It is a known fact that students need laptops. Whether it’s making notes in class, writing a document, doing calculations on a spreadsheet, or taking a break, watching YouTube videos, or listening to music, a laptop is a fundamental tool that will be used for hours and hours every day.
High school and college students on a tight budget can now get an entry-level laptop with a decent hard drive, graphics card, display, and good battery life for between $200 and $400. That said, with the plethora of really nice laptops on the market, we think it’s worth spending at least a few hundred more to get a machine with long battery life, a substantial hard drive, better performance, and better graphics. This list of the best Affordable Student Laptops – and, well, for students of all levels – is based on our own practical use and benchmark tests. We update it regularly as we review new products.
Read more: If You Want to Buy the Ideal Laptop: Here are the Tips
Note that many of the best Affordable Student Laptops pick cost $500 or more. If you are looking for something cheaper – or if you are interested in an alternative to Microsoft Windows and Apple macOS – we recommend that you take a look at our list of best Affordable Student Laptops. Most are considerably cheaper, and the Chrome operating system is powerful enough to give you the basics you need, such as email, Internet browsing, creating documents, or working with spreadsheets — especially for those who already use Google apps. The average battery life of a Chromebook is excellent. But if you are looking for something that at the same time serves as a gaming laptop, which has a lot of storage or can run heavy programs like video editing software, stay here because there are good options.
The best MacBook for students
Apple MacBook Air (2019)
When it’s on sale for under $1,000 – and you’re constantly finding it that way somewhere – we recommend the Apple MacBook Air 2019 to anyone. After refreshing their most affordable laptop a few times in the past year, the current-generation model It has modern touches — including Apple’s beautiful Retina display, USB Type-C ports, and Touch ID — though its Intel processor is older than you can find on Windows computers at the same price. Either way, with a good combination of design (including the backlit keyboard), performance, and battery life, the Apple MacBook Air remains a favorite for students.
If pricing isn’t a problem, and you’re looking for something with a little more power, you might want to go for the MacBook Pro, especially if you’re going to be doing video editing or using design software.
Best Windows laptop for any use
Dell XPS 13
If you’re committed to the Windows operating system and want a balance of portability, power, and price, it’s hard to find a better laptop than the Dell XPS 13. Dell has made many improvements to this computer and it is difficult to find fault with it. The design and components are second to none, reflected in battery life and performance. It has 6GB of RAM, a 512GB M.2 NVMe PCIe drive, and a 13.3-inch screen for hours and hours of test writing.
The best 2-in-1 Windows for students
Microsoft Surface Pro 7
The Surface Pro remains the bastion of Windows devices that work as a laptop and tablet – even if they are better tablets than laptops. (If you’re looking otherwise, Lenovo’s two-in-one Yoga devices are better laptops than tablets.) In addition to the typically great performance and battery life you can expect, the seventh edition finally comes with a USB-C port. Its super-portable size makes it ideal for students who may be carrying too much. Although the company still sells the Surface Pro without the included Type Cover keyboard and Surface Pen, they’re often cheap, sometimes with one or both accessories.
The best basic gaming laptop
Dell G5 15
The Dell G Series offers a smart balance of build quality, battery life, and performance with plenty of graphics card power for college students looking to play the newest video games when they’re not doing homework. The slim and compact design hides its gaming pedigree and since it’s not the newest thing – it has a ninth-generation Intel Core processor – you can find many offers. Currently, this machine starts at around $850, and we’ve found some pretty powerful setups for sale for around $1,000.
The best convertible Chromebook for students
Lenovo Yoga Chromebook C630
The Chromebook Yoga C630 is a great and affordable student laptop – which doubles as a giant tablet – with an impressive 4K display, solid battery life, and incredible processor performance for everyday work and entertainment tasks. This is the Chromebook version of Lenovo’s excellent C930, one of our all-time favorite two-in-one convertibles (costing a few hundred more). If you are looking for something less expensive, Lenovo also has the smaller and cheaper C340-11 convertible.
The most powerful gaming laptop for the student budget
Asus ROG Zephyrus S
The Zephyrus S is the best choice for student and I also loved its 15.6-inch HD screen size and backlit keyboard. If you are looking for a more serious gaming device, with a good processor, and that falls within the budget of a student, this laptop offers powerful components for what it costs.
