How much e-waste and CO2 does buying a refurbished laptop save compared to new?

Choosing a refurbished laptop instead of a new one avoids the single largest source of a laptop's lifetime carbon output: manufacturing. A new laptop carries an embodied carbon footprint of roughly 312 to 331 kg CO2e, most of it locked in before the device ever ships. By extending the life of an existing unit, you effectively preserve that carbon cost rather than triggering it again. Across 50,000+ devices kept in productive use, Edify has helped preserve an estimated 28,000 to 36,000 tonnes of raw materials and kept 70 to 90 tonnes of hardware out of India's already strained e-waste stream. India generates millions of tonnes of e-waste a year, and laptops are among the harder categories to recycle safely. Buying certified refurbished is one of the most direct individual actions available to cut technology's environmental footprint.