Is a Refurbished iPhone XR Still Worth It in 2026?

RefurbMe's Time-to-Refurb for the iPhone XR is 134 days, against a 68-day median for the iPhone family (as of October 2026, RefurbMe iPhone stats). Time-to-Refurb counts the days from Apple's announcement of a model to the first refurbished unit RefurbMe saw in stock. For the XR that first unit appeared on January 23, 2019, at Gazelle. On October 23, 2026, RefurbMe counted 51 in-stock US offers for it.

Who should buy a refurbished iPhone XR, and who should skip it

Skip it if this will be your main phone. The iPhone 11 has the same 6.1-inch LCD, a newer A13 Bionic chip, a second camera and iOS 27, and its cheapest unlocked 64GB unit was only $17 more than the XR's. The iPhone SE (3rd generation) runs iOS 27 too, and Back Market had an unlocked 64GB unit at $121, $11 less than its own unlocked XR.

The XR still makes sense in a few cases. It is a cheap spare to keep in a drawer, a phone for music and podcasts at home, or a stopgap on your current carrier. eBay Refurbished had 64GB units locked to AT&T, T-Mobile or Verizon at $109.

Don't buy it for a child's first phone. Our guide to the best iPhone for kids says to avoid models that no longer run iOS 27, and the XR is one of them.

Does the iPhone XR still get updates?

Only security fixes on iOS 18. Apple's iOS 26 and iOS 27 compatibility lists both start at the iPhone 11, so the XR cannot install either. (Apple)

Apple still patches iOS 18 on it. On Apple's security releases page, iOS 18.7.10, dated August 17, 2026, lists the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone XR and iPad 7th generation. (Apple) Apple publishes no end date for those fixes, so a patch could be the last one without warning.

The XR also misses Apple Intelligence. Apple says Apple Intelligence in iOS 27 is "available on iPhone Duo, iPhone 16 models or later, iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, iPhone Air". (Apple) Our breakdown of how long Apple supports iPhones has the full history.

How much does a refurbished iPhone XR cost?

An unlocked refurbished iPhone XR starts at $132 on RefurbMe today. Apple's launch release priced the iPhone XR from $749. Pre-orders opened on October 19, 2018, and the phone reached stores on October 26, 2018. (Apple Newsroom)

These are the cheapest unlocked listings at each seller that were in stock and seen in the past three days, read from RefurbMe's live prices on October 23, 2026. The table compares price only. We did not check the grade of each listing, so read it before you pay.

RefurbMe's iPhone XR stats page puts today's cheapest unit, a $109 carrier-locked phone, 85% below the $749 launch price. Compare every live listing on the refurbished iPhone XR page.

Carrier-locked units cost less

The cheapest XR is locked to a carrier. These are the cheapest locked listings by carrier and storage, from the same read.

The gap grows with storage. Back Market's AT&T 256GB unit at $186 was $112 less than its unlocked 256GB unit at $298. At 64GB, eBay Refurbished's $109 locked units were $23 less than the cheapest unlocked one.

Buy locked only if you already use that carrier. A locked phone works only on that carrier until the carrier unlocks it, and Apple says "Only your current carrier can unlock your iPhone". To check a phone you receive, open Settings, General, About. If "No SIM restrictions" appears next to Carrier Lock, your iPhone is unlocked. (Apple) Our guide to unlocked refurbished iPhones explains the trade-off.

Prices in Canada and the UK

Canada had 17 in-stock offers on October 23, 2026. Orchard had the cheapest unlocked 64GB unit at CA$178, then Amazon Renewed at CA$187 and eBay Refurbished at CA$249. Amazon Renewed had an unlocked 128GB unit at CA$220.

The UK had 39 in-stock offers. Grade Mobile had the cheapest unlocked 64GB unit at £89, then Back Market at £103, MusicMagpie at £111 and Amazon Renewed at £119. Grade Mobile also had the cheapest unlocked 128GB unit at £99 and 256GB unit at £139. The policy table below uses each seller's US pages, so check the UK or Canadian terms before you order.

What you get: 6.1-inch LCD, A12 Bionic and one camera

The XR has a 6.1-inch Liquid Retina HD LCD at 1792 by 828 pixels and 326 ppi, the A12 Bionic chip and a single 12MP Wide camera. (Apple) It unlocks with Face ID and weighs 194 grams.

The single camera is the clearest gap. There is no Ultra Wide lens, and zoom is digital only, up to 5x for photos. Portrait mode works on the one lens, and the front TrueDepth camera is 7MP.

The rest is dated but usable. The cellular section lists LTE Advanced and no 5G. The XR charges wirelessly on Qi chargers, with no MagSafe magnets, and reaches 50% in 30 minutes with a 20W adapter or higher. The port is Lightning, not USB-C. It is rated IP67 to a depth of 1 meter for up to 30 minutes and takes a nano-SIM and an eSIM.

iPhone XR vs iPhone 11 and iPhone SE (3rd generation)

Both alternatives run iOS 27, and that is the main reason to pay the small difference or take the smaller screen. Apple's iOS 27 compatibility list includes the iPhone 11 and the iPhone SE (3rd generation).

Sources: Apple's iPhone XR, iPhone 11 and iPhone SE (3rd generation) spec pages and the iOS 27 compatibility list; prices from RefurbMe's live listings seen in the past three days.

The iPhone 11 is the closest swap. It keeps the XR's screen size and resolution and adds the A13 Bionic chip, an Ultra Wide camera and IP68 to 2 meters. Its cheapest unlocked 64GB unit was $149 at Gazelle, $17 more than the XR at Back Market. At Back Market alone, its unlocked 64GB iPhone 11 at $150 was $18 more than its XR. Our iPhone XR vs iPhone 11 comparison covers every difference, and our refurbished iPhone 11 guide has its sellers.

The SE (3rd generation) is the cheaper way onto iOS 27, if you can live with a small screen and a Home button. It has the A15 Bionic chip and 5G, and Back Market's unlocked 64GB unit at $121 cost $11 less than its XR. Our iPhone SE 2 vs SE 3 guide explains the SE line.

If you are weighing the XR against the older iPhone X instead, our iPhone X vs iPhone XR comparison covers that pair. Neither runs iOS 27.

Battery health on a 2018 phone

Battery is the other big risk. Ask for 85 percent battery health or more and treat 80 percent as the floor. Apple says batteries of iPhone 14 models and earlier are designed to retain 80 percent of their original capacity at 500 complete charge cycles under ideal conditions. (Apple)

The XR shows less battery data than newer models. Apple says the cycle count appears in Settings only on iPhone 15 models and later. Open Settings, tap Battery, then tap Battery Health & Charging to see the maximum capacity, and do it the day the phone arrives, inside the return window.

Then open Settings, tap General, and then tap About. If the phone has been repaired, you see a Parts and Service History section there. (Apple) A recent genuine battery replacement is good news on a 2018 phone. Our iPhone battery health guide explains what happens below 80 percent.

Each seller sets its own battery floor. Back Market promises a minimum 80 percent battery capacity on its Excellent, Good and Fair phones and 90 percent on Premium. Amazon Renewed promises more than 80 percent, and more than 90 percent on Renewed Premium. eBay Refurbished lists 85 percent or more at Excellent and 80 percent or more at Very Good and Good.

Seller grades and warranties compared

One seller's "Excellent" is not another's, so compare the terms as well as the price. The table below comes from each seller's own US policy page, fetched on October 23, 2026.

Back Market says an Excellent device shows "Almost no signs of wear. The body may have very light micro-scratches." Its limited warranty covers defects "for 12 months after the delivery date". Amazon sorts Renewed products into "one of four conditions: Premium, Excellent, Good, or Acceptable", and says most Renewed items include a 90-day return period. For how grades map across sellers, see our guide to refurbished grades A, B and C.

64GB, 128GB or 256GB: which refurbished iPhone XR to pick

Take 64GB if the XR is a spare or a music player. Back Market's unlocked 128GB unit at $149 was $17 more than its 64GB unit at $132, and at that price the unlocked 64GB iPhone 11 at Gazelle costs the same.

Skip the unlocked 256GB unit. At $298 it costs more than double the 64GB unit, for a phone that no longer gets new iOS versions.

Where to buy a refurbished iPhone XR

We list the sellers by the best offer on an unlocked 64GB iPhone XR, from RefurbMe's live prices on October 23, 2026. Grades were not checked listing by listing, so read each listing's grade before you pay.

1. Back Market. The cheapest unlocked 64GB unit at $132 and an unlocked 128GB unit at $149. Back Market promises a minimum 80 percent battery capacity on its Excellent, Good and Fair phones, with a 12-month warranty and 30-day free returns.
2. Amazon Renewed. An unlocked 64GB unit at $180. Most Renewed items come with a 90-day return period, the longest here. Select items instead have 30-day returns followed by an 11-month Asurion warranty, so check the product page.
3. eBay Refurbished. No unlocked XR in the past three days, but the cheapest locked units at $109 for AT&T, T-Mobile or Verizon. Its grades come with a battery floor, a one-year warranty from vetted sellers and 30-day free returns.

For more detail on each seller, read our guide to the best places to buy refurbished iPhones and the reviews of Back Market and Amazon Renewed. If you are still choosing a model, our list of the best refurbished iPhones ranks the current options.

Will refurbished iPhone XR prices keep falling?

They already sit near the bottom. The lowest price RefurbMe has recorded for a refurbished iPhone XR in the US is $67, at eBay Refurbished on July 6, 2026. Today's cheapest unit, at $109, is $42 above that record.

RefurbMe's Refurb Discount for the iPhone family, the median saving of a refurbished unit against its launch price, is 77 percent (as of October 2026, RefurbMe iPhone stats). That median covers every iPhone RefurbMe tracks, new and old, so it says little about where the XR goes next. If you can wait for a sub-$100 unit, set a price alert.

FAQ

To compare every refurbished iPhone XR listing across sellers in real time, head to the refurbished iPhone page and filter by model, grade and price.