★ COMPARISONS · PHONES · REPAIR VS REPLACE
Repair wins by $15.03/mo — $7.17/mo vs $22.19/mo. A $129 repair lasting 18 months beats a $799 phone lasting 36 months. Enter your repair quote, the new phone price, and how long each would last to compare yours.
A repair and a new phone are not the same kind of purchase, so comparing their prices compares two different things. This calculator works out the cost per month of each side — the repair cost divided by the months the repaired phone lasts, against the new phone cost divided by its months — and says which one wins, with the three break-evens that flip the answer.
A repair and a new phone are not the same kind of purchase, so comparing their prices is comparing two different things. The fair comparison is the cost per month of use: the repair cost divided by the months the repaired phone should last, against the new phone cost divided by the months a new phone should last. The lower monthly cost wins. The break-even repair cost is the new phone cost times the repaired life, divided by the new phone life: a repair at exactly that price costs the same per month as a new phone. The break-even new-phone price is the repair cost times the new life, divided by the repaired life: a new phone at exactly that price costs the same per month as the repair. The break-even remaining life is the repair cost times the new life, divided by the new phone cost: if the repaired phone lasts at least that long, the repair wins.
At the defaults — a $129 repair, a $799 new phone, 18 months of life left if repaired, 36 months for a new phone — the repair costs $7.17 a month and the new phone costs $22.19 a month, so repair wins by $15.03 a month. The break-even repair cost is $399.50, the break-even new-phone price is $258.00, and the repair only needs to last 5.81 months to win.
| Case | Repair/mo | Replace/mo | Winner | Break-even repair |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Default ($129 repair, $799 new, 18 & 36 months) | $7.17 | $22.19 | Repair wins by $15.03/mo | $399.50 |
| Repair cost $399 | $22.17 | $22.19 | Repair wins by $0.03/mo | $399.50 |
| Repair cost $450 | $25.00 | $22.19 | Replace wins by $2.81/mo | $399.50 |
| Life left 6 months | $21.50 | $22.19 | Repair wins by $0.69/mo | $133.17 |
| New phone $499 | $7.17 | $13.86 | Repair wins by $6.69/mo | $249.50 |
| Repair $89, new $1,099, 24 & 48 months | $3.71 | $22.90 | Repair wins by $19.19/mo | $549.50 |
| Exact tie (repair $399.50) | $22.19 | $22.19 | Tie | $399.50 |
Setup: repair $129, new phone $799, life left if repaired 18 months, life of a new phone 36 months.
Line 1 — the repair per month. $129 ÷ 18 = $7.17 a month.
Line 2 — the new phone per month. $799 ÷ 36 = $22.19 a month.
Line 3 — the winner. $7.17 is less than $22.19, so repair wins by $15.03 a month ($22.19 − $7.17).
Line 4 — the break-even repair cost. $799 × 18 ÷ 36 = $399.50. A repair that costs $399.50 is exactly as dear per month as the new phone; any repair cheaper than that wins.
Line 5 — the break-even new-phone price. $129 × 36 ÷ 18 = $258.00. A new phone at $258.00 would tie the repair; a new phone cheaper than that would win.
Line 6 — the break-even remaining life. $129 × 36 ÷ $799 = 5.81 months. If the repaired phone lasts 5.81 months, the repair ties the new phone; if it lasts longer, the repair wins. At 18 months it wins by a wide margin.
Reverse: at a repair cost of $399.50 both sides cost $22.19 a month — an exact tie. At a new-phone price of $258.00 the two sides tie as well.
Repair cost $399: the repair costs $22.17 a month against $22.19 for the new phone, so repair wins by $0.03 a month — a near-tie. A $399 repair is just inside the break-even of $399.50, so it wins by three cents a month. At $400 it would lose.
Repair cost $450: the repair costs $25.00 a month against $22.19 for the new phone, so replace wins by $2.81 a month. Once the repair passes $399.50, the new phone is the cheaper month of use.
Life left 6 months: the repair costs $21.50 a month against $22.19 for the new phone, so repair wins by $0.69 a month — barely. A repair that only buys six months is still cheaper than a new phone here, because the break-even life is only 5.81 months. At 5 months it would lose.
New phone $499: the new phone costs $13.86 a month against $7.17 for the repair, so repair wins by $6.69 a month. Even a much cheaper new phone loses to a $129 repair that lasts 18 months: the break-even new-phone price is $258.00, and $499 is far above it.
Repair $89, new phone $1,099, 24 and 48 months: the repair costs $3.71 a month against $22.90 for the new phone, so repair wins by $19.19 a month. The break-even repair cost is $549.50 — a repair could cost six times as much and still tie.
Reverse — the other way round: the break-even repair cost is $399.50, the break-even new-phone price is $258.00, and the break-even remaining life is 5.81 months. At a repair cost of $399.50 both sides cost $22.19 a month — an exact tie.
The model assumes the monthly cost is the whole price divided by the months of use, and nothing else: no resale value at the end, no trade-in credit, no second repair later, no interest on a financed phone, and no value placed on a new battery, a better camera, or a faster phone. It assumes the repaired phone lasts exactly the months you enter and the new phone lasts exactly its months. It does not know whether the repair is a screen, a battery, or a board fault, or whether the phone is worth repairing at all: a phone that keeps failing after the repair is a different problem. With a free repair ($0) the repair costs $0.00 a month and wins by the full $22.19 a month. With the remaining life or the new phone life at zero, the calculator asks for a positive number instead of showing a result. Rounding convention: all figures are computed from unrounded values and rounded only for display — money to cents, months to two decimals — so a figure worked out from the rounded numbers can differ by a few cents from the figure shown, and a tie is called only when the two monthly costs are equal to the cent.
| Output | Formula | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Repair cost per month | repair cost ÷ months left if repaired | $7.17/mo. |
| Replace cost per month | new phone cost ÷ months a new phone lasts | $22.19/mo. |
| Winner | the lower monthly cost wins; equal costs are a tie | Repair wins by $15.03/mo. |
| Monthly difference | the higher monthly cost minus the lower one | $15.03/mo. |
| Break-even repair cost | new phone cost × repaired life ÷ new phone life | $399.50. |
| Break-even new-phone price | repair cost × new phone life ÷ repaired life | $258.00. |
| Break-even remaining life | repair cost × new phone life ÷ new phone cost | 5.81 months. |
| Repair cost $399 | same model, $399 repair | $22.17/mo vs $22.19/mo, Repair wins by $0.03/mo. |
| Repair cost $450 | same model, $450 repair | $25.00/mo vs $22.19/mo, Replace wins by $2.81/mo. |
| Life left 6 months | same model, 6 months left | $21.50/mo vs $22.19/mo, Repair wins by $0.69/mo. |
| New phone $499 | same model, $499 new phone | $7.17/mo vs $13.86/mo, Repair wins by $6.69/mo. |
| Repair $89, new $1,099, 24 & 48 months | same model, $89 / $1,099 / 24 / 48 | $3.71/mo vs $22.90/mo, Repair wins by $19.19/mo, break-even repair $549.50. |
| Exact tie ($399.50 repair) | same model, $399.50 repair | Both $22.19/mo, Tie. |
| Free repair ($0) | same model, $0 repair | Repair $0.00/mo, Repair wins by $22.19/mo. |
The math is exact for the numbers you enter: the repair per month is the repair cost divided by the months left, the new phone per month is the new phone cost divided by its months, the winner is the lower monthly cost, and the three break-evens are the exact prices and life at which the two sides tie. What the model cannot do is value anything that is not money: check the features, because a new phone buys a better camera, a fresh battery, and a longer software life that the monthly cost ignores. It assumes the repaired phone lasts exactly the months you enter and the new phone lasts exactly its months, with no resale, no trade-in, no second repair, and no financing cost. It leaves out the risk that the repair fails or the phone breaks again. For a new-versus-refurbished phone, see new vs refurbished phone; for the same question about a car, see repair vs replace car.
Bright Side Kit. "Repair vs Replace Phone Calculator: Cost Per Month 2026" https://brightoolbox.com/repair-vs-replace-phone/ Accessed October 25, 2026.Compare the cost per month. A $129 repair lasting 18 months costs $7.17 a month; a $799 phone lasting 36 months costs $22.19 a month, so the repair wins by $15.03 a month. If the repair cost more than $399.50, the new phone would win.
$399.50 at the defaults. That is the new phone cost ($799) times the repaired life (18 months) divided by the new phone life (36 months). A repair at exactly $399.50 costs the same per month as the new phone: $22.19 a month each.
5.81 months at the defaults. That is the repair cost ($129) times the new phone life (36 months) divided by the new phone cost ($799). If the repaired phone lasts longer than 5.81 months, the repair wins; at 6 months it wins by $0.69 a month.
No, on the monthly cost. A $450 repair over 18 months costs $25.00 a month, against $22.19 a month for the new phone, so the new phone wins by $2.81 a month. The repair would need to last longer, or cost less than $399.50, to win.
The repair still wins. A $499 phone over 36 months costs $13.86 a month, against $7.17 a month for a $129 repair over 18 months, so the repair wins by $6.69 a month. The new phone would need to cost $258.00 or less to win.
Then the repair always wins. A $0 repair costs $0.00 a month, so it wins by the full $22.19 a month against a $799 phone. A free repair is worth taking even if the phone only lasts a few months.