How to Erase an Android Phone Before Selling It (iPhone Too)

A buyer pays you, takes the phone home, turns it on, and gets stuck on a screen asking for your Google password. That is the most common way a used phone sale goes wrong, and it is easy to avoid. Knowing how to erase an Android phone properly takes about an hour, most of it spent waiting on the reset, and the same logic applies if you are handing off an iPhone instead.

Red flags that your phone is not ready to hand over

If any of these are true, stop before you pack the phone up.

• Your Google Account still appears under Settings > Passwords & accounts (some phones call it Users & accounts or Manage accounts).
• You changed your Google Account password in the last 24 hours. Google advises waiting a full day after a password reset before doing a factory reset.
• You have not checked that your photos, contacts and messages are backed up. A factory reset uninstalls every app and wipes its data.
• The phone still shows up in Find Hub when you sign in from another device.
• A SIM card or microSD card is still in the tray.
• On an iPhone, Find My is still on, or an Apple Watch is still paired to it.
• The battery is low. Google recommends at least 70% charge before you start, because a reset can run for up to an hour.

Before you erase: save what you want to keep

Google's backup lives in your account, not on the phone. According to Google's backup help page, you can run it by opening Settings > Google > All services, then under Backup and restore tap Backup, then Back up now. On some phones the same switch sits under Settings > Google services > All services.

That backup covers apps and app data, call history, contacts, device settings and SMS and MMS messages. Google says you can back up to 15 GB at no charge with your Google account, so check you have room if you keep a lot of photos and videos.

A few things deserve a separate look:

• Chats in third party apps. WhatsApp and similar apps keep their own backups. If you are moving to a new device, see our guide on how to transfer WhatsApp to a new phone.
• Switching to an iPhone. Move your data first with the steps in our Android to iPhone transfer guide, while the old phone still has everything on it.

The step by step checklist for erasing an Android phone

These paths come from Google's support pages for Pixel and stock Android. Samsung, Motorola and other brands use their own menu names, so if a label does not match, search Settings for "reset" or "accounts".

1. Charge and connect. Plug the phone in or get it above 70%, and connect to Wi Fi or mobile data.
2. Run a fresh backup using the path above and wait for it to finish.
3. Note your screen lock and Google password. You may be asked for both during the process.
4. Remove your Google Account. Go to Settings > Passwords & accounts, tap your account under Accounts, tap Remove account, then confirm. If it is the only Google Account on the phone, you will need your PIN, pattern or password. Repeat for any other accounts listed. Google's account removal page lists the alternate menu names used on different phones.
5. Sign out of brand accounts. If your phone maker has its own account (Samsung, for example), sign out of it as well, so no second account stays tied to the phone.
6. Factory reset from Settings. On a Pixel, the Pixel factory reset instructions give this path: Settings > System > Reset options > Erase all data (factory reset) > Erase all data. Enter your PIN if asked. Google specifically says to use the Settings option for trade ins.
7. Wait. The reset can take up to an hour. Do not unplug or force restart the phone.
8. Pull the SIM and memory cards once the phone shuts down or shows the welcome screen.
9. Check your account from a computer. Visit myaccount.google.com, go to Security, then Your devices. If the old phone is still listed, choose it and select Sign out.

Why removing the account matters so much

Android has a theft protection feature, often called Factory Reset Protection. Google explains that if a protected phone is reset, it can only be set up again by someone who knows the screen lock or the password for a Google Account that was synced to it. Great against thieves, a dead end for an honest buyer. Google's own instruction for turning this protection off is simple: remove your Google Account from the device before you reset.

Selling an iPhone instead

Apple's checklist, from its page on what to do before you sell or trade in an iPhone, follows a similar order:

1. Back up the iPhone.
2. Unpair your Apple Watch if you have one.
3. Cancel or transfer AppleCare coverage.
4. On iOS 26 or later, open Settings, tap your name, scroll down and tap Sign Out.
5. If you are switching to a phone that is not made by Apple, deregister iMessage.
6. Go to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Erase All Content and Settings, enter your passcode, and tap Erase iPhone.
7. If the phone uses an eSIM, choose to erase both the device and the eSIM profile when asked.

Apple says erasing the phone turns off Find My and Activation Lock. For fees and payout options once it is wiped, see our guide on how to sell an old iPhone.

What to do if the phone already left your hands

You still have options, but act quickly.

If you sold or gave it away unwiped, contact the buyer and ask them to erase it with the steps above. Then, from a computer, open your Google Account security page and sign the device out under Your devices. Change your Google password afterward.

If the phone is lost or stolen, use Google Find Hub in a browser or the Find Hub app on another Android device. Sign in, pick the phone, and choose Factory reset. This works only if the phone has power, is online, is signed in to your Google Account and had Find Hub turned on. Google warns that once you erase it remotely, it no longer shows up in Find Hub, so you cannot track it after that step. Lock and locate first if you think you can recover it.

For an iPhone, Apple says to erase it from Find Devices on iCloud.com, remove it from your trusted devices list, change your Apple Account password, turn on two factor authentication if it is off, and remove any cards from Apple Pay.

In both cases, also call your carrier to suspend the line so nobody can use your number, and file a police report if the phone was stolen. If you are worried someone already got into your accounts, our checklist on how to know if your phone is hacked covers the warning signs.

A last check before you ship it

Turn the phone on one final time. If it shows the setup screen, has no SIM or memory card inside, and no longer appears in your Google or Apple device list, it is ready. Take a quick photo of that welcome screen. If a buyer ever claims the phone was locked, you have proof it left your hands clean.

More phone buying and selling guides are in our Gadgets section.