Cell Phone Scrap, also called mobile phone scrap or smartphone scrap, consists of old, damaged or obsolete cellular phones that are no longer being used.
Modern phones contain a complex mix of metals, plastics, glass, electronic components and batteries. They can contain recoverable copper, gold, silver, palladium and other valuable materials, while their lithium-ion batteries and certain electronic components require proper handling at end of life.
Cell Phone Scrap includes smartphones, older cellular phones and related mobile devices that are being discarded, recycled or processed for material recovery.
Phones may enter the recycling stream as:
The condition of the phone can have a major effect on whether reuse, refurbishment, parts harvesting or material recycling is the best value pathway.
Cell phones contain a wide range of materials used for electrical conductivity, computing, displays, batteries, speakers and structural components.
Common materials can include:
The exact composition varies by manufacturer, model and generation, so there is no single material breakdown that applies to every phone.
Individual phones contain only small quantities of valuable metals, but large volumes of devices can provide a meaningful source of recoverable copper and precious metals.
The U.S. Geological Survey has identified copper, gold, silver, palladium, platinum and tantalum among the valuable metals found in mobile phones.
Electronics recyclers process large numbers of devices so small amounts of metal can be concentrated and recovered efficiently.
Before selling a phone strictly as scrap, check whether it still has value as a working device, trade-in, refurbished phone or source of reusable parts.
A functional or repairable smartphone may be worth substantially more through resale or refurbishment than its raw-material value.
Phones that are obsolete, severely damaged or unsuitable for reuse can then move into electronics-recycling and material-recovery channels.
Before donating, selling or recycling a mobile phone, protect your personal information.
Recommended steps include:
Businesses and organizations disposing of larger quantities should use documented data-destruction or data-sanitization procedures appropriate for their security requirements.
It depends on the phone and the receiving recycler.
Some older phones have batteries that can be removed easily. Many modern smartphones have built-in lithium-ion batteries that are not designed for routine removal by the user.
Do not puncture, crush, bend or otherwise damage a lithium-ion battery in an attempt to remove it. Damaged lithium-ion batteries can create a serious fire hazard.
If the battery is easily removable, ask the recycler whether it should be separated. If it is built into the phone, send the complete device to a recycler that accepts electronics containing lithium-ion batteries.
Cell phones and their lithium-ion batteries should not be placed in household garbage or ordinary curbside recycling bins.
Lithium-ion batteries can be damaged or crushed during waste collection and sorting, creating fire risks in garbage trucks, transfer facilities and recycling plants.
Use an electronics-recycling program, retailer take-back service, manufacturer program or other approved collection location instead.
Scrap yards and electronics recyclers may classify phones differently depending on whether the battery remains installed.
RecyclingMonster tracks a dedicated Cell Phone With Battery price category, while its broader electronics database also includes observations for phones without batteries.
Do not remove a built-in battery solely to try to qualify for a different price unless the receiving buyer specifically requires removal and the battery can be removed safely.
The printed circuit boards inside phones contain copper conductors and small amounts of precious and specialty metals used in contacts, connectors and electronic components.
Depending on the design, these can include gold, silver, palladium and other metals.
Because these materials are present in small concentrations, circuit boards are typically processed in volume by specialized electronics recyclers and refiners rather than manually recovered from individual phones.
For most individuals, dismantling a phone is not necessary and may reduce its reuse value or create battery-safety risks.
Complete phones are often easier for electronics recyclers to sort into reuse, refurbishment, parts recovery or material-recycling channels.
Commercial processors may dismantle devices using controlled procedures, but consumers should generally deliver the phone intact unless the recycler provides different instructions.
Cell Phone Scrap prices can vary according to device condition, completeness, battery status, model, quantity, location and the receiving buyer's processing method.
Working phones can have resale or refurbishment value that is unrelated to scrap weight. Devices purchased strictly as electronic scrap may instead be priced by pound, unit or category.
For current market information, view RecyclingMonster's Cell Phone With Battery Prices and the broader Electronics Scrap Prices database.
Always check the material description and last-updated date before relying on a quote. Some individual cell-phone observations in the broader electronics database are older than the newest electronics-price records.
Cell phones are accepted by electronics recyclers, some scrap yards, device-refurbishment companies, retailers and manufacturer take-back programs.
RecyclingMonster lists hundreds of facilities that identify cell phones among the electronics they accept.
Use the Cell Phones Complete Recycling Centers directory for facilities that specifically accept complete phones.
You can also use RecyclingMonster's Electronics Recycling Center Directory or the Recycle an Item search to locate additional options.
For businesses, institutions and consumers handling sensitive devices, using a recycler operating under recognized electronics-recycling standards can provide additional assurance around environmental management and data security.
In the United States, the EPA identifies R2 and e-Stewards as third-party certification standards used by electronics recyclers.
Certification does not eliminate the need to erase personal data before recycling, but it can be an important factor when selecting a downstream processor.
Businesses, wireless carriers, repair companies, schools, government agencies and electronics refurbishers may generate large quantities of obsolete phones.
Bulk sellers should ask buyers about:
Separating reusable phones from true end-of-life devices can help preserve more value and reduce the amount of material requiring final recycling.