You have found a buyer for your old laptop, through a local shop, an online marketplace, or a neighbour. It feels like a simple transaction. But the laptop knows a great deal about you: your photos, documents, saved passwords, and often your logged-in email and bank websites.
This short guide covers what to do in the days before you hand it over. If you are still deciding whether to sell, give or recycle, see our wider guide on what to do with an old laptop.
1. Copy everything you want to keep
Do this first, and do it properly. Look in:
- Documents, Pictures, Desktop, Downloads and Videos.
- Any second drive such as D:.
- Email data and attachments, if you use a mail program on the laptop.
- Browser bookmarks and saved passwords. Export or sync them.
- Software licence keys for programmes you paid for.
- Work or accounts data, such as Tally files.
Copy to an external drive or cloud account that you own, and then open a sample of files from the copy. See how to save data from an old computer. For important material, follow the 3-2-1 idea: three copies, on two kinds of storage, with one copy elsewhere.
2. Check the copy, then wait a day or two
Do not hand over the laptop on the same day you copied the files. Open the copy again after a day, check that folders are complete, and ask other family members whether there is anything on the laptop they need. Our free checklist ends with a "before you dispose of an old device" step.
3. Sign out and deauthorise
- Sign out of your Microsoft, Apple and Google accounts.
- Turn off Find My (Mac) or Find My Device (Windows) so the buyer is not locked out.
- Sign out of WhatsApp Web, email apps, cloud apps, banking sites and streaming services.
- Deauthorise paid software such as Office, Adobe and music or video services.
- Remove the laptop from the list of devices in your online accounts.
4. Erase it properly
Emptying the Recycle Bin is not enough, and neither is deleting your user account. Use the built-in reset:
- Windows: Settings, then System, then Recovery, then Reset this PC. Choose to remove everything and, if offered, to clean the drive.
- Mac: Use Erase All Content and Settings on newer Macs, or restart into Recovery and use Disk Utility on older ones, then reinstall macOS.
The process can take a while. Keep the laptop plugged in and let it finish. After the reset, the laptop should start up as if new, asking for initial setup. If it does not, ask someone knowledgeable.
Do not reset until your copy has been checked. It cannot be undone.
5. Think about the drive itself
If the laptop held very sensitive material, such as financial records or confidential work, you may want extra safety. Options include fitting a new, inexpensive drive for the buyer and keeping the old one, or having the drive securely erased by a professional. Many people keep the old drive; it is small and easy to store.
6. Handle the sale sensibly
- Do not give out account passwords to the buyer, or let them "test" the laptop while signed in to your accounts.
- Meet in a safe public place, or at a shop.
- Take photos of the laptop and its serial number before handing it over, and keep the invoice or a note of the sale.
- Be cautious about payment methods you do not recognise. Confirm that the money has arrived in your account before you hand over the laptop.
- Remove stickers, labels and any notes with passwords.
If the laptop will not turn on
You can still sell or recycle it, but be careful. The data may still be on the drive, even if the laptop is dead. Remove the drive and keep it, or have it checked before you let go. If it makes clicking noises, switch it off and read our guide on clicking hard drives.
If the laptop was used by someone who has passed away
Please do not rush. It may contain things your family will want to keep, and it may be needed to access accounts. Keep it safe for now.
If you would rather not do it yourself
If you have several devices, or you are not sure what is on the laptop, we can help. Try the risk assessment or contact us. We can copy your data safely to a destination of your choice, and you decide what happens to the laptop afterwards.