Condition Grades Decoded: Like New, Very Good, Good, Acceptable
OpenBoxFox Team
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Every open-box and refurbished listing carries a condition grade, and the grade — not the word "used" or "refurbished" — is what tells you what you'll receive. Grades describe cosmetic state and completeness: the top tiers are usually indistinguishable from new, the bottom tiers are honest about scuffs. Here's how to read every major grading system, side by side.
Why grades matter more than labels
Retailers are required to disclose that an item isn't new, so everything gets filed under broad labels like "Used" or "Refurbished." The useful information is one level down. Across the roughly 870,000 in-stock US listings OpenBoxFox tracks (July 2026), the distribution looks like this:
- Amazon Warehouse open-box ("Used" + a grade): ~254,000 Like New, ~163,000 Very Good, ~10,000 Good, ~36,000 Acceptable (plus ungraded listings).
- Certified refurbished (Reebelo and others): ~12,000 Very Good, ~3,500 Brand New (sealed excess stock), ~2,600 Like New, ~1,800 Good.
Amazon Warehouse grades, decoded
| Grade | What Amazon promises | What to expect in practice |
|---|---|---|
| Used – Like New | Perfect working order; all accessories and instructions; packaging may be damaged or generic | Usually a never-used return. The safest open-box buy. Full breakdown here. |
| Used – Very Good | Works perfectly; limited light cosmetic wear; may have small blemishes; accessories may be repackaged | Light shelf or handling wear you'll stop noticing in a week. Often the best value-per-dollar grade. |
| Used – Good | Works perfectly; visible cosmetic wear; possible markings or minor accessories missing | Expect scratches you can see. Fine for tools and garage gear; think twice for gifts. |
| Used – Acceptable | Works; clear cosmetic damage; may be missing non-essential parts (e.g. manual, secondary cable) | The deep-discount tier. Verify which parts are missing before relying on it. |
Two things all four grades share: Amazon inspected the item, and Amazon's 30-day return window applies. The grade prices in the cosmetics; the return policy covers the functionality risk.
Refurbished grades (Reebelo, Amazon Renewed, and friends)
Refurbished marketplaces grade on cosmetics too, but every unit has also been tested — that's the difference from open-box. Common tiers, best to base:
| Grade | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Brand New / Sealed | Unopened excess or overstock sold through the refurb channel | Effectively a new item at a used price; grab these when the price is right. |
| Premium / Excellent / Like New | Fully tested, minimal to no visible wear | On phones this usually also means the highest battery-health floor. |
| Very Good | Fully tested, light scratches invisible at arm's length | The volume tier — about 12,000 live listings on OpenBoxFox right now, averaging ~$500. |
| Good | Fully tested, visible wear | Deepest refurb discounts; screens and bodies show use. |
Amazon Renewed uses "Premium / Excellent / Good" and adds a minimum 80% battery health requirement plus a 90-day guarantee — more on that in open box vs refurbished vs renewed.
How to choose a grade (a simple rule)
- Buying a gift, or something you'll look at every day (TV, watch, kitchen counter gear): Like New / Excellent only.
- Buying for function (tools, cables, car parts, appliances that live in a cabinet): Very Good or Good — the cosmetic discount is free money.
- Buying Acceptable/Fair: only when the listing is explicit about what's missing and the discount clears ~40%. Check our open-box safety guide for the full checklist.
- Anything with a battery: prefer a refurbished grade (tested) over the equivalent open-box grade (inspected only).
Frequently asked questions
Are condition grades standardized across retailers?
No. "Very Good" at Amazon and "Very Good" at a refurb marketplace are graded by different processes — the refurb one was electronically tested, the Warehouse one visually inspected. Read each retailer's grade definitions once; they're short.
Which grade is the best deal?
Statistically, the middle tiers. Like New carries a premium for the "basically new" promise; Acceptable is cheap but variable. "Very Good" usually lands within a few percent of the lower grades' discount with far less cosmetic risk.
Can a graded item be defective?
Rarely, but yes — grading catches most issues, not all. That's why the return window matters more than the grade: test everything within the first week.
Grade counts from the OpenBoxFox live database, July 2026 snapshot (in-stock US listings). OpenBoxFox earns affiliate commissions on some outbound links — see our affiliate disclosure.