Since Apple will announce the new iPhone this week, it could be time to start thinking about selling your old smartphone. While Apple has a trade-in program to pay customers for older iPhones, you will likely make more money by selling it through a third-party company or simply unloading it on an auction site.

To help you along with this process, we’ve compiled a set of helpful tips for getting the most green for your old smartphone.

1. Your old iPhone will start dropping in value each week after the new iPhone is announced.

According to research conducted by USell.com, the previous generations of iPhones fall in value by 5 percent the first week after new iPhone model(s) are announced. That figure increases to 12 percent in the second week and up to 20 percent within a month. Selling your phone this week as opposed to next month will allow you to recoup as much money as possible. Selling it prior to the announcement would have brought even greater monetary value.

Basically, this is due to falling demand and increasing supply. As retailers start taking more trade-ins and third-party resellers start paying out for more older iPhone models, the supply significantly increases. Those companies are competing against the supply on auction sites like eBay, as well. The cash value of an iPhone 8 could easily plummet by 33 to 50 percent over the next few months due to massive supply.

2. If your iPhone is unlocked, you will automatically make more money.

If you are currently an AT&T subscriber and you have fulfilled your contract, check out the device unlock page to read how to have your smartphone unlocked. Once the iPhone has been unlocked, you are generally looking at a 40 to 60 percent markup in value when selling it on eBay, Craigslist or another auction site. (Verizon’s policy, Sprint’s policy)

A few years ago, I did this with my iPhone 4 a couple months after getting the iPhone 5 and ended up making $250 on the sale. That’s $50 more than I originally paid for the smartphone in 2010!

Also, don’t forget to check the iOS version of your iPhone and list that in the auction. Anyone that’s interested in jailbreaking the device may want a specific firmware. That’s something that can also increase the value of the device significantly, albeit within a smaller subset of users.

3. Compare gift card value against cash value.

When you are upgrading to a new smartphone, check the retailer where you are purchasing the new phone for gift card deals. Retailers are generally more liberal about store credit in order to bring more people into the store. For instance, the gift card value of an iPhone 7 in good condition at Amazon, Walmart, Best Buy and Apple ranges from $225 to $300. Alternatively, cash value from a third party site like Gazelle hovers around $153 to $202 at the moment.

While you have to apply that gift card value to a new smartphone purchase, you can end up coming out ahead. Also, it will save you the hassle of selling the device on an auction site. If you don’t regularly use sites like eBay or Craigslist, jumping right in to sell a high value smartphone can be tricky.

4. When selling on iPhone on an auction site, be as descriptive as possible.

People into Apple devices are notoriously (and perhaps stereotypically) image conscious, particularly about the condition of their Apple gadgets. If you never protected the smartphone with a case over the last two years, you probably ended up with some nicks and scratches on the rear panel, sides or front of the device.

Be sure to include an exact description of every blemish. Also list out the specs. How much memory does it come with? What carrier networks does it work on? Does it come with the original packaging? What’s the condition of the earbuds or charging cable? Does the Home button stick at all when pressed?

5. Leverage social media when selling your iPhone.

Very often, people forget about social media when attempting to sell an iPhone. However, you probably have plenty of friends that are simply in between phones or are looking to replace a smartphone that was smashed or perhaps dropped in the toilet.

Leave off any info about the price you want and just let interested friends contact you over private message or email. If you have posted the phone on Craigslist, you can also just post a link to the ad if you want.

6. Don’t forget to wipe everything, fingerprints included!

This goes double for anyone who’s attempting to sell the iPhone with a specific iOS version intact. If you need to keep the version intact, use the “Erase All Content and Settings” in the Reset section of the General menu and be sure to scour that phone repeatedly to remove all personal information from the device. This includes email account information, text messages, Apple Store account information, etc…

If you don’t need to keep the version of iOS at a specific firmware version, run the factory wipe on the device. It will return the iPhone to the original factory condition as if you never used it.

7. Even if you drove over your iPhone with a monster truck recently, it’s worth something.

If you have a nonworking phone, don’t throw it in a drawer or the trash can. It’s worth something to someone. You may be able to sell it for parts on eBay or you can simply sell it for $15 to $25 to a recycling company. Either way, you can make a small bit of cash on your broken phone.

Also, if you only smashed the glass screen on your iPhone and it still works, consider replacing the glass yourself or having it replaced. If you are a DIY type of person, you can purchase the kits for $10 to $20 on eBay.

You can also pay someone who specializes in those repairs, costing you approximately $60 to $100. Either way, you stand to make a bit of money on the resale of your iPhone after it’s fixed.

Buying the New iPhone? 7 Tips on Selling Your Old iPhone

There’s no need to ask if we can hear it now. We’ve all heard it in the past few weeks: Introductions of new unlimited data plans have dominated the news. The Big Four cellular network providers in the U.S. are back at war, and consumers can be the winners.

But you have to comprehend what each new plan truly involves and whether it’s worth your while to a consider a switch. Please know that there’s more to a cellular plan than price — picking a provider with poor coverage in your area or poor customer service does no good. With that in mind, we’ve broken down the latest offerings from each of the Big Four to see if you can save some money on your smartphone plan.

When Unlimited Means Something Else

Understand that although these unlimited plans all involved unlimited data usage, the speeds at which you’ll access that data is not unlimited. Each of the Big Four reserves the right to slow your download/upload speeds once you hit a certain amount of data usage within a billing month, depending on network congestion. This “throttling” effect may be tough to deal with for some users. It’ll be nearly impossible to stream HD video at throttled data speeds, for example. Here are the data limits you’ll hit before potentially seeing your speed slowed (per month and per line). All four offer very similar options.

• AT&T: 22 GB
• Sprint: 23 GB
• T-Mobile: 28 GB
• Verizon: 22 GB

AT&T

AT&T has offered some unlimited plans in the past, such as for those who also subscribe to its DirecTV or U-verse services.

With the recent shakeup in the industry though, AT&T has refined its plans a couple of times since the start of the year. These plans are available to current or new AT&T subscribers.

With the latest Unlimited Plus, you can have up to eight lines on one account with this plan. The baseline prices start at $90 for one line, $145 for two lines, $165 for three lines, $185 for four lines, and $205 for five lines.

If you’re a DirecTV subscriber who switches to Unlimited Plus, you’ll receive a $25 discount on your DirecTV bill every month. (DirecTV Now and U-verse subscribers receive the same deal.) AT&T says this is a limited time offer though.

What They’re Not Telling You

• Extra fees and taxes are not included in the quoted monthly prices.
• You cannot use the smartphone as a hot spot with this unlimited plan.
• You’ll pay one-time activation fees of about $25 per line if you’re a new customer.

Sprint

Sprint has decided to make its unlimited plans more enticing by using promotional pricing. You’ll pay $50 for the first line per month and $40 for the second line. Up to three additional lines are free.

Once the promotional period ends, which is expected to occur early in 2018, the first line will cost $60 monthly and the second line will cost $40 monthly. Additional lines will run $30 apiece up to five lines.

This means that as a baseline price, you’ll pay $90 during the promotional period for four or five lines. After the promotional period ends, you’ll pay about $160 as a baseline for four lines and $190 per month for five lines.

What They’re Not Telling You

• To receive the $90 promotional price for five lines, you have to use auto pay, otherwise you’ll be charged $5 per month per line.
• There are no paper bills with this offer; only electronic billing.
• For HD quality video as part of the unlimited data package, you’ll pay an extra $20 per month per line. (SD quality video doesn’t cost extra.)
• The promotional pricing deal is only offered to those new to Sprint; existing Sprint customers may be able to add unlimited to a current plan, but they’ll have to contact the carrier for details.
• Fees and taxes are not included in the promotional price.

T-Mobile

T-Mobile made the fewest changes to its unlimited plans. Even so, it still remains one of the least expensive options out there. In fact, it’s not out of line to think that the other Big Four providers were trying to match T-Mobile with their latest changes.

T-Mobile offers a first line for $70 per month on its unlimited plan, and the second line costs only $30 monthly. Two additional lines will run you about $60 total per month, so you’re paying around $160 per month as a baseline price for four lines and $180 per month for five lines. (For a limited time, T-Mobile is offering three lines for $100 per month, meaning you’ll essentially receive the third line free.)

What They’re Not Telling You

• Not much. T-Mobile includes all fees and taxes within its quoted prices, including any activation fees.
• If you don’t use auto pay, you’ll pay $5 per month per line extra.
• You must use the T-Mobile app to receive HD video; otherwise it defaults to SD video.

Verizon

Verizon may have started the latest shakeup among the Big Four with its decision to begin offering an unlimited plan in mid-February. Verizon’s deal costs $80 for the first line, $60 for a second line, and roughly $20 each for additional lines. That’s roughly $180 for four lines as a baseline price and $200 for five lines. This new unlimited data plan is available to new and current Verizon subscribers.

What They’re Not Telling You

• If you don’t sign up for auto pay and paperless billing, you’ll have to spend between $5 and $10 per month per line extra.
• A one-time activation fee per line will run you $30 (new customers only).
• Taxes and fees are not included in the quoted prices.

Final Things to Know

Finally, we have to mention a few things that may sway your decision.

• Taxes and Fees: The price points listed above do not include any taxes and fees that you’ll have to pay. T-Mobile includes all taxes and fees in its quoted cost, but the other carriers do not. Additionally, you will pay activation fees when signing up with AT&T, Verizon, or Sprint; again T-Mobile includes this fee with its quoted price. Activation fees typically are about $25-$30 per line.
• Hot Spot Support: T-Mobile, Verizon, and Sprint all offer support for running your smartphone as a mobile hot spot. AT&T does not. You will be limited to 10GB of data through a hot spot connection per month. After you pass that mark, your data speeds will slow considerably.
• Video Resolution: Each of the Big Four now offer HD quality video. However, you may have to turn on this feature manually (as with AT&T) or pay extra for it (as with Sprint). And the carrier may throttle you down to SD quality video after using a certain amount of data.

The cheapest service — as it has been for a while — is T-Mobile. (Unless you’re counting Sprint’s promotional pricing; then it offers the best price for now.) But each of the Big Four networks certainly has become much closer in price points and plan details with their new unlimited data plans, more similar than they’ve ever been.

However, that doesn’t mean you won’t be able to save a few dollars by shopping around … and that also means shopping around within your current carrier. Perhaps the smartest thing you can do at this point is make sure that the plan you have through your current cellular network carrier is the most cost effective one it can be. If you’re happy with your current service, just making sure you are on the right plan may save you quite a bit per month without the hassle of switching carriers.

Unlimited Data Compared: AT&T vs. Sprint vs. T-Mobile vs. Verizon