Most vintage Polaroid cameras are worth approximately $10-50, and the value comes down to one practical question: can you still buy film for it. The boxy plastic 600 series cameras from the 1980s and 1990s are everywhere and usually sell for $15-50 if they work. The folding SX-70 from 1972, with its chrome and leather finish, is the classic collector camera and sells for $100-300 working, and more after professional refurbishment. Pack film Land Cameras from the 1960s and 1970s range from $10 for a plastic model to a few hundred for the best metal-bodied ones, but film for them is now scarce. The oldest roll film Land Cameras are mostly display pieces because their film has not been made for decades.
Find the model name, check which film it takes, and test whether it actually fires and ejects. Those three facts set the price.
Quick answer
- Common 600 series and OneStep cameras: $10-50, depending on whether they work.
- SX-70 folding cameras: $100-300 working, more refurbished; the SX-70 Sonar slightly more.
- Cameras that use film still in production (SX-70, 600, i-Type) are worth far more than those that do not.
How to check yours, step by step
- Find the model name. Look on the front above or below the lens, on the top of the camera, or on a label on the bottom or inside the film door. Polaroid printed names like "SX-70 Land Camera", "OneStep", "Sun 600", "Spectra" or "Land Camera Automatic 250".
- Work out the film type. Open the film door. A door at the front that drops down to take a flat square pack points to integral film (SX-70, 600 or i-Type). A back that opens like a book to take a rectangular pack points to peel-apart pack film. A camera that opens at the back to take long rolls is a roll film Land Camera.
- Look for the film speed marking. Many 600 cameras say "600" on the front or the door. SX-70 cameras are marked SX-70. Spectra and Image cameras take a wider, rectangular integral film and say so on the body.
- Check the battery compartment. SX-70, 600 and Spectra cameras have no battery of their own; the battery is built into each film pack. Pack film Land Cameras have a battery compartment, usually under a small door on the back or side. Open it and look for green or white corrosion.
- Open and close a folding camera. On an SX-70, check that the camera unfolds and locks, and that the leather is intact and not peeling. Check the bellows, the black accordion between the body and the lens, for holes by shining a light inside in a dark room.
- Test it if you can. With an integral camera, an empty film pack with a working battery (some packs have life left) or a fresh pack is the real test: the shutter fires and the motor pushes out the dark slide. Without film, you can only check the mechanics.
- Inspect the rollers. Inside the film door are two steel rollers that spread the developer. They should be clean, turn smoothly and show no dried chemical crust.
What most Polaroid cameras are worth
| Camera | Film it takes | Typical value |
|---|---|---|
| 600 box cameras (OneStep 600, Sun 600, Impulse, rainbow stripe models) | 600 and i-Type | $10-40 untested, $25-60 working |
| Spectra and Image cameras | Spectra/Image, limited supply | $10-40 |
| Pack film Land Cameras, plastic (Colorpack, Swinger era and similar) | Pack film, scarce | $5-25 |
| Pack film Land Cameras, 100 to 450 series, folding metal bodies | Pack film, scarce | $20-100 |
| Roll film Land Cameras (Model 95, 80, 150 and similar) | Discontinued | $10-50 |
| Polaroid Swinger (1965) | Discontinued roll film | $5-20 |
| Modern OneStep 2, Now and similar | i-Type and 600 | $30-80 used |
| Box of empty Polaroid accessories and flashes | n/a | $5-20 |
The Polaroid cameras that carry real value
| Camera | What to look for | Typical value |
|---|---|---|
| SX-70 folding, chrome and tan or brown leather | Working, leather intact | $100-300 |
| SX-70 folding, professionally refurbished | Cleaned, tested, new leather | $250-500 |
| SX-70 Sonar OneStep, folding with autofocus | Working sonar focus | $150-400 |
| SX-70 Model 2 and Alpha 1 | Working, black or white body | $80-250 |
| 680 and 690 SLR, folding with flash | Take 600 film, working | $150-500 |
| Land Camera 180 and 195 with manual controls | Glass lens, full manual exposure | $200-600 |
| Land Camera 250, 350, 360 and 450, metal body | Rangefinder, glass lens, clean bellows | $50-200 |
| Polaroid 600SE and other professional medium format bodies | With lens and back | $200-700 |
The SX-70 is the anchor. It was Polaroid's flagship when it launched in 1972, it folds flat, it is a true single-lens reflex, and it still takes film made today. Cameras that work in practice rather than only on paper sit at the top of each range.
Why film decides the value
Polaroid went bankrupt in the early 2000s and stopped making instant film in 2008. A group later called The Impossible Project bought one of the last factories and started making integral film again; that operation now sells under the Polaroid name. Current production covers three main formats for older cameras:
SX-70 film. Made for SX-70 cameras, with the lower film speed they are designed for. Any SX-70 can be used today.
600 film. Made for the 600 series, including 680 and 690 SLRs. Photographers also use 600 film in SX-70 cameras with a darkening filter.
i-Type film. The same format as 600 film but without the battery in the pack, for newer Polaroid cameras that have their own battery. It does not power older 600 cameras.
Spectra and Image cameras use a wider film that has been produced only on and off in recent years, so check current availability before paying much. Peel-apart pack film for the Land Camera 100 to 450 series stopped being made in quantity when Fujifilm ended its FP-100C in 2016; small-batch makers produce some, but at high prices. Roll film for the oldest Land Cameras has not been made since the 1990s. That is why a 1950s Model 95, which looks impressive and heavy, is usually worth less than a 1980s plastic 600 camera: one takes pictures today and the other does not.
Some people convert pack film cameras to use other formats or adapt them to digital backs, and the best metal-bodied models with glass lenses keep a following for that reason.
Condition and the battery compartment
Integral cameras. Because the battery is in the film pack, there is no compartment to corrode, which helps SX-70 and 600 cameras survive. The common faults are dirty or damaged rollers, a sticky shutter, a dead motor, tired gears and torn bellows. On an SX-70, peeling or cracked leather and dented chrome lower the price.
Pack film cameras. These were powered by a separate battery, and a forgotten battery left for decades often leaks and corrodes the contacts. Light corrosion can be cleaned; heavy corrosion that has eaten the contacts or wires usually means repair or conversion. Many owners convert them to modern batteries. Also check the bellows, the rangefinder window and the rubber or plastic parts, which become brittle.
Cosmetics. Scratched lenses, cracked plastic and missing parts such as the flash bar socket covers, the eye cup or the film door latch all reduce value. Boxes and manuals add a little, mostly for the SX-70 and the SLR models.
Testing without film
You can do a partial check without spending money on film. On an SX-70, unfold the camera, look through the viewfinder and confirm the image is bright and focuses as you turn the wheel. On integral cameras, the shutter and motor only run with power from a film pack, so an empty pack with a working battery is the cheapest test. On pack film cameras with a working battery, press the shutter and listen. A camera that has not been tested should be priced as untested, which is usually half or less of the working price. Buyers know that many Polaroids sat in closets for thirty years, and they discount anything sold as "powers on, not tested with film". If you plan to sell an SX-70 or an SLR, one pack of film and a short series of test shots, photographed next to the camera, is the most convincing proof you can offer.
Common mistakes
- Assuming old means valuable. Most roll film Land Cameras sell for less than a working 600 camera.
- Pricing an untested camera at the working price.
- Confusing i-Type and 600 film. Older 600 cameras need 600 film because i-Type packs have no battery.
- Ignoring the rollers. Dried developer on the rollers ruins every picture until cleaned.
- Leaving an old battery in a pack film camera, where it will keep corroding the contacts.
- Overlooking the SX-70. A folded chrome and leather camera can look like a cigarette case or a box to someone who has not seen one.
- Trusting old expired film found with the camera. It almost never produces a usable image.
What to photograph
- The front, showing the model name and the lens.
- The film door open, showing the rollers and the film chamber.
- For an SX-70: the camera folded and unfolded, plus the leather surfaces.
- The battery compartment on pack film cameras, open.
- The bellows, lit from inside, on folding models.
- The box, manual and any accessories, if you have them.
If you found the Polaroid with other cameras, see our guide to old film cameras. For other mid-century household equipment, our typewriter and old Nintendo games guides follow the same approach.
When to get it looked at in person
Most Polaroid cameras do not justify paying for an appraisal. The useful in-person route is a camera repair shop or a Polaroid refurbisher, who can test the shutter, motor and electronics and tell you whether the camera works. Basic testing and cleaning typically costs $30-80, and a full SX-70 refurbishment with new leather and a timing adjustment can run $100-250. That makes sense for an SX-70, a Sonar, a 680 or 690, or a Land Camera 180 or 195, because a tested, working example sells for much more than an untested one. For a common 600 box camera, buying one pack of film and shooting it is the cheapest and most honest test. Camera dealers will buy the good models, usually at 40 to 60 percent of what they sell for.