Buyer's Guide to Repairability: 5 Things to Check Before You Buy

Most people spend more time picking a phone case than checking whether their new phone can actually be repaired. That's a mistake that can cost hundreds of euros.

In the EU, the average consumer replaces their smartphone every 2.5 years, often because a cracked screen or dead battery made repair feel too complicated or expensive. For appliances, it's worse: a €600 washing machine gets scrapped because a €30 pump seal failed and no one could find the part.

Repairability is now a property you can research before you buy, just like battery life or camera specs. Here are the five signals that actually predict whether something will be fixable when it breaks.

1. Check the RepairScore

RepairScore aggregates repairability data from EU EPREL, iFixit teardown reports, community repair databases, and parts availability into a single score from 0 to 100. Anything above 70 is Good, meaning it's designed with repair in mind. Anything below 40 is Poor, likely glued shut, with proprietary parts and no repair documentation.

2. Is It Covered by the EU Right to Repair Directive?

From July 31, 2026, the EU Right to Repair Directive requires manufacturers of covered products to make spare parts available for 5–10 years, provide free repair documentation, and avoid software locks that prevent third-party repair. This is binding law, not a marketing claim.

Currently covered categories include washing machines, dishwashers, refrigerators, televisions, vacuum cleaners, and smartphones. Tablets and laptops are being phased in from 2027.

3. Check Parts Availability

A RepairScore and legal rights only matter if the parts actually exist when you need them. Before you buy, check three things:

• Does the manufacturer run an official parts store? (Fairphone, Framework, Miele do. Most brands don't.)
• Are parts available on iFixit, eBay, and EU repair marketplaces? Search for 'brand + model + battery' or 'brand + model + screen' and see what comes up.
• What's the price of common repairs? A €300 screen replacement on a €400 phone means repair is never economical. A €40 screen on the same phone changes everything.

For appliances, the critical part is whether the manufacturer belongs to the Spare Parts Alliance or lists parts by model number with EAN codes. If you can't find parts for a specific model, assume you won't be able to repair it.

4. Look Up the iFixit Repairability Score

iFixit has been tearing down consumer electronics for 20 years and publishing detailed repairability scores (1–10) with photo documentation of exactly what's difficult or impossible to repair. Their scores are a direct input into RepairScore's algorithm.

Key things iFixit checks: use of standard vs. proprietary screws, whether the battery is accessible without destroying the device, adhesive vs. screwed components, and whether cables and flex ribbons are routed so other repairs don't require full disassembly.

5. Calculate the Total Cost of Ownership

The purchase price is only part of the story. A truly useful comparison accounts for what happens when something breaks.

A Framework laptop costs more upfront than a budget ultrabook, but modular design means you can replace the battery, keyboard, and RAM yourself. Over 10 years, the total cost is lower, and you generate less e-waste.

Bonus: Brands That Earn Your Trust on Repairability

Some brands have made repairability a genuine product differentiator rather than an afterthought:

• Fairphone (smartphones), modular design, 10-year software support, official spare parts at cost
• Framework (laptops), designed entirely around repairability, public repair manuals, marketplace for components
• Miele (appliances), industry-leading parts availability, premium but genuinely built to last 20 years
• Bosch (appliances), extensive parts network, online diagrams, reasonable repair costs
• Lenovo ThinkPad series (laptops), Mil-spec durability, replaceable parts, detailed hardware maintenance manuals

What to Do Right Now

If you're about to buy something new, spend 2 minutes on this checklist:

1. Search the product on RepairScore, look at the overall score and what's dragging it down
2. Check iFixit for a teardown, look for 'excessive adhesive' or 'proprietary screws' warnings
3. Search '[brand] [model] battery replacement price' to sense-check repair economics
4. Check if spare parts are listed on the manufacturer's website
5. Compare to the most repairable alternative in the same category

Five minutes now can mean a product that lasts 8 years instead of 3, and hundreds of euros saved in avoidable replacements.