Nearly 7 in 10 would replace phones sooner with a good trade-in offer

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Retail brands often tout the environmental benefits of their trade-in programs, and not without cause, since consumers who trade in products might have thrown them away otherwise. But a new report touts strategic benefits of trade-in programs that have nothing to do with overburdened landfills—namely hooking new customers…and keeping them hooked.

Nearly 7 in 10 (69%) of consumers would replace their smartphones earlier than they would have otherwise if offered a good trade-in deal, according to a new report from Alchemy, a self-described circular solutions provider that’s launched trade-in programs for more than 30 companies. Even more consumers, 84%, said they’d stay loyal to brands (rather than falling into the arms of competitors) if they tendered competitive trade-in offers.

Sometimes a trade-in is the deciding factor for smartphone buyers, with 28% saying they would not have purchased a smartphone without a trade-in offer. Even more, 35%, said they wouldn’t have made a gaming or entertainment product purchase sans trade-in, while 27% said they wouldn’t have when it came to kitchen appliances.

The research, conducted by CCS Insight in Q4 2025, entailed a survey of 3,000 consumers in the US and UK as well as two focus groups and interviews with industry executives.

Those executive interviews highlighted some of the more strategic uses of trade-ins, including the fact that generous trade-in offers are one way brands that are loath to discount their products can give consumers a break without lowering their advertised prices.

“We don’t want to discount heavily if it damages the value of the brand,” an unnamed executive from a home-audio brand told the researchers. “But trade-in allows customers to achieve a better price than they may have otherwise.”

Since 2016, Target has hosted trade-in events for car seats where it offers participants a 20% discount for a new one. In the process, it reports it has collected and recycled 3.5 million car seats. And in 2025, Best Buy reported facilitating trade-ins of more than 777,325 devices.