How to Read Repairability Scores

iFixit publishes the best-known public score for how easy a phone is to repair. A number on its own can mislead, so this page explains what goes into it, what the scale means, and where it stops being useful. We show a score only where iFixit published one, and we link to the source.

What does the iFixit repairability score measure?

The score measures three things: whether the maker publishes a service manual, whether the maker offers replacement parts at a workable price, and how the phone is designed to be taken apart. According to iFixit’s scoring explainer:

Within design, iFixit says the best devices have independent access to major components, a shallow disassembly tree, rather than a linear one where you must remove each part to reach the next. It weights consumables like batteries more heavily than mechanical buttons, and it penalizes devices that need proprietary tools for ordinary actions such as turning a screw.

What do the numbers on the scale mean?

A score near the top means a very repairable phone, and a score under 5 means repairs get harder. iFixit describes its anchors this way:

The score also has a ceiling. iFixit says that without a free public service manual of some kind, the maximum achievable score for any device is 9.0 out of 10.

What lowers a repairability score?

Several design and policy choices pull a score down. iFixit’s explainer names parts pairing and missing calibration software as a major current concern: if a genuine replacement part does not work because you cannot get the calibration or pairing software, it says, that is the same as no repair at all. It calls its penalty for parts pairing severe and global, meaning points gained in documentation or design may be lost if enough routine repairs will not work outside the maker’s authorized repair scenario.

Other factors named in the explainer include a long linear disassembly path, proprietary tools, and a missing or obscured unique product identifier, which can slightly lower the documentation and parts points. On its smartphone scores page, iFixit’s phone-by-phone notes repeatedly cite adhesives, the number of screw types, and whether the back opens without heat.

Which phones in our library have an iFixit score?

Eight of the 41 phones in our library have a score recorded, and all eight are Apple iPhones. The scores range from 4 to 7 out of 10: one phone is at 4 and seven are at 7. No Samsung, Google or Motorola phone in our library has a score recorded. These come from our own library of 41 phones, not from every phone on sale.

Source: each phone’s iFixit device page, as recorded on our phone pages and retrieved on 2026-10-05.

Why does my phone show no score?

A missing score means we did not record one, not that the phone is unrepairable. Thirty-three of the 41 phones in our library show no score, including all 13 Samsung, 5 Google and 6 Motorola phones, plus nine iPhones. For those, our repair page links to iFixit’s device page where one exists and says iFixit has not published a score for the phone. iFixit says its engineers tear down the latest smartphones to score them, so not every phone is covered. We do not substitute an estimate or borrow a score from a similar model.

Can I compare scores across years and brands?

Compare scores from the same period and the same scorecard, not across everything. iFixit’s smartphone scores page says it updates its rubric frequently, so devices scored in years past might not fare exactly the same if re-scored today, though they can be readily compared with their contemporaries. Its explainer says scoring criteria are updated at least once annually. The scores page links each device to a scorecard version, and it listed versions from v1.4 to v2.2 on 2026-10-05. For example, it lists the iPhone 16 family on scorecard v1.9 and the iPhone Air on v2.2.

Scores from other organizations do not line up with iFixit’s. iFixit says other systems often weight or aggregate results very differently, so their scores are not comparable. It also says a repairability scoring system is just an expression of the values and priorities of the people who created it. Use the score as one input, not a verdict.

What does a score not tell me?

A score does not tell you what a repair costs, whether the maker’s program covers your country, or whether a repair is safe for you. It rates the design and the maker’s documentation and parts, not the price of a repair or your skills. For those questions go to the maker’s official page: Apple Self Service Repair, Samsung Self-Repair or Google’s Pixel repair help. For the two most common jobs, see battery replacement and screen replacement.

Related

Repair hub, battery replacement basics, screen replacement basics, phone library, brand hubs, and iFixit’s phone repair guides.