), coverage from outlets across the US, Europe, and Asia is amplifying the warning: if you own an iPhone Air, your phone is depreciating much faster than other 2025 iPhones—and that has big implications for anyone buying, selling, or trading in an iPhone this holiday season. [2]

iPhone Air’s resale value is falling faster than any recent iPhone

SellCell’s December 3 report looks at 10 weeks of real‑time trade‑in offers from more than 40 US buyback companies, covering 52 different iPhone variants going back to the iPhone 14 range. [3]

The key findings:

  • iPhone Air is the worst performer in years
    • Up to 47.7% depreciation within 10 weeks for the 1TB iPhone Air.
    • Average drop across all Air models: 44.3%. [4]
  • Other iPhone 17 models look relatively healthy
    • The main iPhone 17 series (standard + Pro models, excluding Air) averages 34.6% depreciation at 10 weeks.
    • That’s better than iPhone 16 (39.0%) and iPhone 14 (36.6%), though still behind the iPhone 15 lineup, which remains the resale champion at 31.9% average depreciation. [5]
  • Best vs. worst devices
    • Best performer: iPhone 17 Pro Max 256GB, down only 26.1% after 10 weeks.
    • Worst performer: iPhone Air 1TB, down 47.7%, the steepest 10‑week drop recorded for any iPhone since 2022. [6]

SellCell notes that while the rest of the iPhone 17 line starts to stabilize by week 10, the iPhone Air’s curve keeps bending downward, which they say signals “likely long‑term issues with resale confidence.” [7]

December 6 coverage: a global spotlight on the iPhone Air’s value crash

On December 6, tech publications and mainstream outlets around the world picked up the story and added local angles:

  • eTeknix reports that in the US, the 256GB iPhone Air, originally $999, is already trading for about 40.3% less on buyback platforms. The 1TB model, launched at $1,399, is now valued around $668, a roughly 47.7% drop in under three months. [8]
  • Thai outlet Thairath highlights how second‑hand iPhone Air prices in Asia have plunged “more than 47%” in just 10 weeks, contrasting sharply with the iPhone 17 Pro Max 256GB, which has only lost about a quarter of its value so far. [9]
  • MacTrast and RTTNews/Nasdaq echo the same message: several iPhone Air configurations have lost close to half their value already, making it the weakest early performer of any recent iPhone range. [10]
  • 9to5Mac sums it up bluntly: the iPhone Air’s resale decline is steeper than that of the rest of the iPhone 17 family and of previous generations, and the phone is now clearly the outlier in Apple’s 2025 lineup. [11]

In other words, this isn’t a one‑off data blip—it’s a pattern that multiple independent outlets are now spotlighting on December 6.

Meanwhile, iPhone 17 Pro models are holding their value

The news isn’t bad for everyone. SellCell’s breakdown shows a sharp split inside the iPhone 17 family:

  • All iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max models remain under 40% depreciation at 10 weeks, putting them solidly in the “strong resale” category by historical standards. [12]
  • The regular iPhone 17 models mostly fall between 32.9% and 40.8% depreciation—typical for a mainstream flagship line a couple of months after launch. [13]

These resale trends line up with what we’ve already seen on the sales side. In late October, Reuters reported that robust demand for Apple’s latest iPhones—including the iPhone 17 lineup and the new Air—helped push Apple’s market value briefly above $4 trillion, with early iPhone 17 sales beating the iPhone 16 by about 14% in the US and China. [14]

So far, then, the problem isn’t the iPhone 17 generation as a whole—it’s the Air specifically.

Why is the iPhone Air depreciating so quickly?

SellCell’s report doesn’t just list numbers; it also hints at why the Air is struggling. Their conclusion, echoed by multiple outlets, points to a mix of demand, design, and uncertainty: [15]

  1. Awkward positioning in the lineup
    The Air sits between the base iPhone 17 and the Pro models. It’s thinner and more design‑driven, but it lacks some of the headline Pro features that tend to drive long‑term demand and resale value (like the best camera setup or maximum battery life). For many buyers, that makes it a niche choice rather than the “default” iPhone.
  2. Concerns over durability and repairability
    SellCell notes that the Air’s ultra‑thin design has created uncertainty in the repair and refurbishment markets. Refurbishers worry about parts availability, repair complexity, and potential damage rates—all factors that can push trade‑in offers down. [16]
  3. Rumors about production cuts and a delayed successor
    9to5Mac cites reports that Apple has scaled the iPhone Air back to “end of production” manufacturing levels and may delay its successor until 2027, suggesting Apple itself is rethinking the product’s future. [17]
  4. The “slim tax” effect
    Commentators at sites like iDropNews have described the situation as a kind of “slim tax”: early adopters pay a premium for the thinnest iPhone ever, only to see it lose value faster than any other model in the lineup. [18]

Put together, these factors make the iPhone Air feel like a riskier asset in the resale market. Buyers, traders, and refurbishers appear to be pricing in that risk early.

If you own an iPhone Air, should you be worried?

It depends on how you use your iPhone.

1. You always keep your iPhone for years

If you usually hold onto a phone for three or four years, short‑term depreciation matters less. Whether the Air is worth it comes down to how much you value the design versus missing Pro‑level features and potentially higher repair costs later on.

2. You rely on trade‑in to fund upgrades

If you typically trade in every 1–2 years, the numbers from SellCell are a big deal:

  • On average, the iPhone Air is about 10 percentage points worse than the rest of the iPhone 17 lineup after just ten weeks. [19]
  • Over multiple upgrade cycles, that gap compounds into hundreds of dollars of lost value compared with owning a Pro model or even the standard iPhone 17.

In short: if trade‑in value is a major part of your upgrade strategy, the Air currently looks like the least financially efficient choice in Apple’s 2025 lineup.

For buyers, the iPhone Air might be a hidden holiday bargain

There is a flip side to all this.

Because the Air is depreciating so fast, buyers—especially those willing to consider the used or “like‑new” market—may find some of the best iPhone deals of the season on this model.

  • BGR points out that with the Air averaging 44.3% depreciation, shoppers could see “up to ~40% off” on nearly new units if they’re comfortable buying from third‑party sellers, auction sites, or refurbishers instead of Apple directly. [20]
  • SellCell’s averages suggest many iPhone Air owners are already pricing their devices aggressively to move them, a natural consequence of weak demand and soft trade‑in offers. [21]

The caveats:

  • You’ll likely need to buy from the secondary market, not from Apple.
  • You should check IMEI status, warranty, battery health, and return policies carefully to avoid being stuck with a bad device.
  • If you plan to resell again later, remember that the same depreciation curve that gave you a deal now may hit you the next time you upgrade.

Tips to protect your iPhone 17 trade‑in value (Air or not)

Even if you’re not ready to sell, experts broadly agree on a few strategies to keep as much value as possible:

  1. Time your sale carefully
    A separate analysis focused on iPhone 17 trade‑ins suggests that values are typically highest in the first 3–6 months after launch, before the market gets flooded with used units and before holiday promotions distort pricing. [22]
  2. Keep the phone unlocked and in top condition
    Unlocked, well‑cared‑for iPhones with minimal wear and all original accessories consistently earn the highest offers across buyback platforms. [23]
  3. Compare marketplaces, not just Apple’s program
    SellCell’s and BankMyCell’s data both show large gaps between the highest and lowest offers for the same device—sometimes more than $150 apart—so it pays to shop around before accepting the first quote. [24]
  4. Watch for Apple announcements
    Big news about future models (like early talk around iPhone 18 or new foldables) often triggers a fresh wave of depreciation as owners rush to sell older devices. [25]

The bottom line

As of December 6, 2025, the story is clear:

  • The iPhone 17 lineup overall is performing well in both sales and resale value, and might even be slightly stronger than recent generations. [26]
  • The iPhone Air is the glaring exception, losing around 44–48% of its value in just ten weeks and registering the steepest early‑life depreciation of any iPhone since 2022. [27]

For owners, that means thinking hard about whether to hold or sell—especially if you rely on trade‑in value to finance upgrades. For bargain hunters, it may be the best opportunity yet to pick up Apple’s slimmest iPhone at a steep discount, as long as you’re realistic about its future resale prospects.

Either way, the message from today’s wave of coverage is the same: in 2025’s iPhone world, design alone isn’t enough to guarantee long‑term value—and the market has already decided which side of that line the iPhone Air falls on.

7 Tips to MAXIMIZE Your iPhone Resale Value
Watch this video on YouTube.

References

1. www.sellcell.com, 2. www.eteknix.com, 3. www.sellcell.com, 4. www.sellcell.com, 5. www.sellcell.com, 6. www.sellcell.com, 7. www.sellcell.com, 8. www.eteknix.com, 9. en.thairath.co.th, 10. www.mactrast.com, 11. 9to5mac.com, 12. www.sellcell.com, 13. www.sellcell.com, 14. www.reuters.com, 15. www.sellcell.com, 16. www.sellcell.com, 17. 9to5mac.com, 18. www.idropnews.com, 19. www.sellcell.com, 20. www.bgr.com, 21. www.sellcell.com, 22. gizmogrind.com, 23. gizmogrind.com, 24. www.sellcell.com, 25. www.tweaktown.com, 26. www.sellcell.com, 27. www.sellcell.com

Mateusz Brzeziński

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