Getting started
Universal Grading Protocol
An open standard for describing the condition of a used phone or tablet: one record, six grade names, and a test anyone can repeat.
The six grade names are the same in English and French, so a grade means the same thing on every price sheet, marketplace and invoice.
The six grades
- New2 gradesNew SealedNSFactory-sealed box. Never opened.Check: factory seal intact
- New Open BoxOBNever activated. No wear. Box opened.Check: never set up · zero marks
- Used4 grades, best to worstLike NewALooks new. Nothing you can see at arm's length.PremiumLike New with a flawless screen, battery 90% or more (measured) and all genuine parts (verified).45 cm (18 in): nothing visible
- Very GoodBLight marks on the body you can see but not feel. Screen near perfect.45 cm (18 in): light marksTouch: smooth
- GoodCClear scratches or small dents you can feel on the body. Screen marks invisible when it's on.45 cm (18 in): clearTouch: body felt
- AcceptableDHeavy cosmetic wear: deep scratches, dents, chips. Never cracked.45 cm (18 in): obviousTouch: screen felt
What every grade guarantees7
- Fully functional
- No cracks anywhere
- No triggered liquid indicator
- Battery 80% or more
- No account or management lock
- Data wiped
- Not reported lost or stolen
Every grade means the device is fully functional, has no cracks, holds at least 80% battery health, is unlocked and has been wiped. The name then describes one thing: how the device looks. §11.3
How UGP works
- One record, several views. A device is described once, on eight axes: cosmetic, functional, battery, locks, operator lock, data, parts and kit. Buyers read a grade name, wholesale reads a code, and software reads a core code, all from the same record. §4
- A grade means ready to resell. Only a working, crack-free, unlocked, wiped device with at least 80% battery health gets a grade. Anything else gets a status instead, such as Repair or Encumbered. §11
- Plain words, fixed order. Six names, each with a one-line test at arm's length and a defect table behind it. §11.2
Start here
- Read a UGP grade: what the name, the four-bar meter and the code tell a buyer.
- Grade your first phone: the inspection protocol, surface zones and tolerances, step by step.
- Implement the record: the JSON schema, the golden examples and the core-code decoder.
- Adopt and display: the claim format, the display rules and the badge kit. Free to use.
UGP maps to the CTIA grading scales and the major marketplaces' condition names. It is not any of them. See Crosswalks for each mapping and where UGP is stricter.
Status of v1.0
| Status | Public comment draft, open from October 24 to November 23, 2026. How to comment |
| Covers | The Phone and Tablet profiles. Watch, earbuds, laptop, console and VR profile packs are coming. |
| Licence | Free to grade to, display and implement. The text is under CC BY-ND 4.0; the name and badge policy applies. |
| Cite as | Universal Grading Protocol v1.0 (Device Supply, 2026) |
The tolerance counts behind the four used grades are provisional in this draft and are open for comment with inspection data (§5.5).