Europe refurbished PC market shifts to premium notebooks

CONTEXT said Europe's refurbished PC market shifted towards higher-priced notebooks in the first quarter. Revenue rose 10% from a year earlier despite broadly flat unit sales.

Across refurbished desktops, notebooks and tablets, sales fell about 1% year on year in the quarter, according to the market intelligence firm's figures for France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the UK and Poland. Within that total, notebook sales rose 12%, helping to steady the broader market after a strong final quarter of 2025.

The data points to a market in which buyers are choosing stronger specifications even as prices rise. Average selling prices increased as purchasers moved away from lower-spec devices and towards notebooks with more memory and storage.

Demand varied by region. Spain continued to outperform the broader European market, while the UK experienced a sharper seasonal slowdown after robust demand at the end of the previous year.

The market remains heavily driven by specialist resellers. Small and medium-sized players accounted for almost 70% of refurbished PC sales across the region, while supply continued to come mainly from former corporate device fleets.

HP, Lenovo and Dell remained the three largest vendors in the refurbished segment during the quarter. HP alone accounted for about half the market, underlining how strongly ex-business machines continue to shape supply.

Premium shift

One of the clearest changes was in notebook specifications. Devices with 16GB RAM or more made up nearly 70% of refurbished notebook sales, while the share of 8GB systems fell sharply despite lower prices.

Storage trends moved in the same direction. Refurbished notebooks with 512GB storage reached one-third market share for the first time, reflecting stronger demand for machines seen as longer-term purchases rather than short-term budget options.

Previously, demand was spread across a wider mix of storage options. That pattern has now become more stable, with buyers increasingly concentrating on mainstream higher-end specifications such as 16GB RAM and 512GB storage.

Price bands show the same shift. The lower-priced refurbished segment between EUR €200 and EUR €300 declined 6% year on year in the first quarter, while the EUR €500 to EUR €600 segment rose from 5% to 19% market share. More than 90% of devices sold in that upper tier had at least 16GB RAM and 512GB storage.

The figures suggest the refurbished market is moving away from its traditional role as a low-cost option for budget-conscious buyers. Instead, a growing share of customers appears willing to pay more for devices that more closely match the specifications of newer systems.

That has implications for both pricing and inventory. Resellers that once relied on entry-level stock may need to source more premium business machines, while those holding lower-spec units could face weaker demand even when offering discounts.

The trend also shows how the second-hand technology market is changing as buyers become more comfortable using refurbished hardware as their main device. Notebooks, rather than desktops, are at the centre of that shift, supported by stronger demand for portable systems that can handle work, study and everyday computing over longer periods.

Jacky Chan, who commented on the findings, said the underlying pattern had shifted even though overall demand changed little. "While overall refurbished PC demand was relatively flat in Q1, the market dynamics underneath are changing quite rapidly," said Chan of CONTEXT.

"Customers are increasingly willing to pay more for higher-quality refurbished devices with stronger specifications, particularly in notebooks. That shift is driving average selling price (ASP) growth and expanding the premium segment of the market."

"We're seeing customers actively trade up despite rising prices," Chan said. "Lower-spec systems are becoming less attractive, even when heavily discounted, while demand for higher-performance refurbished notebooks continues to strengthen. Consumers increasingly view refurbished products as long-term primary devices rather than secondary budget purchases."

"The refurbished market is steadily moving upmarket," he added. "Demand is no longer being driven purely by affordability. Customers are prioritising performance, longevity and quality, and that is reshaping both pricing and product mix across Europe."