13 Laptops That Bring Business And Pleasure Wherever You Go

Buying one of the best laptops is a great way to get yourself solid performance in a portable form factor today that will still work well years from now. In 2022, there's more variety than ever, too, from high-powered gaming machines with cutting-edge GPUs to affordable and lightweight designs that are great for school or casual web browsing.

The Acer Swift 3 is an awesome affordable laptop, giving great performance and battery life at an ... [+] approachable price. Acer

This range of options makes it easy to get a laptop that both fits your needs and stays within your budget. Whether you have thousands to spend or a few hundred dollars, one of the best laptops of 2022 will be a great pick for your next upgrade.

Best Laptop Overall

One Of The Best Laptops Ever Made

Amazon Asus ZenBook 13 Buy From Amazon CPU: Intel Core i7-1165G7 | Graphics: Onboard Xe | RAM: 8GB | Storage: 512GB SSD | Display: 13.3-inch 1080p | Battery: up to 13 hours | Weight: 2.45 pounds The Asus ZenBook 13 has been one of the best mid-range laptops for many years, and that's just as true in 2022, where if you have $1,000 to spend, it's the best laptop you can buy. This model sports an Intel 11th-generation processor with impressively-capable Xe integrated graphics for 3D work and light gaming. That's paired with 8GB of RAM and a half terabyte SSD storage. Combine all of that with Thunderbolt 4, Wi-Fi 6, great looks and a battery that will easily last you through a day of work or school, and the Asus ZenBook 13 is an excellent example of just how much laptop you can get for under $1,000.

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Best Affordable Laptop

Eight Cores Of Power For Under $650

Amazon Acer Swift 3 Buy From Amazon CPU: AMD Ryzen 5700U | Graphics: Onboard Vega | RAM: 8GB | Storage: 512GB SSD | Display: 14-inch 1080p | Battery: up to 17 hours | Weight: 2.62 pounds When it comes to budget laptops, you need plenty of memory, plenty of storage, and a capable processor; decent onboard graphics is a nice touch too. The Acer Swift 3 has all of that in spades, combining half a terabyte of fast NVMe SSD storage with the ultra-capable, eight core AMD Ryzen 5700U processor. The 8GB of RAM isn't a lot, but it's more than enough for basic web browsing, some light gaming and photo editing, and general office work. The 8 Vega GPU cores on the CPU are more than enough for playing older games, and indie and esport titles—just don't expect it to handle modern AAA games very well at all. The overall design is light and portable with a relatively sturdy frame, and the screen's anti-glare coating makes it usable outside even on bright days, despite the display itself not being that bright. At 1080p acros 14 inches, though, it still looks crisp and clear, whether you're browsing the web or watching your favorite movies and shows. For well under $700 at its discounted rate, the Acer Swift 3 is by far the best affordable laptop for 2022.

Best Gaming Laptop

Serious Bang For Buck Performance

Best Buy Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 Buy From Best Buy CPU: AMD Ryzen 5900HS | Graphics: Nvidia RTX 3060 mobile | RAM: 16GB | Storage: 1TB SSD | Display: 14-inch 1080p | Battery: up to 10 hours | Weight: 3.74 pounds You can spend thousands on a gaming laptop to get the absolute best hardware, but unless you're trying to game at 4K, you can save a heap of money and enjoy high performance in a much more affordable package. To that end, the best bang for buck gaming laptop in 2022 is the Asus ROG Zephyrus 14. It packs an AMD Ryzen 5900HS with eight cores and support for 16 threads, 16GB of high-speed memory, and the excellent mobile RTX 3060 graphics chip. There is no game in the world that this laptop can't handle at high settings, and with a 144Hz panel, it gives you an advantage in input lag over slower gaming laptops. There are bigger and more powerful gaming laptops out there, but few that offer the same combination of performance, value and build quality as the Zephyrus 14.

Best 4K Laptop

Cutting Edge Components In A Sleek Chassis

Razer Razer Blade 17 Buy From Razer CPU: Intel Core i9-12900H | Graphics: Nvidia RTX 3080 Ti mobile | RAM: 32GB | Storage: 1TB SSD | Display: 17.3-inch 4K | Battery: up to 6 hours | Weight: 6.06 pounds Razer was one of the first gaming laptop manufacturers out the gate with Intel's new line of Alder Lake mobile processors, and it's earned it the coveted fastest gaming laptop category in this roundup. The Razer Blade 17 features every cutting edge component money can buy, from the 14-core Intel Core i9-12900H processor and equally impressive NVIDIA RTX 3080 Ti graphics chip, to the 32GB of DDR5 memory and 144Hz 4K display. This laptop will outperform most desktop PCs by a significant margin, letting you play any game at 4K with all settings turned up to their maximum. It also comes in a sleek and sturdy chassis, with a robust selection of ports, thin bezels and upgradeable NVMe storage to give you plenty of space to store all of your games. Battery life won't last a long time on a laptop this powerful, but there's enough there for a couple of hours if you need to step away from a power socket for a while.

Best MacBook

A Classy, Lightweight, But Powerful MacBook

Amazon Apple MacBook Air M1 Buy From Amazon CPU: Apple M1 | Graphics: Onboard Apple GPU| RAM: 8GB | Storage: 512GB SSD | Display: 13-inch Retina| Battery: up to 18 hours | Weight: 2.8 pounds Apple's M1 processor has turned the MacBook Air into a device that can compete with some of the best Windows laptops out there, as well as nipping at the heels of its bigger brother, the MacBook Pro. Along with its internal upgrade, the MacBook Air M1 also enjoys the upgraded Magic keyboard and stunning battery life that's well into double digit hours no matter what you're doing. The screen is gorgeous as with most Apple devices, and it has excellent emulation support with older applications. As more apps are made to run natively on the M1 too, performance should improve even further.

Best Chromebook

Google's Designs Still Dominate The Field

Best Buy Google Pixelbook Go Buy From Best Buy CPU: Intel Core m3-8100Y | Graphics: Onboard Intel UHD | RAM: 8GB | Storage: 64GB SSD | Display: 13.3-inch 1080p | Battery: up to 12 hours | Weight: 2.3 pounds Google's Pixelbook range has always pushed to redefine what a Chromeook can be, and the Pixelbook Go is one of the greatest successes on that front. It has absolutely stupendous battery life that easily lasts all day on a single charge, and it offers excellent performance considering its size and form-factor. It also features a fantastic keyboard, has a great webcam, and the Chrome OS operating system is better than ever with a wide range of applications from its own app store and the Android platform. It's still not as powerful as some of the best Windows laptops out there, but for a Chromebook, it's something special.

Best Laptop for College

Great Battery Life And Ports Make This A Winner

HP HP Envy 13 Buy From HP CPU: Intel Core i5-1135G7 | Graphics: Onboard Intel Iris Xe | RAM: 16GB | Storage: 256GB SSD | Display: 13.3-inch 1080p | Battery: up to 12 hours | Weight: 2.88 pounds The latest version of HP's long running Envy 13 laptop is the best example yet, fixing many of the issues of its predecessors and updating the hardware to offer excellent performance at a competitive price. It also offers decent build quality, 11-hour-plus battery life, and has a surprisingly bright and attractive display. It's an all-in-one package that has few shortcomings. Along with being fast enough and portable enough to handle all sorts of college workloads, the HP Envy 13 has a robust selection of USB-A and Thunderbolt ports, giving it plenty of potential for attaching external devices for all sorts of tasks.

Best Laptop for Kids

Cheap, Good Looks, And A Robust Design

Amazon Microsoft Surface Go 3 Buy From Amazon CPU: Intel Pentium Gold 4425Y | Graphics: Onboard Intel UHD| RAM: 4GB | Storage: 64GB eMMC | Display: 10.5-inch 1080p | Battery: up to 11 hours | Weight: 1.2 pounds The Surface Go 3 is the latest generation of Microsoft's ultra-portable convertible tablet, that when combined with the comfortable type cover accessory, becomes a capable little laptop. It's compact, lightweight, and has thick bezels for easy handling. It's not the fastest device around, but for its size and for basic web browsing, watching streaming services, and kids educational apps, it has all the power it needs. The 64GB of onboard storage is enough to keep a few movies stored locally, and there's space for interactive apps and games to keep the kids entertained for hours on a device that doesn't cost the world. The Windows 11 install means it has access to the full range of desktop apps, too, for older kids who want a little more from their tablet.

Best 2-in-1 Laptop

A Unique Look And Lightweight Design

HP HP Spectre x36 14 Buy From HP CPU: Intel Core i7-1195G7 | Graphics: Onboard Intel Iris Xe | RAM: 16GB | Storage: 64GB eMMC | Display: 13.5-inch 1080p | Battery: up to 17 hours | Weight: 3.06 pounds HP Spectre x360 laptops have been some of the best laptops you can buy for years now, and the latest version is equally impressive. Combining an Intel 11th-generation Tiger Lake CPU with up to 16GB of RAM and half a terabytes of Optane-enhanced SSD storage, this is a seriously nippy machine. This new 14-inch version enhances the performance of the already-excellent 13-inch counterpart, and expands the screen with a 3,000 x 2,000 (3:2) option that is a joy to use. It has the same fantastic build quality and responsive keyboard that's to be expected from the Spectre x360 line, and its Gem cut corners still standout among a sea of rounded MacBook clones. Battery life is great, and the design is both trim and light enough to work just as well as a tablet as it does a laptop.

Best Business Laptop

Serious Power In A Sturdy Chassis

Amazon Lenovo Thinkpad X1 Carbon Gen 9 Buy From Lenovo CPU: Intel Core i7-1185G7 | Graphics: Onboard Intel Iris Xe | RAM: 16GB | Storage: 1TB SSD | Display: 14-inch 1080p | Battery: up to 17 hours | Weight: 2.49 pounds Lenovo's Thinkpad range are some of the most lauded business laptops of the past two decades, and that continues today with the latest generation Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon 14-inch. It's powered by an 11th-generation Intel Core i7-1185G7 processor, has up to 16GB of RAM and half a terabyte of PCIe SSD storage, all powering a gorgeous 14-inch 4K display. Like other Thinkpads, this model is exceedingly well-built. It's sturdy and robust, but still lightweight at less than 2.5 pounds. Its display is bright and colorful, and it supports Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2 for the latest wireless connection standards. It offers cutting-edge biometric security, with the built-in fingerprint reader and an optional PrivacyGuard display to hide what you're looking at from anyone who might be trying to snoop on your screen.

Best Touch Screen Laptop

Dell XPS 13 9310

Amazon Dell XPS 13 9310 Buy From Amazon CPU: Intel Core i7-1195G7 | Graphics: Onboard Intel Iris Xe | RAM: 16GB | Storage: 512GB SSD | Display: 13.4-inch 1920 x 1200 | Battery: up to 14 hours | Weight: 2.8 pounds The Dell XPS 13 is considered by many to be the best 13-inch laptop money can buy. While there are certain contenders if you want to play games or need something with flagship performance, the XPS 13 is arguably the best all around laptop, and thanks to its touch support, that makes it the best touch screen laptop too. This model features the fastest Intel 11th generation processor, 512GB of SSD storage and 16GB of RAM. Battery life is extensive, rivaling some of the best in the industry, and its onboard GPU makes it even capable of entry-level gaming. The 1080p screen is gorgeous and doesn't drain battery life like the 4K option, and its touchscreen is reactive and nuanced for both finger and stylus inputs.

Best Laptop For Photo And Video Editing

Cutting-Edge Performance With Class-Leading Battery Life

Amazon Apple MacBook Pro 16 M1 Pro Buy From Amazon CPU: Apple M1 Pro | Graphics: Onboard Apple GPU | RAM: 16GB | Storage: 512GB SSD | Display: 16-inch Retina | Battery: up to 21 hours | Weight: 4.7 pounds Apple redefined top-tier MacBook performance with its M1 Pro and M1 Max processors, making its new-generation MacBook Pro laptops some of the fastest devices ever made. The latest MacBook Pro 16 comes with all of that new power and improved efficiency, giving it both excellent performance and extensive battery life — up to 21 hours. Its large screen makes it great for creative work, giving you plenty of space for multiple audio tracks when audio editing and expansive timelines when video editing. If you're editing photos, the retina display with up to 1,600 nits brightness makes the display absolutely gorgeous to use, and with excellent color accuracy, you'll be able to make all your images look as good as you want. There are also heaps of extra ports this generation, so you won't be stuck using an adapter or hub just to plug in your camera and other external devices.

Best Laptop Under $500

A Great CPU And Fast Storage For Cheap

Amazon MSI Modern 14 Buy From Amazon CPU: Intel Core i3-10110U | Graphics: Onboard Intel UHD | RAM: 4GB | Storage: 128GB SSD | Display: 14-inch 1080p | Battery: up to 8 hours | Weight: 2.62 pounds Any Windows laptop under $500 has to cut a few corners, but you can still find a fantastic laptop if you look for it. Take the MSI Modern 14 for instance—it packs Intel's Core i3-10110U dual-core, four-thread processor, 4GB of RAM and 128GB of fast SSD storage. The 14-inch display is bright and clear, and there's a solid selection of ports, including USB-C and MicroSD. Battery life is impressive at this size and price too, reaching close to 10 hours of mixed usage if you keep the screen brightness low. You'll need to turn the keyboard backlight off too, but that's a nice-to-have when working or browsing in the dark.

What Should You Look For In A Laptop?

This depends on what you want to use a laptop for, but there are a number of key considerations that anyone should take into account:

Check reviews and buy something that offers the performance you need. If you're a gamer, make sure it has a reasonably good dedicated graphics chip. If you want to do video editing, make sure it has at least six cores and 16GB of memory, preferably more. Almost everyone should be buying a laptop with SSD storage for fast boot times, and if you want good battery life, make sure your laptop is efficient.

If you use a lot of external devices, make sure that your chosen laptop has enough ports. Don't forget you can expand limited ports with adapters and hubs if you need to, but Thunderbolt and external display outputs like DisplayPort and HDMI aren't available on all laptops by default.

Do you want a 2-in-1 laptop that can work as a tablet too? This can be handy for certain games, creative tasks or for just watching movies. Some come with detachable keyboards, while others rotate the screen round to the back of the keyboard. There are advantages and disadvantages to both.

Does it need to be super portable? If you want to use your laptop on a train, plane or carry it around with you all day at school, you don't want something big, heavy and with poor battery life. Smaller, more efficient devices are much better travel companions and will be lighter on your wallet too.

You probably don't need a 4K screen. While 4K TVs are common, 4K laptops are expensive, drain your battery fast and don't look that much better than 1080p, especially at smaller screen sizes. Pay for it if you want, but know that you'll be making sacrifices elsewhere. Even gamers would be better off with a more modest resolution and a higher refresh rate for a smoother gaming experience.

Make sure it's within your budget. It's tempting to buy the latest and greatest, but it’s always best to buy a laptop that can do what you want it to rather than spending as much as you can.

Which Brand Of Laptop Is The Most Reliable?

Most modern laptops from brands like Lenovo, Dell, Apple and HP are reliable, especially if you opt for the more expensive models. However, there are some brands that have reliability and longevity as part of their brand image born of a pedigree of strong, long-lasting laptops in their catalog of options.

Lenovo's Thinkpad range of professionally-targeted laptops are particularly lauded for their build quality, lengthy battery life and durability. They aren't the best looking laptops in the world and don't always have absolutely cutting edge hardware, but they are serious work machines with a durable chassis and excellent build quality.

Apple's MacBooks—particularly the new-generation MacBook Pro M1 models—offer a combination of fantastic build quality, lengthy battery life and amazing performance. That will mean they continue to offer a responsive computing experience with decent battery life years from now. Dell's XPS model laptops are also very reliable, with excellent build quality and battery life, though HP's Spectre range are also worth considering for that style of laptop.

What Is The Best Laptop For Home?

As with laptops for work, the best laptop for home is the one that meets your needs the most. If you're looking for a work machine for school or a home office, you could opt for something affordable like the HP Envy 13. It's a great all-round laptop with decent performance, long battery life and solid build quality, making it a great laptop for all sorts of home use.

If you're an Apple fan, Apple's MacBook Air M1 and MacBook Pro 16 are great alternatives, offering better build quality and greater performance, at a higher cost. If you want to use Apple's suite of MacOS apps, they're a great way to get fantastic mobile performance with extensive battery life.

If you want a gaming laptop, or at least a laptop that can game when it's not being used for something more productive, the range of Razer Blade laptops are king. They come in a variety of different sizes and cater to all sorts of budgets, with options for cutting edge hardware for the greatest performance at every size.

If you're planning to use this laptop exclusively at home, though, do consider a capable desktop too. You might be tied down to a specific location, but it can mean better performance for your money, and the option of easily upgrading it down the line.

Which Laptops Last The Longest?

If you want to buy a laptop that will last a long time, then you want a laptop with a big battery that won't degrade as quickly as smaller alternatives; powerful hardware that will still feel fast in the years to come, and excellent build quality so the odd knock or drop won't lead to it breaking.

Lenovo's Thinkpad range of professional laptops can typically last a long time thanks to their durability, though more capable hardware may be preferable if you want fast performance years from now. Apple's latest MacBook Pro 16 laptops offer fantastic performance that should remain relevant for a good number of years, too, and battery life should remain extensive for some time.

Gaming laptops will almost always be superseded by what comes after, but if you buy a top spec machine today, like the high-end Razer Blade 17, it should remain competitive with all but the best gaming laptops for the next few years at least.

Arguably the most important factor in keeping your laptop lasting for years to come is taking care of it. Make sure it is regularly updated with the latest software and drivers, that you don't leave the laptop plugged in at 100% charge, or let it drain to completely o% either. Try not to drop it, or bang it, and consider a laptop carry case or sleeve to help protect it during transit.

Which Laptops Have The Best Battery Life?

More and more laptops are starting to extend their battery life into the 20+ hour mark, making it a little harder to pick a laptop based on battery life alone as there is a lot more competition. Still, there are some that rise above the pack.

Most of Apple's new M1 MacBooks offer 20+ hours battery life, with the 2020 MacBook Air M1 offering some of the best battery life of any laptop available today. Alternatively, Windows users can find up to 17 hours of battery life in the Acer Swift 3, or in Microsoft's excellent Surface Laptop 4. There are also some Dell Latitude laptops which can get close to those numbers if you keep the screen brightness down, too.

All laptops with long battery life tend to have a mixture of a lower resolution (typically 1080p display), a focus on efficiency over performance (so more modest, but recent-generation, components), and use onboard rather than discrete graphics. You can further extend battery life by keeping screen brightness low and turning off keyboard backlighting, or additional connectivity options like Bluetooth or a cellular connection.

The laptops with the best battery life may offer around 15-20 hours, though the more common battery life in premium laptops is around 10-12 hours. More affordable laptops will offer more like eight hours, and gaming laptops can be anywhere from 2-5 hours at best.