Used Semiconductor Equipment Prices in 2026: What Buyers Actually Pay

Nobody publishes a clean price list for used semiconductor equipment. There's no blue book, no MSRP equivalent, no standardized condition grading. Pricing is opaque by design — sellers have more information than buyers, and that information asymmetry is where margins live.

This guide is the closest thing to a real price reference I can give you. The ranges below come from actual transactions in the secondary market over the past 12–18 months. Not asking prices. Not auction estimates. What tools actually sold for.

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How Used Equipment Pricing Works

Before the numbers, you need to understand the mechanics. A few things drive secondary market pricing:

New tool lead time. When AMAT, Lam, or TEL quotes 18–24 months for new tool delivery, demand for used alternatives spikes. Lead times contracted in 2023–2024 but are creeping back up in some categories. This directly affects secondary prices.

OEM refurbishment programs. Applied Materials, Lam Research, and KLA all run certified refurbishment programs. A tool that went through an OEM refurb carries a premium of 25–50% over a comparable tool that didn't. Sometimes that premium is justified. Sometimes you're paying for a sticker.

Process qualification status. A tool that's been running production wafers and can provide process data is worth more than a tool that's been sitting in a warehouse. The difference can be 20–35% for the same hardware.

Chemistry and contamination history. A CVD chamber that's run tungsten is worth less to someone who needs a clean oxide process than an identical chamber with clean history. Contamination moves prices.

Parts availability. Tools with good OEM parts support hold value. Tools where you're hunting for spare parts on the grey market depreciate.

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The Buy/Sell Spread: What Nobody Talks About

The markup between what brokers pay for equipment and what they sell it for is real and significant. Industry average is 35–60% for most tools. For highly specialized equipment or tools in tight supply, spreads of 80–118% are not unusual.

This is not predatory behavior — it's the cost of finding, transporting, inspecting, warehousing, and selling equipment with no liquidity guarantees. But you should know it exists, because it means the "market price" you see listed is not the price the seller paid.

If you're selling equipment, you'll receive approximately 50–65% of what it will ultimately sell for. If you're buying, you're paying the top of the stack. That's the nature of the secondary market.

The practical implication: if you see a tool listed at $400K, the seller probably paid $180K–$250K. That gives you some room to negotiate, particularly if the tool has been sitting for a while.

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Etch Equipment: $50K–$500K

Etch is one of the most active categories in the secondary market. High transaction volume, broad range of configurations.

Lam Research 2300 Versys (single wafer, 300mm): $180K–$380K depending on configuration and chamber count. The Versys Metal variant (for copper/aluminum) runs at the higher end. Oxide/dielectric variants are more common and slightly cheaper.

AMAT Centura DPS II (single wafer, 200mm/300mm): $150K–$325K for dual-chamber systems in good condition. Single-chamber systems start around $100K.

Lam 2300 Kiyo (atomic layer etch capable): $250K–$450K. Demand has been strong from advanced logic fabs that need ALE capability.

Lam TCP 9600 (200mm, older platform): $50K–$130K. Still in heavy use at 200mm fabs, parts are available, and the process is well understood. Good value for mature node fabs.

TEL Tactras (etch, 300mm): $200K–$350K. Less common than Lam or AMAT in the secondary market, which can make parts sourcing harder.

Plasma-Therm Versaline (R&D / compound semiconductor): $80K–$180K. Strong demand from GaN and SiC fabs.

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CVD Equipment: $100K–$800K

CVD covers a huge range of process types — LPCVD, PECVD, MOCVD, ALD — and prices vary accordingly.

AMAT Producer GT (PECVD, 300mm): $200K–$450K for a dual-chamber system. High demand from fabs doing TEOS, SiN, and low-k dielectrics. Single-chamber systems start around $130K.

AMAT Centura HDP-CVD: $180K–$320K. Used for gap-fill applications. Less common than Producer GT in the secondary market.

Lam ALTUS (W-CVD, 300mm): $250K–$500K. Tungsten plug fill is essential at most fabs, and the ALTUS is the dominant platform. Condition matters a lot here — W contamination is a disqualifier for many buyers.

Tokyo Electron (TEL) Telius (PECVD): $150K–$300K. TEL's answer to the AMAT Producer, solid tool with good uniformity.

ASM Epoch (ALD, 200mm): $100K–$200K. ALD tools are increasingly in demand from compound semiconductor and power device fabs upgrading process capability.

Veeco MOCVD (Lumina or similar, GaN/compound semi): $400K–$800K for a production-qualified system. Tight supply, high demand from GaN RF and power device manufacturers.

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Lithography: $200K–$2M

Litho is where prices get stratospheric. Also where condition matters most — a stepper or scanner that's out of calibration is expensive to bring back into spec.

ASML PAS 5500 (i-line, 200mm): $200K–$500K for a well-maintained system. The 5500 series is the workhorse of the 200mm secondary market. Widely used for mature node production and R&D.

ASML TWINSCAN XT:400 series (DUV, 193nm, 300mm): $600K–$1.2M depending on NA and condition. These are the tools that enabled 65nm–28nm production and they're still in active use at logic and memory fabs.

Nikon NSR-S203B or similar (KrF, 248nm): $300K–$700K. Nikon's installed base is smaller than ASML's, which creates parts sourcing challenges at end of life.

Canon FPA-5000-iZ (i-line): $200K–$400K. Still running 200mm volume production at power device fabs.

ASML NXT:1950i / NXT:1960i (immersion DUV): $1.2M–$2M+ for production-grade systems. Supply is tight because most fabs running these tools aren't selling them.

Track systems (TEL ACT 8/12, AMAT Lithius): $150K–$400K. Often sold alongside steppers/scanners. Don't overlook the track — a good track is required to run litho efficiently.

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Metrology and Inspection: $50K–$400K

Metrology tools hold value well because they're essential across all process generations.

KLA 2135 (CD-SEM, 200mm/300mm): $80K–$200K. The 2135 is one of the most recognized SEMs in the secondary market. Good support from KLA and third-party service providers. Widely used for poly/metal CD measurement.

KLA 2351 (e-beam inspection): $150K–$350K. Used for defect inspection at sub-100nm. Higher demand than supply in many regions.

KLA Surfscan SP3 (unpatterned wafer inspection): $180K–$380K. SP3 is the standard for bare wafer and epitaxial layer defect detection. Used heavily by SiC substrate and epi suppliers.

Therma-Wave OP series / KLA Optiprobe (optical metrology): $50K–$150K. Older but functional for film thickness and implant dose measurement.

AMAT SEMVision (review SEM): $100K–$250K. Pairs with defect inspection tools for defect review and classification.

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Test Equipment: $100K–$600K

Teradyne J750 (IC test, mixed signal): $150K–$350K depending on installed options (analog/digital cards, pin count). The J750 has an enormous installed base and good parts availability. Still running volume test at analog and mixed-signal fabs.

Teradyne UltraFlex (SoC test, 300mm): $300K–$600K for a fully loaded system. Handles digital, RF, and analog test. Common in mobile AP and application processor test.

Advantest T2000 (memory test, DRAM/NAND): $200K–$450K. Tight supply — memory fabs don't sell test equipment often.

Cascade/FormFactor probe stations (manual/semi-auto): $50K–$150K for semi-auto 200mm systems. $120K–$300K for 300mm.

Electroglas 4090 (wafer prober, 200mm): $60K–$130K. Common in power device and analog test lines.

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How to Read These Ranges

The ranges above span a lot of ground. Here's how to think about where a specific tool lands:

Toward the bottom of the range:

• Unknown or poor maintenance history
• No process qualification data
• Significant consumables due for replacement (ESC, process kit)
• Older software version without upgrade path
• Contamination history inconsistent with your process

Toward the top of the range:

• Recent OEM PM or refurbishment
• Process-qualified with data
• Fresh consumables installed
• Clean chemistry history
• Software current with available licenses

Above the range entirely:

• OEM-certified refurbishment with warranty
• Rare configuration in high demand
• Very recent vintage with low hours

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Category Trends in 2026

200mm is busy. The SiC boom for EV power electronics, the resurgence of analog/mixed-signal manufacturing in the US and Europe, and defense electronics spending are driving strong demand for 200mm equipment. Prices in this segment are firmer than they were in 2022–2023.

300mm DUV litho is tight. ASML isn't making more NXT-series scanners (EUV is the priority), and fabs running mature DUV processes aren't selling. This is one of the tightest segments in the secondary market right now.

Test equipment is underpriced. The overall semiconductor test market is soft relative to 2021–2022 peaks. Teradyne and Advantest systems are available at prices that look attractive relative to where they were. If you need test capacity, now is a reasonable time to buy.

CVD/etch is liquid. Lots of transactions, reasonable supply, prices are relatively stable. This is where buyers have the most negotiating power.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Why do listed prices often look different from what tools actually sell for? A: Sellers list at aspirational prices and negotiate down. The gap between list and transaction price is typically 10–25% for motivated sellers. Tools that have been sitting for 90+ days often sell for 20–30% below initial list price. Always make an offer below list.

Q: Is OEM refurbishment worth the premium? A: For complex tools (litho, advanced metrology), the OEM premium is often justified because calibration and software alignment are part of the package. For simpler tools (older etch, CVD), a well-documented independent inspection can substitute. Evaluate based on how much calibration and software risk you're taking on.

Q: How much should I budget for incoming inspection on a used tool? A: Budget $2,000–$8,000 for a third-party incoming inspection, depending on tool complexity. Add $5,000–$15,000 if you want surface analysis (XPS, TXRF) to check for contamination. It's cheap insurance on a $200K–$500K purchase.

Q: Can I negotiate payment terms on used equipment? A: Yes, often. Larger purchases ($300K+) frequently involve milestone payments tied to FAT (factory acceptance test), shipping, and SAT (site acceptance test) rather than full payment upfront. Brokers with established relationships are more likely to offer terms. Get terms in writing before you agree to anything.

Q: How do I know if a price is fair? A: Get two or three quotes for similar equipment. The secondary market has enough brokers that competitive quoting is feasible. If quotes are clustered within 15–20% of each other, you have a reasonable sense of market. If one quote is dramatically lower, find out why before you get excited.

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Pricing shifts with market conditions, and what I've listed here reflects 2026 market realities. If you need a current read on a specific tool or configuration, reach out to Caladan Semi. We track active transactions across categories and can give you a real number, not a range.