Transparent by design
How We Grade Your Mac
The quick answer
We use three grades - Good, Fair and Faulty. You pick the grade when you describe your Mac in the quote form, the price already reflects it, and if your description matches on inspection, the quote is paid in full. No arrival-day markdowns, no subjective 'refurbishing fee', and free insured return if you ever decline a revised offer.
Grading is where dishonest buyback services make their margin - quote high, receive the machine, then "discover" wear that halves the offer. Publishing exactly what each grade means, with examples, is how we make that game impossible to play with us.
- Free insured shipping
- Paid within 24h of inspection
- Data wiped to NIST standards
- Free returns if you decline
The three grades, in plain English
Good
100% of quote
Fully working with light, normal signs of use. Faint keyboard shine, hairline marks on the lid you see only at an angle, battery health above 80%. The overwhelming majority of Macs we receive grade Good - this is the default for a machine that's been used with reasonable care.
Fair
typically 80-90% of a Good quote
Fully working but clearly used: visible dents or deeper scratches, worn palm rests, battery health below 80%, or a small number of dead pixels. Quote it honestly as Fair in the form and the price you're given already reflects it - nothing changes on arrival.
Faulty
typically 40-50% of working value
Something doesn't work: cracked screen, dead battery, liquid damage, no power, keyboard or port faults. Describe the fault in the form for an instant faulty-grade quote - no photos required. The only machines we can't buy at any grade are iCloud-locked ones.
Not sure between two grades? Pick the lower one and say why in the message box - if we find it's better than you described, we pay the higher grade. It happens more often than you'd think. For what faults are actually worth, see our broken Mac page or the guide to what affects resale value.
Select device
Describe your Mac, get your graded quote
See an indicative price before you give us any contact details. Apple Silicon only (M1 and newer). Your fixed quote is emailed within 2 working hours and locked for 14 days.
Step 1 of 5 - Your Mac
Free · No obligation · Fixed quote in 2 working hours
Step 1 of 5: Your Mac
We buy Apple Silicon Macs only - M1-generation and newer (2020 onward), working or broken. We do not buy Intel Macs.
Good to know
Grading - FAQs
Everything sellers ask us before posting their Mac - answered straight.
Who decides the grade - me or you?
You describe, we confirm. Your quote is based on your honest description in the form; on arrival we check the machine against it. If the description matches, the grade and price stand exactly as quoted - the inspection exists to confirm your grade, not to renegotiate it.
What happens if my Mac grades lower than I described?
We email you a revised offer with photos and a plain explanation of what we found, before anything else happens. Accept and payment proceeds as normal; decline and we return your Mac free, insured, no fee. You're never locked in by posting the machine.
Does battery health affect the grade?
Above 80% health counts as normal wear within Good. Below 80% typically moves a laptop to Fair - £30-£60 off rather than a faulty grade. Check yours under System Settings → Battery and state the percentage in the form for an exact price.
Do scratches on the lid really matter?
Hairline marks you catch only at an angle - no. Scratches you can feel with a fingernail, dents, or cracked corners - yes, those grade Fair. The honest test: would a buyer notice it across a table? If not, it's Good.
Is a machine with one small fault 'Faulty' even if everything else is perfect?
Yes - grading is functional, not cosmetic. One dead speaker on an otherwise mint MacBook makes it Faulty, but faulty-grade prices on recent machines remain strong (40-50% of working value) because the parts carry the value. Describe the specific fault for an exact quote.