Best laptops 2024: Premium, budget, gaming, 2-in-1s, and more

Picking up a brand new laptop can be a stressful experience. How much storage will I need? Which GPU is the best for my budget? The sight of the alphabet soup model numbers are enough to set your heart racing. If you’re not sure where to begin, don’t worry, you’ve come to the right place. Whether you’re looking for a lightning fast gaming laptop or a lightweight 2-in-1 for office work, we’ve got something for everyone.

Why you should trust us: It’s in our name. PCWorld prides itself on laptop experience and expertise. We’ve been covering PCs since 1983, and we now review more than 70 laptops every year. All of the picks below have been personally tested and vetted by our experts, who’ve applied not only performance benchmarks but rigorous usability standards. We’re also committed to reviewing PC laptops at every price point to help you find a machine that matches your budget.

Looking for sweet discounts? Check out our regularly updated roundup of the best laptop deals available right now.

Updated May 1, 2024: We added the Acer Swift Go 14 as an alternative option to the Dell Inspiron 14 Plus (2024) in our best overall laptop category. Not only is it about $200 cheaper than our top pick, but it also offers good overall performance and long battery life. We’ve also updated our list of recent laptop reviews and added the new “at a glance” list below.

The best laptops at a glance

Dell Inspiron 14 Plus (2024) (Best overall), $999.99 at Dell

Asus Zenbook 14 OLED (Best overall runner-up), $999.99 at Asus

Acer Aspire 3 (Best budget laptop), $329.99 at Acer

Alienware m16 R2 (Best gaming laptop), $1,849.99 at Dell

MacBook Air M3 (Best Mac) $1,649 at Amazon

Lenovo Flex 5i Chromebook Plus (Best Chromebook) $499 at Best Buy

Samsung Galaxy Book4 Ultra (Best content creation laptop) $2,399 at Samsung

Acer TravelMate P6 (Best ultraportable) $1,168 at Amazon

Asus Zenbook 14 Flip OLED (Best 2-in-1) $1,199 at Amazon

The best laptops we’ve tested






Dell Inspiron 14 Plus (2024) – Best overall





















Pros


Strong performance

Exceptional battery life

Wonderful typing experience



Cons


CPU throttles under heavy loads

No user upgrades


















Why we like the Dell Inspiron 14 Plus

The Dell Inspiron 14 Plus is one of the most well-rounded laptops money can buy. It offers strong performance, exceptional battery life, and a vibrant display. The best part is that it costs about $1,000, which is a reasonable price point considering the price to performance ratio. In fact, it performed exceptionally in PCMark 10’s benchmark, according to our review. With a PCMark 10 score of 7,061, it beat out the Acer Swift Go 14, which has similar specs to the Dell, and the more expensive Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon. The Inspiron 14 Plus also lasted an impressive 17 hours on a single charge, which is definitely more than a full workday or school day. You don’t have to worry about finding a wall outlet to charge up.

Who should buy the Dell Inspiron 14 Plus

Anyone looking for a really good, well-rounded laptop. In addition to the impressive performance and battery life, it also has a lovely 14-inch 1400p display. According to our review, “the display is exceedingly well suited to office work and static imagery.” It has a peak brightness level of a stunning 418 nits as well as an anti-glare coating, which means you can use this laptop in different lighting environments. It may not have the prettiest design we’ve ever seen, but its hardware capabilities and astoundingly long battery life make up for the blah aesthetics.

Alternative option: If you’re looking to save about $200, you should definitely consider picking up the Acer Swift Go 14. It offers zippy day-to-day performance, long battery life, and a good typing experience.

Read our full

Dell Inspiron 14 Plus review






Asus Zenbook 14 OLED – Best overall runner-up





















Pros


Robust build quality

Attractive OLED touchscreen

Good CPU and integrated GPU performance

Outstanding battery life



Cons


Blah design

Keyboard isn't memorable

Mediocre connectivity options


















Why we like the Asus Zenbook 14 OLED

The Asus Zenbook 14 OLED wowed us with its zippy CPU performance, phenomenal battery life, and attractive OLED touchscreen display. According to our review, “movies and games look realistic and vibrant” on the 1200p OLED touchscreen, although it can be difficult to use in bright environments due to the reflective surface. It also lasted 16 hours on a single charge, which is absolutely wild! That result really trumps otherwise excellent competitors like the Lenovo Slim 7 14 Gen 9 and the HP Pavilion Plus Laptop 14. As for performance, the Asus Zenbook 14 OLED absolutely crushed the PCMark 10 benchmark with an impressive score of 6,772. That means it’s very fast and responsive during real-world tasks like web browsing, video conferencing, and so on.

Who should buy the Asus Zenbook 14 OLED

Anyone looking for a powerful, affordable laptop with an OLED display! It’s so much more than its OLED screen, though. The build quality is quite good and day-to-day performance is zippy. Plus, you won’t have to go looking for an outlet often thanks to the long battery life. Connectivity options are a bit limited, but that’s not unusual for a laptop in this price range. Overall, it’s a great Windows machine that hits all the right marks.

Read our full

Asus Zenbook 14 OLED review






Acer Aspire 3 – Best budget laptop





















Pros


Reliable performance

1080p display

HD webcam

Solid build



Cons


Speakers sound tinny when playing music

A little heavy










Price When Reviewed:

499,94 €




Best Prices Today:



€474.99 at Topachat€499.94 at LDLC€499.94 at Materiel.Net





Why we like the Acer Aspire 3

The Acer Aspire 3 laptop offers both reliable performance and a rugged build at an imminently affordable price. It’s fast enough for everyday tasks like checking e-mail, watching Netflix, and browsing the web. You’re also getting a full-sized keyboard as well as a 1080p screen. The Aspire 3 also blew the competition out of the water with a Cinebench R15 score of 1,925, beating out the Acer Aspire Vero 14, which has similar hardware. Cinebench is designed to run all of the cores of a laptop’s CPU and determine how well a laptop handles processor-intensive multi-threaded workloads.

Who should buy the Acer Aspire 3

Anyone who’s on a restricted budget! To get more specific, we feel as though the Acer Aspire 3 is a good option for students and remote workers. It’s inexpensive and the HD webcam produces “clean, crisp video” according to our review, which means you’ll always look your best in videoconferencing calls. It also delivers strong performance for the price.

Alternative option: If you absolutely cannot spend $330 for the Acer Aspire 3, then you should check out the Acer Aspire Go 15–it’s about $30 cheaper and has better battery life (12 hours!).

Read our full

Acer Aspire 3 review






Dell Inspiron Plus 16 7630 – Best midrange laptop





















Pros


All-day battery life

Good graphics performance

Reasonable price



Cons


Light on ports

Gets warm under heavy workloads


















Why we like this Dell Inspiron Plus 16

The Dell Inspiron 16 7630 packs a lot of power for the price thanks to the Intel Core i7-13700H CPU and the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 GPU. This machine can handle both day-to-day activity as well as some gaming. The RTX 4060 GPU actually turned in a respectable 3DMark Time Spy result of 8,754. It’s not the most cutting-edge graphics performance we’ve ever seen, but you should be able to play most games on the Medium or High graphics setting. The 1600p display also has a taller 16:10 aspect ratio screen, which is ideal for office work, and the battery lasted over 11 hours on a single charge.

Who should buy the Dell Inspiron Plus 16

The Dell Inspiron Plus 16 7630 is great for professionals, students, or anyone who’s looking for a powerful yet affordable machine. The battery will last you a full work day and then some, and it can pull double duty playing games. Dell laptops often go on sale, so you may be able to score this machine at a steep discount.

Read our full

Dell Inspiron Plus 16 7630 review






MacBook Air (M3) – Best MacBook





















Pros


Excellent battery life

Great combination of price, features, and performance

256GB SSD is now two NAND chips, maintaining performance



Cons


Expensive memory upgrades

Dual external display support requires closed lid


















Why we like the MacBook Air (M3)

The MacBook Air (M3) has a lot to offer for the $1,299 price. In fact, it received high marks across the board thanks to the 8-core CPU (M3) and the 10-core GPU. It’s capable of chewing through office work as well as casual use tasks. While performance is comparable to the MacBook Pro (M3), there is one difference: the fans or lack thereof. The MacBook Air doesn’t have any fans, which results in quieter operation before heavy-duty tasks will likely put more pressure on the chip. That said, battery life is the real star of the show here. The MacBook Air (M3) lasted a whopping 19 hours on a single charge, which is perfect for those with busy schedules.

Who should buy the MacBook Air (M3)

Anyone who prefers MacOS over competing operating systems. Battery life is outstanding and the laptop itself is both slim and light, weighing in at just over three pounds. The 15-inch Liquid Retina (LED) screen might be considered a step-down from the MacBook Pro’s Liquid Retina XDR (mini-LED) display, but that doesn’t mean it’s a poor screen. It still looks fantastic for day-to-day use. The $1,299 price tag is also reasonable for the performance and features you’re getting.

Read our full MacBook Air (M3) review







Lenovo Flex 5i Chromebook Plus – Best Chromebook





















Pros


Snappy day-to-day performance

Versatile 2-in-1 design

Good typing experience



Cons


Stylus not included

Heavier than expected


















Why we like the Lenovo Flex 5i Chromebook Plus

From the convertible design to the beautiful touchscreen, the Lenovo Flex 5i Chromebook Plus has a lot to offer, especially for under $500. The 2-in-1 design allows you to swing the screen around and use the laptop like a tablet, upping the versatility factor. You can also expect snappy day-to-day performance as well as lightning fast boot-up times.

Who should buy the Lenovo Flex 5i Chromebook Plus

If you’re looking to pick up a premium Chromebook for work or personal use, then the Lenovo Flex 5i Chromebook Plus is a fine choice. While the $499 price tag is very much in the high end when it comes to Chromebooks, we feel the overall fit, finish, and firepower make it worth the extra cash.

Read our full

Lenovo Flex 5i Chromebook Plus review






Alienware m16 R2 – Best gaming laptop





















Pros


Solid gaming performance

Rugged build quality

Good battery life



Cons


Display is dimmer than we like


















Why we like the Alienware m16 R2

The Alienware m16 R2 delivers strong graphics performance and good battery life. This specific model comes loaded with an Intel Core Ultra 7 155H CPU and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 GPU, which is nothing to sneeze at. It lasted a respectable 11 hours and fifteen minutes on a single charge and it averaged 144 frames-per-second when running the Shadow of the Tomb Raider benchmark. According to our review, it’s only “four frames-per-second slower than the Razer Blade 16,” which has an RTX 4090 GPU and a price tag of over $3,000.

Who should buy the Alienware m16 R2

Anyone looking for a great gaming laptop. You’re getting strong graphics performance as well as long battery life, which is unusual for a gaming laptop, as most tend to die around the six hour mark. The 16-inch IPS display also has a resolution of 2560×1600 and a refresh rate of 240Hz, so gameplay should be nice and smooth. The picture quality is good, but it’s not an OLED panel. While it may not be the brightest or most color rich display we’ve ever seen, it’s perfectly fine for gaming. Besides, you can always plug into an external monitor if need be.

Alternative option: If you’re looking for a more lightweight option, you should definitely check out the $1,599 Asus ROG Zephyrus G14. It weighs just 3.31 pounds, which means you can easily take it anywhere with you. That said, it didn’t make the cut because of ho-hum battery life. Plus, the Alienware m16 R2’s RTX 4070 GPU is more powerful than the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14’s RTX 4060 GPU.

Read our full

Alienware m16 R2 review






Asus TUF Gaming A16 Advantage Edition – Best budget gaming laptop





















Pros


Impressive all-day battery life

Gorgeous 16:10 display

Rugged chassis



Cons


Keys feel a bit soft

720p webcam leaves little to be desired


















Why we like the Asus TUF Gaming A16

The Asus TUF Gaming A16 Advantage Edition is something of a unicorn and I mean that in the best way possible. This specific machine exhibits strong graphics performance as well as long battery life. Long battery life? A gaming laptop? How preposterous. Well, not anymore! The Asus TUF managed an incredible 11 and a half hours on a single charge. Also, thanks to the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4050 GPU, the laptop achieved 123 frames-per-second in the Rise of the Tomb Raider benchmark. That’s impressive, especially for a sub-$1,000 gaming machine.

Who should buy the Asus TUF Gaming A16

The Asus TUF Gaming A16 Advantage Edition is a good option for those on a tight budget. For under a grand, you’re getting reliable graphics performance, a spacious keyboard, and long battery life. It also works as a good general purpose machine. With a Cinebench R20 score of 589, it should have “no trouble running lightweight apps and programs,” according to our review.

Alternative option: The $1,000 Lenovo LOQ 15 stands as another solid budget option. It’s more than capable of 1080p gaming and the design is very sci-fi inspired. It didn’t nab the top pick because of the poor battery life (not unusual for a gaming laptop) and limited ports, but if you’re looking for more raw GPU horsepower, its RTX 4060 is a step above the RTX 4050 included in the Asus TUF.

Read our full

Asus TUF Gaming A16 Advantage Edition review






Acer Chromebook 516 GE – Best gaming Chromebook





















Pros


Rigid build

Fantastic CPU performance

Plenty of wired and wireless connectivity

High resolution 1600p display



Cons


Disappointing speakers and microphone

Display falls behind in contrast, color vibrancy

Mediocre keyboard and touchpad


















Why we like the Acer Chromebook 516 GE

The Acer Chromebook 516 GE wins a lot of brownie points because it’s a reliable performer thanks to the Intel Core i5-1240P CPU and the 16-inch 1600p display’s fast 120Hz refresh rate. Compared to some Windows laptops, it’s reasonably priced as well. Not only does it fly through everyday tasks with ease, but it’s also a great machine for cloud gaming. As long as you’ve got a stable Internet connection and currently belong to a streaming service (Nvidia GeForce Now, Amazon Luna, etc), you’ll blitz right through most triple-A games. In fact, according to our review, “gameplay felt perfectly smooth” and “Nvidia’s GeForce Now diagnostics panel flagged no problems.”

Who should buy the Acer Chromebook 516 GE

Anyone that wants to give cloud gaming a whirl or just a dependable machine for day-to-day use–the Acer Chromebook 516 GE can pull double duty in that regard. In addition to the smooth cloud gaming performance, it also features a wide array of connectivity options: two USB-C 3.2 Gen 2, one HDMI, one Ethernet (wired connectivity is especially useful for cloud gaming), and one 3.5mm combo audio. Other goodies include a 1080p webcam, a 65 watt-hour battery, and a rugged design.

Read our full