Refurbished iPad: where to buy and what you need to know

Buying a refurbished iPad or a second-hand iPad is a tempting way to save money. It's a smart choice if you choose the right retailer and know what to look out for. 

There are second-hand retailers where you can buy direct from the previous owner, such as eBay and Gumtree. But a refurbished iPad is different. It means the iPad has been checked over to make sure it works as well as a new one and they often come with a guarantee.

Bought brand new, iPads can cost upwards of £1,000 and even the cheapest one costs more than £300. Buy refurbished and a cheaper iPad awaits. So strap in and we'll tell you which retailers to check, what to look out for when you buy refurbished and how much you stand to save.

Which iPad should I buy? – with four options from the Mini to the Pro, use our guide to help you decide

Why you should consider a refurbished iPad

Martin Pratt, Which? principal researcher, says:

'There may be a something of a stigma around second-hand or refurbished devices, with the expectation that they'll have some nasty fault just waiting to rear its ugly head the second you unbox the thing and get started. But the likes of Apple and Back Market aren't just repackaging any old iPad that comes their way and selling them on. Refurbished means the iPad has been checked over, given a new battery in some cases and sold at a reduced cost.

'The key thing is all these retailers are willing to back their refurbished iPads with a warranty. Which is what you get if you buy one new, so you can buy with confidence and save some money in the process. Savings will vary, but we've seen refurbished iPads available for £200 less than the equivalent new one.'

Refurbished iPad: where to buy a refurbished iPad

There are plenty of options when it comes to getting a refurbished iPad. The most logical place to go would be Apple itself, but this may not be where you get the best saving, so it's worth shopping around.

Price is a big consideration, but you should check the warranty, too. Refurbished iPads have been checked over to make sure they work well and may have had some repairs done, too. Ultimately, though, they're preowned, so it's worth trying to get the longest warranty you can.

We've listed several retailers where refurbished iPads are available. As you can see, one year is the standard warranty, so don't go lower than this.

Apple may seems like the best option, but if you're willing to suffer a few scuffs and dings to the case, choosing one with a lower grade from another retailer could save you more money. Apple replaces the case and battery on all refurbished iPads so it will look new (although the screen could be scuffed). Back Market, iOutlet and Music Magpie grade their iPads by the condition they're in, so you have more options. 

Regardless of the appearance, the innards should be in fine working order.

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Buying a refurbished iPad from Apple

When you're buying a refurbished iPad it makes sense to go to the source. Who better to refurbish an iPad than the company who made it in the first place?

We noticed that just about every iPad up for sale on the refurbished section of Apple's website, from little iPad minis up to 12.9-inch iPad Pros. It's not exhaustive, though, and not every storage size was available, so it's worth checking back periodically to see what else is available and how the prices have changed. 

Most of the iPads tend to be fairly recent generations. You're not getting to find anything older than two or three years, but this isn't a bad thing. Older models are less likely to get software updates and may struggle with newer apps.

Unlike some other retailers, which grade iPads based on the amount of superficial damage they've suffered, Apple simply replaces the outer shell so there shouldn't be any dents, scratches or 'Happy Birthday, Love Gran xxx' engravings on the back.

The battery is replaced,  but the screen isn't, so there's a chance that there could be some scuffs there.

How much discount can you expect on a refurbished iPad from Apple?

There are close to 100 refurbished iPads available, so we can't list them all. But we have picked out a few so you can see how much money you could save.

The majority of the iPads up for grabs are from one or two generations before the current one, which makes sense given Apple likely gets many of these from its trade-in program.

• £639 iPad mini sixth generation, 256GB hard disk, wi-fi only. A new one would cost £749 from Apple.
• £439 iPad Air fourth generation, 64GB hard disk, wi-fi only. The equivalent fifth-generation iPad Air is £569.

In the case of the iPad mini, it's easy to see an exact saving because you're comparing like-for-like. But even when they aren't from the same generation, as is the case with the iPad Air, the differences between the fourth and fifth generation isn't dramatic. In our testing, we didn't find that newer iPads eclipsed older ones – to find out more, see our Apple iPad reviews.

The savings are significant, though. You can expect to get up to 20% off the price of a new iPad by choosing the previous generation from Apple.

See the full range of Apple's refurbished iPads

Buying a refurbished iPad from Music Magpie

iPads from Music Magpie are certified refurbished and have a 12-month warranty. What that means is the iPads go through a 70-point check to make sure that they're up to scratch (some may also have scratches).

It lists iPads by generation, so it's not always easy to see when each one came out. Use our tablet security tool to check if the iPad you're looking at is still getting security updates.

Tablets are graded 'good', 'very good' or 'pristine' – and the ratings are near enough the same across all the retailers. 

A 'good' iPad shows moderate signs of wear, a 'very good' one shows light signs of use, and a 'pristine' one is, well, pristine.

How much discount can you expect?

Music Magpie has a good range of recent iPads so it's simple enough to compare pricing.

A pristine condition iPad mini 64GB costs £439 on Music Magpie and it's £569 new from Apple, so the saving is a sizeable £130. This is one of the better deals that we found.

Cheaper iPads, such as the 2021 iPad, have smaller savings. A good-rated model was available for £280 and you can get a new one for £319.

See the full range of Music Magpie's refurbished iPads

Buying a refurbished iPad from Back Market

We've seen plenty of advertising for refurbished tech retailer Back Market, but is it worth doing some shopping there?

The main difference between Back Market and Apple is how far back the models go. When we checked, some iPads were available from as early as 2013 – while prices are low on these models, they aren't supported by Apple with software updates any more and we wouldn't recommend buying them. 

Apple supports its devices for five years, so bear that in mind when you buy.

Back Market isn't doing the refurbishing itself. It works with other companies and flags who did the refurbishing on the listing page of the iPads. Some are familiar, such as Mazuma, while some aren't, such as InnoVent Leasing Limited. Back Market says that it takes care in vetting these refurbishers and only one in three make the cut.

Back Market grades its devices by condition, so you can pay less for an iPad in 'fair' condition, a bit more for one in 'good' condition and even more for one in 'excellent' condition.

What's the difference between a fair, good or excellent condition refurbished iPad?

Back Market describes the conditions in the following way, and we've lifted these descriptions directly from its website:

• Fair Screen: May have micro-scratches which are hardly noticeable when the screen is turned on. Body: Has visible scratches and/or dents
• Good Screen: Perfect condition. Body: May have micro-scratches, visible from 20cm away
• Excellent Screen: Perfect condition. Body: May have barely visible micro-scratches, not noticeable from 20cm away.

How much discount can you expect?

We looked at a 2022 iPad to see how much you could save. 

It costs £499 to buy new from Apple, but an excellent condition one from Back Market is £376, which is more than £100 off. 

We also checked a 2022 iPad Air, 64GB, and noticed some weird pricing. An excellent condition one was available for £502 and a fair one was £538. Both are still great savings compared with a new model from Apple, which costs £669.

See all of the refurbished iPads available from Back Market

Buying a refurbished iPad from The iOutlet

When we checked, The iOutlet sells some iPads that have stopped getting software updates from Apple. We don't recommend that you buy these, so keep an eye on the release date of the iPads while you're browsing and use our free tablet security tool to check it's still getting updates if you're not sure.

The iOutlet has a large range and it grades its tablets from A+ to C and there are plenty of models available, from very old to some of the latest models.

These A+ to C ratings are broadly the same as the good, fair and excellent we saw on Back Market's listings: 

•  A+ is pristine
• A grade is near perfect condition 
• B will have some scuffs on the case with a scratch-free screen 
• C might have some bigger dings on the case and small scratches on the screen.

How much discount can you expect on a refurbished iPad from the The iOutlet?

There are several iPads available for less than £200, but many aren't supported by Apple, so we wouldn't recommend buying them.

It sells A grade 2021 iPads for £299, which is £20 cheaper than new. We saw better savings on iPad minis, though. The sixth-generation 64GB mini model sells for £569 new from Apple and we saw an A grade one for £399 at iOutlet.

Take a look at all The iOutlets refurbished iPads

There are discounts on new tablets, too. Check our best tablet deals to see the best ones we've found this month

What to check on your refurbished iPad

The most important thing is how old the iPad is and whether it's still supported by Apple. Officially, Apple supports iPads for five years with software and security updates, but it often goes beyond that.

Still, if you're looking at an iPad more than four years old we'd err on the side of caution and give it a miss, assuming that you want to use it safely for more than a year.

We recommend only buying iPads, and any other internet-connected devices, that are supported by security updates because they become a risk without them. It becomes easier to hack devices and gain access to your data when devices aren't being updated with security software. Our free tablet security tool will tell you if an iPad is still supported.

Keep an eye on the condition, too. Don't be wowed by a low price and miss that it's a low grade and likely to be dinged and scratched. If you want a refurbished iPad that looks new, then check the grade. The retailers we saw used terms like 'A' or 'pristine' to flag new-looking tablets.

Warranty is important, too, but there seems to be a consensus that one year is the way to go. All the retailers we looked at offered this on all their iPads.

Double-check it comes with a power cable as you don't want to excitedly receive it only to realise you can't use it until you buy a charger.

What if you're shopping for a second-hand iPad?

If you're eyeing up an iPad in a second-hand shop, such as CeX or Cash Convertors, then ask to look at it and try it out. 

Retailers should be making sure the devices work, but you should check a few things yourself:

• Look for small cracks or chips on the screen
• Check the charging and headphone (if there is one) ports work
• Use it to take a picture and video to make sure the camera lenses are fine
• Play some music to make sure there's sound coming from all the speakers
• Check that it doesn't have someone else's iCloud account on it.

Fancy buying brand new? Find out which model suits you and where it's cheapest _ see best iPads

Does a refurbished iPad get a new battery?

It depends. All the iPads available from these sites get a once over and a repair where necessary to make sure everything is working correctly. A part of that process is making sure that the battery still holds its charge and has enough capacity to be close to a new model.

Not every retailer gets into specifics about exactly what they will replace. Take The iOutlet – its section on refurbishing states it replaces screens, but has no mention of batteries. While Apple does replace the battery, but won't replace a screen.

Ultimately, you can't guarantee exactly what refurbishments have taken place (outside of Apple guaranteeing a new battery). But you've always got the warranty to fall back on. Plus, buying online gives you extra rights _ so if you're not happy with your purchase, you have up to 14 days from the day you received it to cancel your order and request a refund. Find out more about your rights when shopping online.

Setting up your refurbished iPad

Setting up a refurbished iPad is much the same as setting up a new one. You'll need an iCloud account to back up your data and pictures, and you can set that up ahead of time or when you get your iPad.

When you turn your refurbished iPad on, it should be the same experience as buying one new and the Apple setup wizard will take you through the various steps.

The only difference may be that you need to install some software updates. Since you're probably buying an older iPad, it may not have the latest version of iPadOS. 

It's always worth setting up the Find My iPad function, too. It means you can track missing Apple devices if you lose them or they're stolen. 

How to set up Find My iPad

1. Have a look in your settings, tap your name then select Find My
2. If you want friends and family to see the device, select Share My Location
3. Next, tap Find My Device and then Find My iPad to turn it on
4. If you want to be able to see the device when it's offline, select Find My Network too.

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Is it safe to use a refurbished iPad?

It's highly unlikely that any retailer would load a used iPad with spyware or any kind of malicious software. It wouldn't be worth the cost to its reputation. 

We saw on Back Market's website how seriously it takes the refurbishing process by only working with credited refurbishers, with most not making the cut.

Always check that the device has been factory reset, though, particularly if you're buying second-hand and not refurbished.

If you're concerned, then buy directly from Apple.

We test more than just iPads. If you prefer Android or Windows tablets then head to our tablet reviews to see what's on offer

Refurbished iPad vs second-hand

If you buy a second-hand iPad, you're essentially getting it the way the previous owner left it. It may have had some cursory checks to make sure everything's working, but there will be no repairs and no replacement parts to help it run better. Often a second-hand one won't have a warranty, particularly if you're buying direct from the seller as you do on online marketplaces such as eBay or Gumtree.

Refurbished tablets have been thoroughly checked by the retailer, or a refurbisher the retailer works with, to make sure they work well enough to sell. You get a one-year warranty for the most part. If you buy from Apple, you'll even get a new battery and body.

Refurbished tablets are often graded, so you get a clear idea of the sort of condition the tablet you're buying will be in.

Since most of these retailers operate online and you have extra rights when you buy online, you'll also be able to return the iPad if you aren't happy with it. So you have the right to cancel and request a refund up to 14 days from the day when you receive your device.

If all this iPad info has whetted your appetite, then see which is right for you in our guide to choosing the best iPad