Used Leica Total Station Guide: TS02, TS06 and TS09 Prices in 2026, and What to Check Before You Buy

The short answer

A used Leica TS02 is a $2,400 to $3,200 instrument on eBay US right now, and a used TS06 Plus is asking $6,400 to $7,350 but has been selling for less. On 6 October 2026 there were five TS02s and three TS06s listed by US sellers, no TS09s, and no used TS03 or TS07. The two TS06 Plus units that sold in August went for $4,295 and $6,250 as accepted offers, so the asking prices are the start of a negotiation, not the number.

• Layout, stakeout and prism work on a budget: a TS02 5" or 7". The $2,399 7" with a case and the $2,995 R400 with a case are the two to look at first. Two TS02s sold in September at $2,750 and $2,995.
• Boundary and topo work with reflectorless shots: a TS06 Plus 3" or 5" R500. Offer in the $4,300 to $5,500 range that recent sales support, not the $6,400 to $7,350 that sellers are asking.
• Control or anything needing 1" or 2": the one TS06 2" on the market is asking $13,534, which is more than a new TS07. Wait, or look at a used TS07 or TS10 instead.

Every price here is a dated sample, not a quote. The method is in how our price reports work, and the wider bands for every brand are in the used total station price guide.

TS02, TS06 and TS09: how Leica split the family

Leica launched the FlexLine series on 1 October 2008 as three pre-configured levels of the same body. The TS02 was the cost option with a standard keyboard and Bluetooth as an add-on. The TS06 was the middle, with reflectorless measurement and a single alphanumeric keyboard included. The TS09 came fully loaded: two alphanumeric keyboards, USB, Bluetooth, reflectorless, and options for 1" angle accuracy and long-range reflectorless. Leica refreshed the line with "Power" versions around 2011 and "plus" versions in 2013, then replaced all three with the TS03, TS07 and TS10 in October 2018.

The body, telescope and compensator are shared. What changed between levels is the options fitted, and that is what you are paying for second-hand.

Three things are the same across all of them and worth knowing. The telescope is 30x with 3" resolving power. The compensator is Leica's quadruple-axis type, with a setting accuracy from 0.5" on the 1" and 2" grades to 2" on the 7" grade. Prism-mode EDM accuracy on the Plus models is 1.5 mm + 2 ppm, and reflectorless is 2 mm + 2 ppm out to 500 m, then 4 mm + 2 ppm beyond. A 2013 TS06 Plus 5" measures as well as a 2018 TS07 5"; what the TS07 adds is AutoHeight, a newer interface and WLAN.

What they cost used vs new

Two readings from that table. First, the TS02 market is honest: four of the five listings sit in a $2,400 to $3,220 band, September sales landed inside it, and the $5,900 outlier is a dealer with a one-month warranty and 29 watchers who have not bought it. Second, the TS06 Plus asking prices are out of step with what has sold. A used current-generation TS07 went for $4,500 in September. A TS06 Plus is a 2013 design with the same EDM and no AutoHeight, and the two August buyers paid at most $6,250 and $4,295. Use those as ceilings.

Outside the US the same instrument costs less. A UK hire fleet was selling TS06 Plus 5" units with a one-year calibration certificate for £3,995 on 28 September, which is about the August US sold level with a certificate thrown in. Shipping a 5 kg instrument across the Atlantic and the import paperwork eat some of that gap, but not all of it.

Which one to buy, by job

Construction layout, stakeout, as-builts with a prism. A TS02 5" does this all day. The 7" is fine for grading and rough layout and is $600 cheaper today. Without the Communication side cover you move data by cable, and without the alphanumeric keyboard, coding is slow. Check which keyboard the listing shows before you assume.

Boundary, topo and anything with hard-to-reach shots. You want reflectorless, which on the TS02 was an option and on the TS06 came standard. A TS06 Plus 5" R500 is the sweet spot. The 3" costs about the same used, so take it if offered. The R1000 option only matters if you routinely shoot facades or stockpiles past 500 m.

Control, monitoring, precise setting out. A TS09 2" or a TS06 2" is what you want and neither is really available used in the US this month. Rather than pay $13,534 for the one 2" TS06, set an eBay alert and look at a used TS07 or TS10 while you wait.

If you need one person to run it, none of these is the answer. They are manual instruments. The case for paying more for a robot is in robotic vs manual total station. And if you only need angles, theodolite vs total station explains when a cheaper instrument is enough.

What to check on a used Leica FlexLine

Ask the seller for these before you pay, in this order. A seller with a working instrument can answer every one in ten minutes.

1. The adjustment values. Tools, then Adjust, then View Adjustment Data shows the stored Hz collimation, V-index and tilting axis corrections. Ask for a photo of that screen. The manual says to re-run Check & Adjust before first use, before precise work, after rough transport and after long storage, so a seller who has never seen the screen has not maintained the instrument. Large values are not fatal, since the instrument corrects for them, but they tell you how it has been treated.
2. Run Check & Adjust yourself on arrival. The procedure is guided on the instrument and needs a target about 100 m away for collimation and a high target for the tilting axis, measured in both faces. If the instrument reports "Results out of tolerance, previous values retained", it needs a service centre.
3. The compensator. Level the instrument and watch the electronic level screen settle. A compensator that drifts, sticks, or reports out of range on a stable tripod is the one fault you cannot fix in the field. The FAQ's advice to switch the compensator off on unstable ground is for vibration, not for a bad compensator.
4. A reflectorless shot and a prism shot. Have the seller measure a wall at 50 to 100 m in non-prism mode and a prism at the same range, and send the screen. Compare the two distances; they should agree to a few millimetres. This also confirms the EDM actually has the reflectorless option the listing claims, and whether it is R400, R500 or R1000.
5. The System Info screen. Tools, then System Info, lists the instrument type, angle grade, EDM type, firmware version and licence keys. Match it to the listing. Leica built a downgrade function that lets a dealer turn a TS09 into a TS06 or TS02 for demonstration, so the label on the housing is not proof of what the firmware is set to.
6. Licence keys and the software tier. The included applications on a Plus are Survey, Stake Out, station setup including resection, Area, DTM Volume, Tie Distance, Remote Height, Hidden Point, Reference Line, Reference Arc, Reference Plane, Road 2D and COGO. Road 3D and Traverse are paid extras with licence keys. Keys are tied to the serial number and entered through Tools, then Lic.Key, and deleting from that screen wipes every key at once. Ask for the key file or the delivery papers. Note that on a TS02 Reference Arc is a 15-use trial that disappears from the menu until a key is entered.
7. PIN lock and mySecurity. If PIN protection is on, the instrument asks for a PIN at every start. Five wrong entries and it demands the PUK code from the delivery papers. Leica's mySecurity service can also disable a reported-stolen instrument. Have the seller boot it on video with no PIN prompt, or hand over the PIN and PUK, and treat a seller who cannot do either as a seller to walk away from.
8. Keyboard and display. Press every key with the backlight on, and ask for a daylight photo of the display. A TS02 replacement display is a $256 part from China before labour. Confirm the keyboard is the one you need: numeric or alphanumeric, one side or two.
9. The Communication side cover. This is the cover with the USB stick compartment, the USB ports and the Bluetooth antenna. Without it a FlexLine has no USB and no Bluetooth, and on a TS02 it was an option. Plug in a USB stick and export a job. Any stick works; the instrument just warns that it is not a Leica stick.
10. Battery and charger. FlexLine runs on the GEB211 or the higher-capacity GEB221, both 7.4 V lithium-ion, with the GKL211 charger. A used GEB221 is $125 on eBay today. Leica's own rating is about 20 hours per charge with a measurement every 30 seconds at 25 °C, less as the pack ages, so ask how long it runs. Note that the 2018 TS03 and TS07 moved to the GEB334, so those packs do not fit.
11. Optics, plummet and levels. Look through the telescope for haze or fungus, run the focus from 1.7 m to infinity, and check the laser plummet by rotating the instrument through 180° on the tribrach: the dot should stay inside 1.5 mm at 1.5 m. The circular level and the plummet are the two mechanical adjustments a user can make; everything else is electronic.
12. The small parts. The battery door is a $75 part that breaks when the instrument is dropped in its case with the door open. Tangent screws and clamps should turn without play. Ask for the tribrach, the case, the USB stick and the manual, because a listing that says "instrument only" costs another $200 to $400 to make whole.

Calibration certificates are the last question. A seller with a current certificate from a Leica service centre has done your work for you. A seller without one is normal, and the instrument may still be fine; what "out of cal" does and does not mean is in what "out of cal" actually means.

Should you buy a new TS03 or TS07 instead?

Leica's current manual line is the TS03, TS07 and TS10, launched in October 2018 to replace the TS02, TS06, TS09 and the Viva TS11. The TS03 is the prism-and-reflectorless workhorse, the TS07 adds AutoHeight, which measures the instrument height with a laser so you stop typing it in wrong, plus WLAN and Bluetooth and a newer interface, and the TS10 adds a colour touchscreen and runs Captivate. All three use the GEB334 battery and a different data port position, so FlexLine accessories only partly carry over.

At list, a TS03 5" R500 is $9,345 and a TS07 5" R500 is $11,695. Dealers discount, but not to used money. A used TS02 at $3,000 buys the same angle accuracy and nearly the same EDM for a third of the TS03. The cases for new are a warranty, a software maintenance contract, which on FlexLine only came with 90 days from new and then lapsed, and AutoHeight if your crews make instrument-height mistakes. The case for a used TS07 is strong if you can find one: the only September sale was $4,500, which is less than sellers are asking for a TS06 Plus.

Price a used TS06 Plus against that $4,500 and the August accepted offers, not against the TS07's $11,695 list. The sold figures for 17 models are in the October 2026 used total station price report.

FAQ

Is a Leica TS06 still worth buying in 2026?

Yes, at the right price. A TS06 Plus has the same 30x telescope, the same quadruple-axis compensator and the same 1.5 mm + 2 ppm prism EDM as the TS07 that replaced it. What it lacks is AutoHeight, WLAN and software updates. Pay $4,300 to $5,500 for a clean 3" or 5" R500 and it will outlast your need for it. Pay $7,349 and you have spent more than a used TS07 sold for in September.

What is the difference between a Leica TS02 and TS06?

The TS06 includes reflectorless measurement, an alphanumeric keyboard, an electronic guide light, USB and Bluetooth on the Plus, and four times the point memory. The TS02 has those as options or not at all, and its angle grades stop at 3". The body, telescope and compensator are the same. If every shot is to a prism, the TS02 does the job for about half the money.

Is the TS06 Plus different from the original TS06?

The Plus arrived in 2013 with R500 reflectorless as standard instead of R400, 1.5 mm + 2 ppm prism accuracy, USB ports and Bluetooth built in, and FlexField plus software. The original TS06 from 2008 has R400 and the earlier FlexField. Both are listed as "TS06" on eBay, so check the System Info screen and the EDM type before you assume.

How much does a used Leica total station cost?

On eBay US on 6 October 2026, TS02s were asking $2,399 to $3,220 with one dealer outlier at $5,900, and TS06 Plus units were asking $6,395 to $7,349. Recent sales were lower: TS02s at $2,750 and $2,995 in September, and TS06 Plus units at accepted offers under $4,295 and $6,250 in August. Robotic Leicas such as the TS12, TS15 and TS16 start around $10,000 and run past $24,000.

Do licence keys and software updates transfer with a used FlexLine?

Licence keys are tied to the instrument's serial number and stay with it, so the applications on the System Info screen are what you get. Ask for the key file so you can re-enter them if they are ever deleted. Firmware updates need a software maintenance contract, which on FlexLine came with 90 days from new, so a used instrument will almost always be on whatever firmware it last had. Leica no longer sells the series, so plan on running it as it is.