How Much Does a Cracked Screen Actually Reduce Resale Value?

A real number, not just "a lot less"

A cracked screen feels like it should devastate a phone's resale value — visually, it's the most obvious sign of damage a phone can have. The real numbers are more specific and, in many cases, more forgiving than that instinct suggests.

The real range

UK trade-in market data suggests a typical cut of roughly £40-120 for a cracked screen, depending on the specific crack and the phone's overall value. This is genuinely a range rather than a fixed penalty, because the deduction generally scales with what the phone would be worth undamaged — a crack on a budget phone costs you proportionally less in absolute terms than the same crack on a current flagship, even though the relative percentage impact might be similar.

Worth noting this figure covers a genuine crack affecting the glass — hairline scratches or minor surface marks are typically covered under standard cosmetic grading rather than treated as a separate, more serious deduction category.

What actually determines the size of the deduction

Severity and location matter. A small crack in a corner, away from the main viewing area, is typically treated less severely than a crack running across the centre of the screen or affecting the display's actual image quality.

Whether it affects function, not just appearance. A purely cosmetic crack that doesn't affect touch response or display quality is valued differently from one that's started to interfere with how the phone actually works — the latter moves the device toward a lower functional grade entirely, not just a cosmetic deduction.

The phone's underlying value. As above, the same crack costs you more in absolute pounds on a higher-value phone, even if the underlying percentage-based logic is broadly consistent.

Is it worth repairing before you sell?

This comes down to simple maths: compare the cost of a genuine, quality screen replacement against the trade-in deduction you'd otherwise take. If a proper repair costs less than the deduction, repairing first is usually the financially sensible move — you recover more value than you spend.

The genuine caveat: a cheap, non-original screen replacement can sometimes leave a phone worse off than the crack alone would have — inferior touch sensitivity, colour accuracy, or build quality compared to the original part can result in the phone being graded down anyway, on top of what you spent on the repair. If you're repairing specifically to maximise resale value, it's worth paying for a genuine or high-quality part rather than the cheapest available option.

The practical takeaway

A cracked screen is a real, meaningful deduction — but it's not the resale-value catastrophe it might feel like in the moment. Knowing the real range (£40-120, scaling with the phone's value) lets you make an actual informed decision about whether repairing first genuinely pays for itself, rather than assuming either that it's a write-off or that it barely matters.

Compare real trade-in prices for your specific phone, cracked screen included, across every recycler on our Trade-In Index before you decide whether to repair or sell as-is.

Related reading: Sell a cracked screen iPhone · How phone recycling prices are calculated · How to sell your phone safely in the UK · Sell a broken phone · Compare phone recyclers · All buying guides