If you’re looking to invest in a laptop range as a reseller, which brands and models should you be focusing on? In this guide, we will explore the brands whose laptop ranges retain their value the longest.
The Laptop Market in Numbers
- The US laptop market generated $21.08bn in revenue in 2022.
- In 2021, 277 million laptops were forecast to be shipped falling slightly to 272 million units by 2025.
- The global laptops market grew from $100.4 billion in 2021 to $112.28 billion in 2022..
- Five billion people around the world use the internet everyday, and 67% of them do so on a laptop.
- Lenovo, Dell, and HP are the most popular laptop brands—combined, they ship 60% of laptops worldwide.
- Apple recorded a 28% increase in desktop and laptop shipments in 2021.
- The top importers of the laptop market are the USA, Netherlands, and Germany. (2022).
Related Reading
- Wholesale Suppliers of Refurbished Laptops: What to Watch for When Sourcing
- Buying Lenovo Laptops Wholesale for eBay: Which Models Should I Invest In
- Wholesale Laptops: How to Start a Profitable Business
- Where Can You Buy Refurbished Laptops In Wholesale Quantities?
- How To Maximize Profits When Selling Laptops On eBay
Buying Laptops to Invest in: Why Brand Selection Matters
Source: Statista, 2020.
Reputation
A brand’s reputation represents recognition and consumer following. When you’re selling well-known laptop brands, customers will more readily come to you, especially if you’re selling through popular online platforms. This means less work trying to market and find customers.
Specifications
Mid to higher spec units tend to age better, as they become outdated less quickly than the lowest end of the spectrum. However the absolute highest-spec models will depreciate faster due to the fact they are so highly priced and top-end graphics cards and other components are released often, turning these flagships into higher-mid-range laptops within a year. Settling on the mid to high, but not absolute highest specs is the sweet spot.
Demand and Depreciation History
What has been the previous history of the models, and the rest of the product line? Compare this with other models from the same brand - this will give an idea as to market perceptions and lingering demand for the product you are considering investing in.
The most effective approach towards verifying the resale value of any laptop model is through historical analysis based on depreciation and the longevity of the product on the market; this includes looking at predecessors to the laptop model in question as well as the overall resale value of laptops from the same brand. This analysis is not only limited to the brand, but also the specs of the laptop model, public reviews on the model, and the saturation of the same laptop model on various marketplaces.
You may want to see how much previous models have been sold for (at launch) and how much they currently sell for on the used market. If too many units are being put up for sale after the first year, it is a strong indicator of a laptop model that will have a very low resale value because too many people are opting to resell it.
As an example of how to do this, and in order to give you an overview on which brands retain their value better, we’ve done some analysis on the top laptops for each brand.
Source: The Business Research Company, 2022.
Buying Laptops to Invest: Which Brands Retain Their Value Better
So let’s take a look at the brands that hold their value on resale better, compared to their original manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP) at launch. Note that all prices are correct as of November, 2022. Note that eBay prices are based on the most recent completed sales of these models at the time of research.
Lenovo
1. Gaming Laptop: Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3
MSRP (2020): $769.99
Current Amazon Price: $697 (90.5%)
Current eBay Price : $550 (71%)
2. Business Laptop: Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5
MSRP (2020): $600
Current Amazon Price : $379 (63%)
Current eBay Price : $479 (80%)
3. Budget Laptop: Lenovo Ideapad S145
MSRP (2020): $300
Current Amazon Price : $149.99 (50%)
Current eBay Price : $149.99 (50%)
4. Chromebook: Lenovo IdeaPad Duet Chromebook 10.1
MSRP (2020): $279
Current Amazon Price : $145 (52%)
Current eBay Price : $139.99 (50%)
5. Tablet Convertible: Lenovo Tab M10 FHD Plus
MSRP (2020): $229.99
Current Amazon Price : $198 (86%)
Current eBay Price : $139 (60%)
Average retained value across all ranges: 65.25%
HP
1. Gaming Laptop: HP Pavilion Gaming Laptop 15.6"
MSRP (2020): $699
Current Amazon Price : $599 (85%)
Current eBay Price : $495 (71%)
2. Business Laptop: HP EliteBook 840 G7
MSRP (2020): $1,254.76
Current Amazon Price : $540.99 (43%)
Current eBay Price : $499 (40%)
3. Budget Laptop: HP Envy x360
MSRP (2020): $699
Current Amazon Price : $604.90 (86.5%)
Current eBay Price : $400 (57%)
4. Chromebook: HP Chromebook 11.6-inch 2020
MSRP (2020): $280
Current Amazon Price : $129.99 (46%)
Current eBay Price : $112 (40%)
5. Tablet Convertible: HP Pavilion x360 15-dq1071cl | 2020 Model
MSRP (2020): $699
Current Amazon Price : $485 (69%)
Current eBay Price : $499 (71%)
Average retained value across all ranges: 60.86%
Source: Statista, 2022.
Dell
1. Gaming Laptop: Dell Alienware m15
MSRP (2020): $2,379
Current Amazon Price : $1,734 (73%)
Current eBay Price : $900 (38%)
2. Business Laptop: Dell XPS 13
MSRP (2020): $1,649.99
Current Amazon Price : $1,299 (79%)
Current eBay Price : $1000 (61%)
3. Budget Laptop: Dell Inspiron 15 7000
MSRP (2020): $1050
Current Amazon Price : $780.81 (74%)
Current eBay Price : $450 (43%)
4. Chromebook: Dell Latitude 7410 Chromebook
MSRP (2020): $1580
Current Amazon Price : $1290 (82%)
Current eBay Price : $900 (57%)
5. Tablet Convertible: Dell Inspiron 15 2-in-1 (7506)
MSRP (2020): $1,100
Current Amazon Price : $879 (80%)
Current eBay Price : $879.99 (80%)
Average retained value across all ranges: 66.7%
Apple
1. Gaming Laptop : Apple M1 Pro 16inch (2020)
MSRP (2020): $4,499
Current Amazon Price (Percentage Retained Value: $3,459.90 (77%)
Current eBay Price : $2,750 (61%)
2. Business Laptop : MacBook Air (M1, 2020)
MSRP (2020): $999
Current Amazon Price : $781.65 (78%)
Current eBay Price : $745 (75%)
3. Budget Laptop: Apple MacBook Pro 2020 MYD92HN
MSRP (2020): $1,299
Current Amazon Price : $1,039.99 (80%)
Current eBay Price : $1,099 (85%)
Average retained value across all ranges: 76%
Acer
1. Gaming Laptop - 2020 Nitro 5
MSRP (2020): $999
Current Amazon Price : $699.99 (70%)
Current eBay Price : $700 (70%)
2. Business Laptop - Acer Spin 5 (2020)
MSRP (2020): starting from $999
Current Amazon Price : $459.99 (46%)
Current eBay Price : $560 (56%)
3. Budget Laptop - Acer Aspire 5 (A515-55-503J)
MSRP (2020): $549.99
Current Amazon Price : $464.99 (84.5%)
Current eBay Price : $460 (84%)
4. Chromebook - Acer Chromebook 315 (CB315-3H)
MSRP (2020): $299
Current Amazon Price : $179 (60%)
Current eBay Price : $179 (60%)
5. Tablet Convertible - Acer Spin 3 (SP313-51N-50R3)
MSRP (2020): $649.99
Current Amazon Price : $510 (78.5%)
Current eBay Price : $370 (57%)
Average retained value across all ranges: 66.6%
Asus
Asus has been included in this list, although not a top-selling laptop brand overall, their specialty in gaming laptops makes them notable for resale statistics.
1. Gaming Laptop - TUF Gaming A15 (2020)
MSRP (2020): $999
Current Amazon Price : $710 (71%)
Current eBay Price : $800 (80%)
2. Business Laptop - VivoBook S15 S533
MSRP (2020): $699
Current Amazon Price : $527 (75%)
Current eBay Price : $560 (80%)
3. Budget Laptop - ZenBook 13 UX325
MSRP (2020): $949
Current Amazon Price : $806.95 (85%)
Current eBay Price : $650 (68.5%)
4. Chromebook - Chromebook C223
MSRP (2020): $249.99
Current Amazon Price : $129.98 (52%)
Current eBay Price : $140 (56%)
5. Tablet Convertible - Asus ZenBook Flip S - UX370
MSRP (2020): $1,449
Current Amazon Price : $1,199.99 (83%)
Current eBay Price : $970 (67%)
Average retained value across all ranges: 71.75%
Source: Web Tribunal, 2022.
Conclusions
Apple laptops retain their value more than the other brands after 2 years. This agrees with other independent research. Coming a close second in the list is Asus, with the mid-performing brands being Acer and Lenovo - with HP coming last, with a 40% depreciation in value over 2 years.
Gaming laptops and budget laptops retain their value for longer, due to both the long-lasting nature of expensive graphics cards and the low starting price respectively.
This list stands as a great starting point to begin your research - repeat these steps for any specific model you are considering investing in. If you’re looking to buy brand new laptops, conduct this research on the previous models in the same line, from the same manufacturer in order to build your own profile into the expected depreciation value, and compare with other lines.
This method isn’t foolproof - prices fluctuate, some models don’t do as well as others, market conditions change, but this is nevertheless a great starting point to begin your research.
However, we can already see that Apple and Asus units depreciate at half the rate of HP and Lenovo machines.
Buying Laptops to Invest: goWholesale
goWholesale is an online wholesale marketplace that supplies new and refurbished laptops to business customers. goWholesale offers three main advantages: flexibility, transparency, and savings.
- You have the freedom to mix and match any combination of laptops and brands.
- Check the full price history of the model in graph form, giving you access to pricing trends over time.
- Every laptop sold on goWholesale comes with its original accessories and is packaged in either its original or high-quality replacement plain packaging.
- You have the option to anonymously negotiate pricing.
- All products sold on goWholesale also come with a warranty (typically 90 days from shipping but this period can vary by product).