Survey reveals most people are holding onto their phones for a long time, and it makes sense

Smartphones are currently in an awkward phase. Spec upgrades have plateaued significantly, and the RAM crisis will likely push prices up while surprisingly reducing specs. It makes little sense to upgrade to a new phone now, especially if your older one is working fine. We asked our readers how often they upgrade their phones these days, and a large chunk of people hold onto their phones for quite some time.

Our poll received 5,203 votes, making it one of the most popular polls we’ve run on the site. A massive chunk of our voters upgrade their phones every three (or more) years, with the option getting over 2,560 votes, representing 49.3% of votes. A few more votes, and it would have been the clear majority. Irrespective, it’s pretty clear that people prefer holding onto their phones for quite some time, and that’s a wise decision. Notably, the decision to hold onto phones for three years also aligns well with the 36-month contracts offered by Verizon and AT&T.

As one Android Authority reader notes, phone specifications and experiences have really stagnated, and there’s little reason to upgrade as often.

Chinese brands are performing better in this arena, but US consumers must settle for the same phone repackaged as a new model.

There’s a chunk of our reader base that upgrades their phone only when their current phone breaks. 1,550 people voted for this option, representing 29.8% of our reader base. These people are good at holding onto their phone for as long as it remains functional, which is also a smart decision. After all, if it’s not broken, don’t fix it. All of these people aim to get the most value from their money, and given the RAM crisis underway, many more of us will join the club.

Less commonly, 15.5% of our voters, with 808 votes, upgrade their phones every two years. Two years used to be a decent timeline to accumulate key upgrades, but lately, there haven’t been enough upgrades across the board to justify the jump for most people. Even T-Mobile is considering moving from its 24-month upgrade cycle to a 36-month upgrade cycle. Increasing phone prices will likely push more people to hold onto their phones for longer, so we expect this crowd to thin out in 2026.

Finally, only 282 voters, representing 5.4% of voters, upgrade their phones every year. These are enthusiasts and phone lovers who are willing to spend top dollar on a new phone every year, either snagging a great deal, taking advantage of carrier plans that allow for early upgrades, or simply upgrading for the love of bleeding-edge tech. The landscape could change this year as more people may need to reassess whether the phone upgrade is actually an upgrade. However, there will still be enthusiasts and reviewers like us who want to get their hands on shiny new things as long as companies continue to make them.