It is no secret that Samsung Galaxy S21 and iPhone 12 are stiff competitors. A new data report created by SellCell claims iPhone 12 holds up its value over 20% as opposed to Galaxy S21 series.

According to the report, iPhone 12 series has lost value by 18-33.7% since it was unveiled in 2020. Meanwhile, the Samsung Galaxy S21 series has lost a whopping 44.8-57% since its launch in January. To make matters worse, the Galaxy S21 started shipping in January this year as opposed to iPhone 12 that was launched in the November last year.

We compared the depreciation of the entire Samsung Galaxy S21 range vs. the entire Apple iPhone 12 range. This allows us to see which handset holds its value and which becomes worthless quicker. We measured each handset’s MSRP against its monthly and total depreciation (based on the good/used price of each handset on SellCell.com).

Interestingly the entry-level iPhone 12 64GB model has lost the most value, depreciating 33.7% in the past five months. Furthermore, iPhone 12 Pro Max 128GB has retained the highest value with a depreciation of just 18.1%. The Samsung Galaxy S21 5G 256GB has lost more than half its value and depreciated by 57.1%. Putting things into perspective, Galaxy S21 5G 256GB has lost nearly 19% of value every month. On the contrary, Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G has depreciated the least. While it might sound good, the Galaxy S21 depreciation starts at a disappointing 44.8%.

Our Take

Many used to ridicule Apple for high iPhone prices. It looks like the tables have turned with top-of-the-line Galaxy S21 Ultra costing $200 more compared to range-topping iPhone 12 Pro Max. The Galaxy S21 is only expected to depreciate further at a rate faster than that of iPhone 12.