My Surprising Lawn Mower Resale Value Guide

Quick Overview

• Lawn mower resale value drops fastest in the first two years, often 30-40% off the sticker price (Previsible, 2025).
• Battery mowers from EGO and Greenworks hold value better than most gas mowers right now, because buyers want quiet, low-maintenance yard tools.
• Maintenance records and a clean cutting deck can add $50-100 to your final sale price on Facebook Marketplace.
• Gas mowers still sell fast in colder states where buyers trust engines over batteries.
• My worst resale mistake cost me almost $150. I’ll explain exactly what happened so you don’t repeat it.

Last summer, I stood in my driveway in central Florida with a mower I’d used for three seasons, a hand-written price tag, and a neighbor named Gary who wanted it for half what I was asking.

That driveway sale taught me more about lawn mower resale value than any spec sheet ever did. I’ve bought and sold six mowers over the past four years, in three very different climates. Some sales felt great. One still bugs me.

This guide is for anyone who wants to buy smart now so they don’t lose money later. Maybe you’re shopping for a new mower and wondering which brand won’t tank in value. Maybe you’re getting ready to list your old one on Craigslist. Either way, here’s what actually happened when I sold mine.

I’ve lived in three states over the past four years. Each move meant selling a mower before I left and buying a new one after I arrived. That’s given me a strange kind of crash course in lawn mower resale value, one I never asked for but I’m glad I got.

The first time I sold a mower, I had no idea what I was doing. I priced it based on a gut feeling and got lowballed by half. By the time I sold my fifth mower, I had a system. Photos taken in daylight. A clean deck. A short write-up of maintenance history. That system is most of what you’ll read below.

I’m not a mechanic and I don’t work for any mower brand. I’m just a homeowner who mows his own yard, reads the manual, and pays attention to what happens when the “for sale” post goes live.

What surprised me most was how much the same mower could sell for two completely different prices, depending on where I lived. A mower that felt like a steal in Phoenix would’ve sold for less in Minneapolis, and vice versa. Climate, yard size, and local buyer habits all play a bigger role than most buying guides ever mention.

Why Resale Value Matters More Than People Think

Resale value matters because the sticker price is not what a mower actually costs you. What you get back when you sell it matters just as much.

The Real Cost of Owning a Mower Isn’t Just the Price Tag

Most people compare mowers by looking at the price on the shelf. That’s only half the math.

The real cost is purchase price minus what you’ll get back later. A $600 mower that resells for $350 after three years cost you $250 a year. A $400 mower that resells for $100 cost you $300 a year, even though it looked cheaper on day one.

I learned this the hard way with a gas push mower I bought used from a guy in Tampa. It ran fine, but three years later nobody wanted a mower with no self-propel feature. I sold it for scrap price, basically.

Trade-in value works the same way, though most people never think to ask about it. A couple of local dealers in my area will knock money off a new mower purchase if you trade in your old one. I never got more than $75 that way, and selling private always beat it. But if you hate dealing with strangers on Marketplace, trade-in is worth a phone call before you buy new.

Think about resale value the same way you’d think about a car. Nobody buys a car assuming it holds 100% of its worth forever. Mowers work the same way, just with smaller numbers and fewer surprises if you plan ahead.

How Much Value Do Mowers Really Lose Each Year?

Mowers lose the most value in year one, then depreciation slows down. Based on my own sales and current Facebook Marketplace listings, most mowers drop 25-35% in year one and another 10-15% each year after that (Previsible, 2025).

Gas mowers depreciate a bit faster than battery mowers right now. That’s a shift from five years ago, when gas was still king. Buyers today want fewer trips to the gas station and less noise on Saturday mornings.

Here’s roughly what I’ve seen across mower types:

• Gas push mowers: 35% drop in year one, 15% each year after
• Gas self-propelled mowers: 30% drop in year one, 12% each year after
• Battery mowers (EGO, Greenworks): 25% drop in year one, 10% each year after
• Robot mowers: 40% drop in year one, since the tech changes fast

Robot mowers depreciate the fastest of anything I’ve watched, including brands I don’t personally own like Segway Navimow. New models come out almost every year with better cameras and mapping software, and last year’s model suddenly looks outdated to buyers, even if it still cuts grass just fine.

Push reel mowers, the old-fashioned kind with no motor at all, barely depreciate. There’s not much to break, and the buyer pool is small but steady. I’ve never sold one myself, but a friend in Vermont sold hers for almost what she paid, four years in.

What Affects a Mower’s Resale Value Most

Five things drive resale value the most: brand, power type, age and hours, cosmetic shape, and what extras come with it.

Brand Reputation (EGO, Toro, Honda, Greenworks, Ryobi)

Brand reputation affects resale value more than almost anything else. Buyers trust names they’ve heard good things about, even secondhand.

EGO mowers hold value the best among battery brands I’ve sold. People know the brand for reliable batteries and decent power. I sold my EGO Power+ 21-inch two years in for about 70% of what I paid.

Toro and Honda carry weight with gas mower buyers, especially older buyers who grew up on those brands. My neighbor Gary specifically wanted a Honda because his dad used one for twenty years.

Greenworks sells fast but usually for a bit less than EGO. It’s seen as the budget-friendly option, which helps it move quickly but caps the ceiling on price.

Ryobi is a mixed bag. Their batteries cross-compatible with other Ryobi tools is a big selling point for buyers who already own Ryobi trimmers or blowers.

I sold a Ryobi 40V mower in Georgia and got decent interest, but almost every message asked the same question: “does it use the same battery as my Ryobi drill?” That cross-compatibility carried the sale more than the mower itself did.

Kobalt and HART sit lower on the brand recognition ladder. Both are solid tools, in my experience, but buyers hesitate more, and offers tend to come in 10-15% lower than an equivalent EGO or Greenworks listing. Craftsman still carries weight with older buyers, especially for gas mowers, thanks to decades of trust built through Sears and hardware stores.

Gas vs. Battery vs. Push Mowers

Battery mowers currently hold value better than gas mowers in most parts of the country, though gas still wins in colder climates and larger properties.

I sold a battery mower in Phoenix in about four days. I sold a gas mower in Minneapolis in about four days too, but for a different reason. Battery buyers in Phoenix wanted to avoid ethanol fuel issues in the heat. Gas buyers in Minneapolis wanted power they trust in wet spring grass.

Push mowers with no self-propel feature are the hardest to resell everywhere. Buyers assume they’re older technology or made for tiny yards only.

I remember standing in my garage in Minnesota, trying to figure out why my self-propelled Toro sold in two days while a friend’s basic push mower sat for a month at a lower price. The answer was simple once I thought about it. Self-propel saves your back on hills and thick grass, and buyers know it the moment they read the listing.

Self-propelled gas mowers still command a premium in the Midwest, where yards tend to be bigger and grass grows thick and wet in spring. In smaller yards, especially newer subdivisions in the Southwest, buyers care less about self-propel and more about weight, since they’re pushing the mower around tight corners and flower beds.

Age, Hours Used, and Maintenance History

Age matters less than most people think. Maintenance records and honest hour counts matter more.

A three-year-old mower with oil changes documented and a clean air filter will often beat a two-year-old mower with no records. Buyers on Facebook Marketplace ask about maintenance more than they ask about the exact age now.

I always kept a simple notebook with oil change dates and blade sharpening dates. When I listed my Honda mower, I photographed that notebook and put it in the listing. Buyers noticed. One guy told me it was the reason he chose mine over three other Craigslist listings.

Engine hours on gas mowers work like mileage on a car. Buyers want to see under 100 hours if they can, though most residential mowers rack up 20-40 hours a season.

Battery health matters just as much for electric mowers as engine hours do for gas ones. A battery that no longer holds a full charge tanks the resale price fast, even if the motor and blades are perfect. When I listed my EGO mower, I mentioned the battery still ran a full 45 minutes on one charge. That single detail came up in almost every message I got.

Warranty transfer is another detail buyers ask about more than I expected. EGO and Toro both allow some warranty transfer to a second owner with proof of purchase. I always included the original receipt photo in my listings once I learned that mattered.

Cosmetic Condition and Included Accessories

A clean, rust-free mower sells for more even if it runs exactly the same as a dirty one.

I spent twenty minutes hosing off grass buildup and scraping caked clippings off the underside of the deck before every sale. That twenty minutes probably earned me an extra $30-50 each time, just from how much better the mower looked in photos.

Included accessories add real dollar value too:

• Extra batteries and a charger (adds $40-80 for battery mowers)
• Bagging attachment (adds $15-25)
• Mulching plug (adds $10-15)
• Original owner’s manual (small trust boost, rarely a dollar amount)

Rust on the cutting deck is the single biggest cosmetic red flag for buyers. Even light surface rust makes people assume the deck will rot through in a season or two. I’ve seen otherwise identical mowers sell $60-80 apart, purely because one had a rusty deck edge and the other didn’t.

Grass buildup underneath the deck also traps moisture, which speeds up rust and can throw off the mower’s balance over time. A quick scrape with a putty knife and a hose-down before every listing photo made a visible difference in how professional my mowers looked next to the competition.

Resale Value by Feature: Comparison Table

Mowers That Hold Their Value Best (From My Own Sales)

Based on my own sales history, EGO holds value best overall, with Toro close behind for gas mowers and Ryobi lagging near the bottom.

Best Resale Value Overall

My EGO Power+ Select Cut mower held value the best of anything I’ve sold. I paid $549 new in 2023. I sold it two years later for $385, which is about 70% of the original price (based on my own transaction records, 2025).

Buyers specifically searched for EGO by name. Nobody asked me “what brand is this” the way they did with less popular mowers.

Part of that comes from EGO’s brushless motor, which lasts longer than the brushed motors found in cheaper battery mowers. Buyers who’ve done their homework ask about the motor type specifically, and “brushless” is a word that closes deals faster than almost anything else I’ve said in a listing.

I also think the timing helped. I sold in early April, right as Florida’s grass growth kicks into gear. Selling in the offseason would have likely knocked another $30-40 off my final price.

Best Value Retention for Battery Mowers

EGO wins this one clearly, with Greenworks Pro (the higher-end line, not the entry-level one) a close second.

I never personally sold a Greenworks Pro mower, but a friend in Georgia sold hers for around 60% of the original price after eighteen months. That’s solid, just not quite EGO-level.

The entry-level Greenworks line, the one sold at big-box stores for under $300, depreciates faster. Buyers seem to sense the difference in build quality even without knowing the model numbers. My friend’s Pro model had a metal deck, while the entry-level version uses plastic, and that alone shifted buyer interest noticeably in her Marketplace messages.

Best Value Retention for Gas Mowers

Honda holds value best among gas mowers, based on both my own sale and what I’ve watched sell on Marketplace over the past two years.

I sold a Honda HRX217 after four years of use for exactly half of what I paid. That’s a strong number for a gas mower that age. Toro’s self-propelled models come in close behind Honda.

Honda’s engine reputation does most of the heavy lifting here. Buyers trust the GCV engine line specifically, and I had two different people mention “Honda engine” in their first message before asking anything else about the mower.

Husqvarna and Craftsman gas mowers held up reasonably well too, based on comparable listings I tracked while pricing my own. Scag and Exmark rarely show up in residential resale listings at all, since those brands lean commercial and tend to get sold through equipment dealers instead of Marketplace.

Worst Depreciation I’ve Seen

The worst depreciation I experienced was with a generic push mower from a big-box store’s house brand. I bought it for $220. Three years later, I couldn’t get more than $60 for it, and that took two weeks of relisting.

Nobody recognized the brand. It had no self-propel. The deck had started rusting despite regular cleaning. All three problems stacked up against me at once.

Looking back, I probably should’ve expected it. I bought that mower because it was on sale, not because I researched the brand. That’s the same mistake I see other people make. The lowest sticker price often turns into the lowest resale price too, and the gap between the two isn’t always obvious until you’re the one trying to sell.

Resale Value by Model: Comparison Table

How Resale Value Changes by Region and Season

Region and season shift both the price buyers will pay and how fast a mower sells.

Selling in Hot Climates (Florida, Texas, Southeast)

In Florida, mowers sell best in early spring, right before grass growth kicks into high gear. I listed my Honda in February and had three responses within a day.

Humidity causes rust faster in this region, so buyers here specifically ask about deck condition. I always mentioned “no rust, deck cleaned after every use” directly in my listing text.

Battery mowers do well here too, since Florida buyers deal with ethanol gas going bad quickly in the heat and humidity.

Afternoon thunderstorms are a daily reality here for most of the summer, and that shapes buyer behavior more than people expect. A lot of Florida buyers ask if the mower’s been kept dry, since sitting wet in a humid garage speeds up rust on the deck and corrosion on bolts and fasteners.

Selling in Dry Climates (Southwest, Arizona)

In Phoenix, dust and heat are the big concerns. Buyers ask about the air filter condition on gas mowers more than anything else.

Battery mowers sell fast here because there’s no carburetor to gunk up with dust and dried-out fuel. I sold mine to a guy who said flat out, “I’m done dealing with gas mowers in this heat.”

Smaller yards are common in newer Arizona developments, which pushes demand toward lighter, more compact mowers.

Desert landscaping, or xeriscaping, is common in parts of Phoenix and cuts down on total grass area. That means some buyers here want a mower for a small strip of grass only, and they’re often willing to pay less overall since they don’t need a heavy-duty machine.

Selling in the Midwest and Northern States

In Minnesota, gas mowers still dominate demand, especially self-propelled models for thicker, wetter spring grass.

Season matters a lot here. I sold a mower in April for $50 more than I could’ve gotten in October, simply because buyers were gearing up for mowing season and felt urgency.

Storage matters too. Buyers ask if the mower was kept in a garage over winter, since outdoor storage in snow and freeze-thaw cycles causes rust and seal damage.

I remember standing in my Minneapolis garage in late March, breath still visible in the cold air, going through my pre-sale checklist one more time before spring hit. Buyers up there start looking early, sometimes weeks before the snow even fully melts, because they know good mowers get snapped up fast once the season starts.

Resale Value by Region: Comparison Table

Common Mistakes People Make When Selling a Mower

The two biggest mistakes I’ve seen, and made myself, are bad pricing and skipping basic cleanup before listing photos go up.

Pricing It Wrong From the Start

Pricing too high means your listing sits for weeks while buyers scroll past it. Pricing too low means you leave money on the table before anyone even negotiates.

I once priced a mower $75 above what similar listings were asking, just because I liked the mower. It sat for three weeks. I dropped the price to match the market and sold it in two days.

Check three to five similar listings in your area before setting your price. Look at what’s actually selling, not just what’s listed.

Facebook Marketplace shows you which listings are marked “sold” or have activity, which is more useful than counting how many mowers are currently posted. A dozen active listings with no sold tags for weeks tells you the price point isn’t working, no matter what sellers are asking.

I also learned to leave a little room for negotiation without inflating my price too much. Buyers on Marketplace almost always ask “would you take less,” and pricing 5-10% above your true bottom line gives you room to say yes without feeling like you lost money.

Skipping Basic Cleaning and Maintenance Before Listing

A dirty mower in photos signals neglect, even if the engine and blades are in great shape.

Before my best sale, I changed the oil, sharpened the blade, and hosed off the deck. The buyer commented on how “well taken care of” it looked before he even started the engine.

Skipping this step is the mistake that cost me the most. I once listed a mower straight from the shed, grass clippings and all. It took two weeks longer to sell than mowers I’d cleaned up first, and I settled for $40 less than my asking price.

Bad Photos and Vague Descriptions

Blurry photos taken in a dark garage make even a good mower look questionable. I switched to taking photos outside in daylight, from four angles, including one close-up of the deck underside. Response rates on my listings roughly doubled after that change.

Vague descriptions hurt too. “Works great, barely used” tells a buyer nothing. I started writing exact details instead: brand, model number, approximate hours or age, last maintenance date, and any known issues. Buyers trusted listings with specifics far more than ones with generic praise.

Pros and Cons Table (Buying New vs. Buying Used for Resale)

Buying new makes more sense if you plan to resell within a few years and want top dollar. Buying used makes more sense if you plan to run the mower into the ground and don’t care about resale at all.

My Final Recommendation

If I had to buy one mower today with resale value in mind, I’d choose an EGO battery mower. It held its value better than anything else I’ve owned, and buyers actively search for that brand name on Facebook Marketplace.

That said, gas still makes sense if you live somewhere cold and wet in spring, or if you have a big yard where battery life becomes a real limitation. My Honda held value well too, just not quite at EGO’s level.

I regret the generic push mower purchase more than any other decision I’ve made with lawn equipment. It felt smart at the time, since I saved about $150 up front. That savings evaporated the moment I tried to sell it three years later. If I could go back, I’d have spent the extra money on a recognizable brand from day one.

I don’t regret buying used, though. Half of the mowers I’ve owned were secondhand, and every one of them saved me money without costing me much in resale later. The key was always checking maintenance history and engine hours before handing over cash, the same things I now check when someone messages me about buying mine.

The biggest lesson from four years of buying and selling mowers isn’t about brand at all. It’s that a clean mower with real maintenance records sells faster and for more money than a dirty one with no history, no matter what’s written on the side of the deck.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the average resale value of a lawn mower?

Most mowers keep 60-70% of their value after one year and 40-50% after three years, depending on brand and condition (Previsible, 2025). Battery mowers currently trend toward the higher end of that range.

Do battery mowers resell better than gas mowers?

In many regions, yes. Battery mowers from EGO and Greenworks have held value well in my own sales, mostly because buyers want to avoid ethanol fuel problems and engine maintenance.

Does maintenance history really affect the sale price?

Yes. Documented oil changes, blade sharpening, and air filter replacements gave me a real edge over other listings in my own experience selling mowers.

Is it better to sell on Facebook Marketplace or Craigslist?

Facebook Marketplace moved my mowers faster in every case, likely due to higher daily traffic and easier messaging. Craigslist still works but tends to attract more lowball offers.

How much does cleaning a mower before selling actually help?

In my experience, a clean mower sold two weeks faster on average and for $30-50 more than an identical mower listed dirty straight from the shed.

Do extra batteries or attachments raise the resale price?

Yes. Extra batteries and a charger added $40-80 to my battery mower sales. A bagging attachment typically adds another $15-25.

Should I sell my mower before or after mowing season?

Sell in early spring, right before the season picks up. Buyers feel more urgency then and are willing to pay closer to your asking price.

Does the brand of battery matter for resale, like EGO vs. Ryobi?

Yes. EGO’s brushless motor and battery reputation pushed my resale prices higher, while Ryobi mowers sold mostly to buyers who already owned other Ryobi tools and wanted battery compatibility.

Is it worth repairing a mower before selling it?

Small, cheap repairs are usually worth it. I replaced a $12 spark plug before one sale and got an extra $50 in the final price. I wouldn’t spend $100 on a repair for a mower only worth $200, though.