Assurant, Inc., a global protection company, has released findings from its Q3 Mobile Trade-In and Upgrade Industry Trends Report, revealing that trade-in programs surged as consumers embraced devices with more personalized AI capabilities.
This marks the third consecutive record-breaking quarter, as consumers received a record $1.59 billion in value through mobile device trade-in, a 46% year-over-year increase, and a 19 percent rise over the second quarter of 2025.
The record growth in value and the decline in average device age supports Assurant’s earlier forecast that consumers would accelerate adoption of newly released smartphones with personalized, functional AI capabilities. With major carriers reporting increased global shipments of flagship devices in the third quarter, newer, high-value devices are entering the trade-in ecosystem, advancing growth in the secondary market.
“This year is shaping up to break records for total value returned to consumers through trade-in programs,” said Biju Nair, EVP & President, Global Connected Living at Assurant. “Consumers are trading in later-generation devices earlier to access AI-enabled features, and their embrace of more personalized experiences that newer devices deliver is powering a rapidly growing secondary market. This has created a ripple effect for affordability and sustainability as an influx of higher value devices are re-entering the ecosystem and are beginning to drive some additional emerging trends which we hope to report on in the next quarter.”
He said that year-to-date, trade-in programs have returned a total of $4.17 billion in value to consumers, representing a 54 percent increase compared to the same period in 2024, and are on track to surpass last year’s record total of $4.5 billion. Other highlights from the report:
- 5G devices dominate: For the fifth straight quarter, Apple’s iPhone 13 and Samsung’s Galaxy S22 Ultra 5G were the brands most frequently turned-in devices from trade-in and upgrade programs. For the first time, all top five models were 5G-enabled devices.
- Shift toward newer models: All top-five trade-ins came from the iPhone 13 and 14 generations for the first time, replacing older models like the iPhone 11 and 12, which had ranked in the top five since 2021 and 2022, respectively.
- Circular economy impact: As more advanced 5G devices with better processors, cameras, and batteries enter the secondary market, higher-value inventory is fueling growth of the circular device ecosystem.
The Assurant Mobile Trade-In and Upgrade Industry Trends Report provides insights into the state of the secondary device market, including trends that are delivering record value to consumers, according to Assurant and industry data. The full Q3 2025 report is available for download here.
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