47 Smartphone Repair Statistics

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These smartphone repair figures cover the measurement periods and populations identified in the available source material. Estimates, surveys and forecasts retain their reported scope.

Key Smartphone Repair Statistics

The main findings are:

  • Only 16% of U.S. adults whose phone broke in the previous five years said they fixed it at home or had it professionally repaired the most recent time (November–December 2021).
  • Mobile phones represented 16% successful repair, 19% failed repair, 8% defective but still in use, 55% not repaired and 1% unknown in the cited European consumer survey (2018–2019; Europe; survey source cited in ETC CE report).
  • 53% of German respondents cited repair cost as a reason for not repairing a broken smartphone (2019 survey cited in 2023 impact assessment; Germany).
  • The European Commission impact assessment models average smartphone and feature-phone lifetimes at 2.5–3.5 years (2023 assessment baseline/model; European Union model).
  • The Commission model uses an 80% repair rate for broken smartphone batteries in its illustrative repair scenario (2023 illustrative model; Commission smartphone model).
  • EU27 business-to-consumer repair-sector turnover exceeded EUR 20 billion in 2019.
  • 53% of Americans had replaced a broken surveyed product sooner than wanted because they could not find a repair professional they were happy with (November–December 2021).
  • Mobile phones had a 45% fixed status in filtered European Open Repair Alliance data (data accessed October 12, 2022; European repair-café data).
  • 53% of German respondents cited the perception that the phone was old anyway as a reason for not repairing it (2019 survey cited in 2023 impact assessment; Germany).
  • The same assessment models a maximum smartphone and feature-phone lifetime of 7 years (2023 assessment model; European Union model).
  • The Commission model uses a 70% repair rate for broken smartphone displays in its illustrative repair scenario (2023 illustrative model; Commission smartphone model).
  • EU27 B2C repair-sector turnover peaked at more than EUR 23.5 billion in 2017.
  • 57% of Americans said consumers lack enough choices for where to get at least one surveyed product repaired (November–December 2021).
  • A further 36% of mobile-phone cases in the same Open Repair Alliance data were classified as repairable but not completed at the event (data accessed October 12, 2022; European repair-café data).
  • A small independent shop could replace an iPhone 12 screen for less than $200, according to Consumer Reports’ reported price example (2021 article price example).

Contents

Smartphone repair statistics: how often broken phones are repaired or replaced

  • Only 16% of U.S. adults whose phone broke in the previous five years said they fixed it at home or had it professionally repaired the most recent time (November–December 2021). (Why It’s So Hard to…)
  • 53% of Americans had replaced a broken surveyed product sooner than wanted because they could not find a repair professional they were happy with (November–December 2021). (Why It’s So Hard to…)
  • 57% of Americans said consumers lack enough choices for where to get at least one surveyed product repaired (November–December 2021). (Why It’s So Hard to…)
  • 84% of Americans supported requiring manufacturers to make repair information and parts available to owners or independent repair professionals (November–December 2021). (Why It’s So Hard to…)
  • In a German survey, 59% of users bought a new smartphone directly when their old smartphone broke (2019 survey cited in 2023 impact assessment; Germany). (Commission Staff Working Document: Impact…)
  • In the same German survey, 11% of users tried to repair their broken smartphone (2019 survey cited in 2023 impact assessment; Germany). (Commission Staff Working Document: Impact…)
  • In an Austrian survey, 34% of consumers with a defective phone tried to repair it (2018 survey cited in 2023 impact assessment). (Commission Staff Working Document: Impact…)
  • Among Austrian defective-phone consumers who tried repair, 43% said the phone was beyond repair (2018 survey cited in 2023 impact assessment). (Commission Staff Working Document: Impact…)
  • Among Austrian defective-phone consumers who tried repair, 31% said the phone was reparable (2018 survey cited in 2023 impact assessment). (Commission Staff Working Document: Impact…)
  • Among Austrian defective-phone consumers who tried repair, 26% did not know how to repair it (2018 survey cited in 2023 impact assessment). (Commission Staff Working Document: Impact…)

Consumer Reports nationally representative survey; applies to respondents reporting a phone break, not all phone owners.

Multi-product survey measure; not limited to smartphones.

Multi-product measure, including smartphones.

Attitude measure, not observed repair behavior.

The impact assessment cites the OHA 2019 survey; wording concerns the response to a broken phone.

Survey result cited by the European Commission; repair attempts are not necessarily successful repairs.

The source describes this as a survey result; it measures attempts, not completed repairs.

Conditional percentage among consumers who attempted repair.

Conditional percentage; reparable does not necessarily mean repaired.

Conditional percentage; response categories may not sum exactly because of rounding or survey design.

Smartphone repair rates, failed fixes and repair-café outcomes

  • Mobile phones represented 16% successful repair, 19% failed repair, 8% defective but still in use, 55% not repaired and 1% unknown in the cited European consumer survey (2018–2019; Europe; survey source cited in ETC CE report). (ETC CE Report 2022/6: An…)
  • Mobile phones had a 45% fixed status in filtered European Open Repair Alliance data (data accessed October 12, 2022; European repair-café data). (ETC CE Report 2022/6: An…)
  • A further 36% of mobile-phone cases in the same Open Repair Alliance data were classified as repairable but not completed at the event (data accessed October 12, 2022; European repair-café data). (ETC CE Report 2022/6: An…)
  • 16% of mobile-phone cases in the same data were judged end of life (data accessed October 12, 2022; European repair-café data). (ETC CE Report 2022/6: An…)
  • 3% of mobile-phone cases in the same data had unknown repair status (data accessed October 12, 2022; European repair-café data). (ETC CE Report 2022/6: An…)
  • A mobile phone had an 84% chance of being fixed successfully or considered repairable in the Open Repair Alliance repair-café data (data accessed October 12, 2022; European repair-café data). (ETC CE Report 2022/6: An…)
  • Flat-screen devices had a 64% fixed-or-repairable rate in the same repair-café comparison (data accessed October 12, 2022; European repair-café comparison). (ETC CE Report 2022/6: An…)
  • European Open Repair Alliance events recorded 5,752 incoming products and 2,994 successful repairs in 2017 (European repair events). (ETC CE Report 2022/6: An…)
  • European Open Repair Alliance events recorded 10,754 incoming products and 5,611 successful repairs in 2018 (European repair events). (ETC CE Report 2022/6: An…)
  • European Open Repair Alliance events recorded 17,985 incoming products and 9,212 successful repairs in 2019 (European repair events). (ETC CE Report 2022/6: An…)
  • European Open Repair Alliance events recorded 7,858 incoming products and 4,126 successful repairs in 2020 (European repair events). (ETC CE Report 2022/6: An…)
  • European Open Repair Alliance events recorded 7,308 incoming products and 4,029 successful repairs in 2021 (European repair events). (ETC CE Report 2022/6: An…)

Percentages are from a cited consumer survey and may not generalize to all European phones.

Repair-café cases are a selected convenience population; non-EU organizations were removed.

Repairable means additional steps or professional help were identified; it is not a completed repair.

End of life means repair was considered not cost-effective or realistic in that repair context.

Unknown is a reporting category, not a repair outcome.

The report combines fixed and repairable categories; repairable cases were not necessarily completed.

Comparator category, included only to contextualize mobile-phone repair-café results.

All product categories, not smartphones only.

All product categories; pandemic disruption affected event volume.

Why people skip smartphone repairs: cost, age and convenience

Survey wording reports reasons for not repairing; source also reports the same percentage for perceiving the phone as old.

Self-reported reason; not an observed age threshold.

Illustrative shop price, not a national average or universal iPhone 12 price.

Illustrative shop price, not a national average.

Category includes wearables, smartphones, laptops and other rechargeable devices; not smartphone-only.

Mixed portable-device category; percentages may not total 100 because of omitted/rounded responses.

Stated intention in a hypothetical policy scenario.

Hypothetical stated intention; mixed portable-device category.

Mixed portable-device category and self-reported attitude.

Hypothetical purchase effect; mixed portable-device category.

Smartphone repairability, durability and expected device lifespans

  • The European Commission impact assessment models average smartphone and feature-phone lifetimes at 2.5–3.5 years (2023 assessment baseline/model; European Union model). (Commission Staff Working Document: Impact…)
  • The same assessment models a maximum smartphone and feature-phone lifetime of 7 years (2023 assessment model; European Union model). (Commission Staff Working Document: Impact…)
  • JRC research estimated the technical lifetime of smartphones could be extended to 4.5 years (JRC smartphone longevity review; Smartphones; literature-based assessment). (Product longevity and reparability: smartphones)
  • Around 550 smartphones and feature phones were assessed by Eco Rating between its May 2021 launch and April 2024 (May 2021–April 2024; Eco Rating participating markets). (Design for durability of mobile…)
  • Eco Rating assessments covered more than 20 participating mobile suppliers during that period (May 2021–April 2024; Eco Rating participating markets). (Design for durability of mobile…)
  • Each Eco Rating device assessment uses more than 150 environmental and sustainability parameters (Eco Rating methodology in use through April 2024; Eco Rating assessed devices). (Design for durability of mobile…)
  • The average guarantee period for smartphones released in 2022 was 1 year 9 months in the EEA durability series (2022 smartphone releases; Smartphones on the European market). (Design for durability of mobile…)
  • The average guarantee period for the newest smartphones released in 2024 was approximately 2 years 6 months (2024 smartphone releases; Smartphones on the European market). (Design for durability of mobile…)
  • EEA reports a 7% increase in the durability of a selection of mobile phones between 2023 and 2024 (2023–2024; Selected mobile phones in Europe). (Product lifespans — monitoring trends…)

Model assumption/range, not a direct longitudinal observation of every smartphone.

Simplified lifetime model; products are assumed to retire no later than the maximum.

Potential technical lifetime is not observed average ownership duration.

Eco Rating coverage is a selected set of participating suppliers and does not represent every phone sold.

Supplier participation is incomplete; Apple, Google and Samsung were noted as not providing transparency through that harmonized solution.

Parameter count describes the rating methodology, not a repair rate.

Eco Rating/EEA selection, not all smartphones sold in Europe.

EEA reports an approximately measured Eco Rating series; coverage is limited to assessed models.

Selection-based EEA indicator, not a market-wide repair-rate change.

Battery and screen repairs: the components that most often limit phone life

Scenario assumption for impact assessment, not an observed market rate.

Scenario assumption, not an observed market rate.

Model segment assumption; do not treat as a smartphone-wide observed rate.

Scenario assumption; component mix is not specified in the report excerpt.

The smartphone repair economy in Europe: businesses, jobs and turnover

All B2C repair categories, not smartphone-only.

All B2C repair categories.

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