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8 Best Laptop For Photo Editing Under $1000 Of 2022

Posted on the 17 January 2022 by Ricky Smith @TheTechLunch

You do not only need proper photo editing skills to get the best outcome. Well, every professional requires a particular device to be able to carry on with the editing work. So, considering the multiple software you can use for the purpose, we have listed the best laptop for photo editing under $1000.

If you wonder whether the money seems enough for a good laptop, the answer is yes. The budget set is more than enough for you to grab a perfect one to be able to edit all the images or photos.

Software such as Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Luminar, etc., need an exceptional processor, a good memory space, a dedicated graphics card, and above all, storage space as well to run smoothly. You might not find all of these in a cheap laptop.

Keeping all in mind, let us look at the best laptops for photo editing under $1000.

Also Read:- 8 Best 17 Inch Laptops Under $1000

Best Laptop For Photo Editing Under $1000 – Top 8 Picks

PreviewProduct DetailsPrice

Lenovo IdeaPad 3Lenovo IdeaPad 3

  • AMD Ryzen 5 5600H
  • 8GB RAM
  • 256GB SSD
  • NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 4GB
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Acer Nitro 5Acer Nitro 5

  • Intel Core i5-10300H
  • 8GB RAM
  • 256GB SSD
  • NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650Ti 4GB
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ASUS TUF F17ASUS TUF F17

  • Intel Core i5-10300H
  • 8GB RAM
  • 512GB SSD
  • NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650Ti 4GB
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Acer Swift XAcer Swift X

  • AMD Ryzen 7 5800U
  • 16GB RAM
  • 512GB SSD
  • NVIDIA RTX 3050Ti 4GB
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Dell Inspiron 13 5310Dell Inspiron 13 5310

  • Intel Core i7-11370H
  • 16GB RAM
  • 512GB SSD
  • NVIDIA GeForce MX450 2GB
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Acer Spin 5Acer Spin 5

  • Intel Core i7-1065G7
  • 16GB RAM
  • 512GB SSD
  • Intel Iris Plus Graphics
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ASUS ZenBook 13ASUS ZenBook 13

  • Intel Core i5-1135G7
  • 8GB RAM
  • 512GB SSD
  • Intel Iris Xe Graphics
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Apple MacBook Air M1Apple MacBook Air M1

  • Apple M1 Chip
  • 8GB RAM
  • 256GB SSD
  • Apple M1 8-Core GPU
Check Price

1. Lenovo IdeaPad 3 – Best Laptop For Photo Editing Under $700

Quick Overview Of Hardware Specifications Lenovo IdeaPad 3 - Best Laptop For Photo Editing Under $1000
  • AMD Ryzen 5 5600H Processor
  • 8GB RAM
  • 256GB SSD
  • ‎‎NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 4GB
  • 15.6 Inch Full HD IPS Display
  • Up to 8 Hours Battery Life
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Lenovo IdeaPad 3 is one of the best budget laptop in the market that you can use for photo editing. Actually, this is a budget centric gaming laptop but also it comes with a good display panel and a high refresh rate. To start with, it features a 15.6 inch IPS display with 1920 x 1080 pixels of full HD resolution and a 120Hz refresh rate.

If you are a gamer then you can understand the importance of refresh rate that it delivers smooth visuals while gaming. Moving on to performance, it is powered by the AMD Ryzen 5 5600H processor along with 6 ultra-responsive cores to execute any intensive tasks. Further, it has a 3.3GHz of base clock speed it can go for max speed up to 4.2GHz to provide the topmost performance.

In terms of storage, it comes packed with 256GB SSD which seems restrictive. Talking about RAM, it is coupled with 8GB DDR4 RAM that runs on 3200MHz of speed. Besides competent CPU and RAM, you also get a commendable 4GB of NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 GPU. Moreover, if your laptop gets hot because of long hours of use then its raised thermal ceiling dissipates 41% more heat and keeps it cool.

As far as battery life is concerned, Lenovo boasts that it can give you around 8-hours of battery backup but we can expect at least 5 to 6 hours of backup which is decent. To connect external devices on this device it comes along with essential connectivity options which include USB type-A, USB type-C, and HDMI.

On a conclude, as per its specs and features it is powerful enough to handle almost all the photo editing tools which include Photoshop, Lightroom, and others.

What We Don’t Like:
  • You can’t install your software through the disk because it doesn’t have CD/DVD drive.
  • SD card reader slot is not provided.
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2. Acer Nitro 5 – Best Affordable Laptop For Photo Editing

Quick Overview Of Hardware Specifications Acer Nitro 5 - Best Laptop For Photo Editing Under $1000
  • Intel Core i5-10300H Processor
  • 8GB RAM
  • 256GB SSD
  • ‎‎NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650Ti 4GB
  • 15.6 Inch Full HD IPS Display
  • Up to 9 Hours Battery Life
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Here is we have Acer Nitro 5 which is also another gaming laptop on this list. This laptop comes to fall under Acer’s most popular Nitro series which is only for gaming. In terms of display, it is equipped with 15.6 inches of full HD display which is an IPS screen that offers color accuracy and good viewing angle.

On top of that, it will give a tear-free and smooth visual experience during gaming through its fast 144Hz refresh rate screen. Further, to drive this laptop it is coupled with an Intel Core i5-10300H CPU and 8GB DDR4 RAM. For storage, Acer has managed to provide 256GB of NVMe SSD drive that helps to quickly boot up the system and open up files.

What I liked the most on this laptop is that it provides an empty slot for future upgrades for memory and storage. Coming to the graphics, it has packed NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Ti with 4GB memory that comes under GDDR6 VRAM. Apart from the hardware, it has a backlit keyboard which has only red color and it is not customizable.

What We Don’t Like:
  • It doesn’t have a CD/DVD drive so you can’t install your software on it.
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Related:- Best Budget Laptops For Photoshop – Top 10 Picks

3. ASUS TUF F17 – Best 17 Inch Laptop For Photo Editing

Quick Overview Of Hardware Specifications ASUS TUF F17 - Best Laptop For Photo Editing Under $1000
  • Intel Core i5-10300H Processor
  • 8GB RAM
  • 512GB SSD
  • ‎‎NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650Ti 4GB
  • 17.3 Inch Full HD IPS Display
  • Up to 3.5 Hours Battery Life
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In recent years, ASUS has gained its popularity in the gaming laptop industry by producing high-quality gaming laptops in mid to high-end budgets. This ASUS TUF F17 is the best laptop for those who love to work on big screen size.

To begin with, it features a whopping 17.3 inches of full HD narrow bezel display with 1920 x 1080 pixels of standard resolution. Regarding performance, it is powered by the Intel Core i5-10300H Quad-core processor which can go as high as 4.5GHz under the intel turbo boost. Additionally, this powerful chip is combined with 8GB RAM and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Ti GPU which has dedicated 4GB VRAM.

In terms of storage, it has got a 512GB high-speed NVMe SSD drive and I am sure that it is sufficient storage space to store all your raw images and editing files. What’s more, memory and storage of this gaming laptop are upgradable which makes it a future proof device. This ASUS laptop comes pre-installed with Windows 10 Home operating system and you will get a free upgrade to Windows 11 out of the box.

Further, it features all the required connectivity options which include USB Type A, USB Type C, HDMI, RJ45/Ethernet, Audio jack, etc. Speaking of its notable features which include its Anti-Dust Cooling system, RGB backlit keyboard, and military standard durable chassis.

What We Don’t Like:
  • The laptop weighs around 6 pounds which is heavy to carry it around with you.
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4. Acer Swift X – Best Laptop For Photo Editing Under $1000

Quick Overview Of Hardware Specifications Acer Swift X - Best Laptop For Photo Editing Under $1000
  • AMD Ryzen 7 5800U Processor
  • 16GB RAM
  • 512GB SSD
  • ‎‎NVIDIA RTX 3050Ti 4GB
  • 14 Inch Full HD IPS Display
  • Up to 12 Hours Battery Life
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In a few years, Acer becomes one of the prominent names in the laptop industry whether it was for traditional laptops, 2 in 1 laptops, or gaming laptops. Due to the amazing display of this Acer Swift X, it is the best laptop for content creators like a photo or video editors.

The most important aspect for content creators is the display and its colors. This acer laptop sports a 14-inch of full HD IPS narrow bezel display which provides an 85.73% screen-to-body ratio and great viewing angles. Along with this, the display produces 100% sRGB color gamut, and 300-nits brightness makes it one of the color-accurate display that offers natural colors.

Under the hood, this laptop is driven by the powerful AMD Ryzen 7 5800U 8-core processor and it uses the latest Zen 3 Core Architecture which is specially built for ultra thin laptops. The memory and storage department of this laptop is handled by the 16GB LPDDR4X RAM and 512GB NVMe SSD. Though, it is sufficient to take care of multitasking and to store all your files.

Coming to the graphics, it has got a commendable NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti GPU with 4GB GDDR6 inbuilt VRAM. It can easily handle almost all the demanding tasks apart from photo editing which includes video editing, 3D rendering, modeling, and other requirements too. As far as battery life is concerned, we have tested few apps on this and we have get to see around 8-hours of battery life.

Apart from this, the build quality of this laptop is durable and it will be your perfect travel partner because it is 0.7-inch thin and weighing only 3.06 pounds. Out of the box, it features fingerprint reader, backlit keyboard, in-built amazon alexa and support Wi-Fi 6.

What We Don’t Like:
  • If you will do intense work for a few hours fan makes noise.
  • Due to its compact size, it doesn’t have a numeric keypad.
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5. Dell Inspiron 13 5310 – Best 13 Inch QHD Laptop For Photo Editing

Quick Overview Of Hardware Specifications Dell Inspiron 13 5310 - Best Laptop For Photo Editing Under $1000
  • Intel Core i7-11370H Processor
  • 16GB RAM
  • 512GB SSD
  • NVIDIA GeForce MX450 2GB
  • 13.3 Inch QHD+ Anti-Glare Display
  • Up to 11 Hours Battery Life
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This newly launched Dell Inspiron 13 5310 is an ideal laptop in a $1000 budget for photo editing because of its QHD display and latest specs. To start with the display, it offers a 13.3-inch of QHD+ panel with 2560 x 1600 pixels resolution and 300-nits brightness that produce highly accurate colors. Along with this, it is an anti-glare screen that is perfect for outdoor work.

Frankly speaking, in this price range, you can’t get a display like this laptop but dell has provided. Apart from its amazing display, it comes along with a powerful config also. It runs on the latest 11th Gen Intel Core i7-11370H quad core processor with 8-threads and it can go for up to 4.8GHz max frequency. Regarding memory, it is equipped with 16GB of LPDDR4X RAM which has 4267MHz speed.

Dell has provided a 512GB SSD with this laptop which has a faster read/write speed than traditional HDD. As far as graphics concerned, it comes with entry-level NVIDIA GeForce MX450 graphics with 2GB video memory but it is good for graphics rendering than integrated graphics. The combined performance of CPU, RAM, and GPU is excellent.

It can easily handle most of the photo editing apps such as Adobe Photoshop, Lightroom, Adobe Illustrator, etc. What’s more, it has ExpressCharge technology that charges a low battery from 0 to 80% around 60 minutes. We can expect at least 7 to 8 hours of battery backup on a full battery charge. Out of the box, it has a few notable features like dual thermal heat pipes, fingerprint reader, and backlit keyboard.

What We Don’t Like:
  • Limited connectivity options and have a single USB type-A port.
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6. Acer Spin 5 – Best 2 In 1 Laptop For Photo Editing

Quick Overview Of Hardware Specifications Acer Spin 5 - Best Laptop For Photo Editing Under $1000
  • Intel Core i7-1065G7 Processor
  • 16GB RAM
  • 512GB SSD
  • Intel Iris Plus Graphics
  • 13.5 Inch 2K IPS Display
  • Up to 15 Hours Battery Life
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This Acer Spin 5 is one of the best 2 in 1 photo editing laptops that you can find under the $1000 price range. Being a 2 in 1 laptop you can convert it as a tablet also, in a single device it can fulfill your both needs so you don’t need to buy a separate tablet. As far as build quality is concern, it is built with magnesium-aluminum alloy which is durable and it saves you from daily wear and tear.

To start with, it sports a 13.5-inch of Acer VertiView 2K display with 2256 x 1504 pixels resolution. This is an IPS screen that offers great viewing angles with crisp and clear colors. Alongside, this screen is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass, which added a perk to this notebook. Overall display quality I can say is excellent.

Regarding performance, it is driven by the Intel Quad Core i7-1065G7 CPU with 8 threads, and using the turbo boost it can be overclocked up to 3.90 GHz. The memory and storage department is managed by the 16GB LPDDR4X RAM and 512GB NVMe SSD which can easily tackle any kind of task easily.

If you are thinking of the GPU of this notebook then it has got an integrated Intel Iris Plus Graphics which is not powerful as a dedicated GPU but still, it can handle photoshop, illustrator, and other photo editing apps. Apart from the specs, worth talking about the features of this 2 in 1 laptop is its Backlit Keyboard, Fingerprint Reader, and Rechargeable Acer Active Stylus out of the box.

What We Don’t Like:
  • The only cons of this laptop is that the power button is placed on the right hand side.
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7. ASUS ZenBook 13 – Best Ultrabook For Photo Editing Under $1000

Quick Overview Of Hardware Specifications ASUS ZenBook Flip 13 - Best Laptop For Photo Editing Under $1000
  • Intel Core i5-1135G7 Processor
  • 8GB RAM
  • 512GB SSD
  • ‎Intel Iris Xe Graphics
  • 13.3 Inch Full HD OLED Display
  • Up to 13 Hours Battery Life
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If you are someone who wants a laptop that can be your perfect travel companion then nothing better option than this ASUS ZenBook 13 ultra slim laptop. This ultrabook weighs ‎2.45 pounds only and it is just 0.55-inch thin also, which makes it a highly portable notebook that you can easily carry around with you.

On the front, it features a 13.3-inch FHD OLED four-way NanoEdge bezel display which offers a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels. Further, this OLED panel supports 100% sRGB DCI-P3 color gamut and 400-nits brightness that produces rich and vivid colors for providing better color accuracy. Frankly speaking, this is an excellent display that you can’t get in 1000 dollars price tag.

The best part about this OLED panel is that it emits 70% less harmful blue light, which is a really very helpful thing because in this work from a home situation we need to sit in front of the screen for long hours. Regarding the internals, it comes packed with an Intel Core i7-1165G7 processor that falls under the intel’s latest 11th generation.

Moreover, this i7 chipset is coupled with 16GB LPDDR4X RAM and a faster 512GB PCIe NVMe SSD. This is a perfect combination of CPU, RAM, and storage that is capable enough and it will never disappoint you about the performance. Out of the box, its touchpad also works as a numeric keypad which is called ASUS NumberPad 2.0 which is useful if you have a habit or often use numeric keypad.

What’s more, it has a fast-charging feature that can restore the battery from 0 to 60% in around 49 minutes. And on a full battery charge, it can provide you around 13-hours of battery life but it may vary on the usage also.

What We Don’t Like:
  • It has got only a single USB type-A port.
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8. Apple MacBook Air M1 – Best MacBook For Photo Editing Under $1000

Quick Overview Of Hardware Specifications Apple MacBook Air M1 - Best Laptop For Photo Editing Under $1000
  • Apple M1 8-core Processor
  • 8GB RAM
  • 256GB SSD
  • ‎Apple M1 7-core GPU
  • 13.3 Inch Retina Display
  • Up to 18 Hours Battery Life
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I have added this MacBook Air M1, especially for apple lovers and professinals. And also it is one of the best options for photo/video editing because of its high quality display and powerful specs. To start with its gorgeous display, it has a 13.3-inch of retina display with 2560 x 1600 pixels of resolution, which offers a new level of color details and realism.

Alongside, it also has true tone technology that optimizes the color temperature and makes it comfortable to work on outdoor as well as indoor. Moving on hardware configurations, this macbook air runs on the M1 chip with 8-core and it is developed by apple itself. This is one of the most powerful chip which is available in the market right now.

It is accommodating with 8GB of unified memory that helps to provide speedy and responsive performance. On the storage part, it comes with 256GB faster SSD which seems less as compared to the other laptops but it will provide you better performance than other windows laptops. The only downside of this MacBook is that its memory and storage are not upgradable. So, if 256GB storage is not sufficient for you then you can go with its 512GB variant.

Moreover, it has an integrated 7-core GPU which is 5x faster than the other graphics and it can easily handle graphics-intensive tasks such photo or video editing, streaming online, 3D apps, etc. In terms of battery life, this macbook air can lasts for up to 18-hours, this is one of the long-lasting battery backup in this entire list.

What We Don’t Like:
  • Have only two Thunderbolt port.
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Things To Consider Before Buying A Laptop For Photo Editing Under $1000

1. Display

The first feature to look into before buying a laptop for photo editing is surely Display. Having a larger display of at least 15 inches or more works best for all your editing purposes. The reason is that the software you will use will have more space to cover and spread on the screen and visually make it easier to work on.

Similarly, always choose to go with the best resolution you can get in this budget as you cannot afford to lose the finest of detail on the images you are editing.

2. Processor/CPU

Next up, we need to look into powerful processors. Anything below an i5 processor might not be the best way to go from here. Also, a 10th gen i5 or i7 processor is something we are looking to work on.

Whether it is photo or video editing, you need as much core power as you can get to make sure all the apps or software get enough room to work on smoothly. Furthermore, the more cores you have the better it will work in a longer period of time.

3. RAM

In terms of RAM, you can easily get a laptop with at least 8GB capacity or 16GB might just do wonders. We all are aware of how editing software works and the space they need to function smoothly. Having a good memory in the system ensures that the process remains responsive even while you are working on multiple apps at the same time.

Moreover, photo and even video editing are a lot more than simply using the software. You might have multiple tabs to work at the same time, and working on them requires you a good capacity RAM and it might work even better if they can be upgraded.

4. Grahics Card

Lastly, in our list here, we have a Graphics Card. Generally, you need a good or even decent GPU in your system to run some of the best high-end games to play on. Not just this, some 3D rendering software also require the best graphics card for a good performance overall.

In terms of photo editing, you can simply choose to go with a decent option here since anything out of the ordinary simply adds to the cost that might go beyond the $1000 budget we have set up here.


Frequently Asked Questions

1. Do I need a powerful Laptop for Photo Editing?

When we say a powerful laptop, do we mean a good processor, RAM, Display, and excellent graphics? Well, for photo editing, you might need all of the above but in the most decent fashion.
Yes, you do need a powerful laptop that can easily run software such as Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Luminar, etc., with utmost ease. Only in terms of graphics, you can simply choose to go with something pretty basic and not anything over the top.

2. How much RAM do you need for Photoshop and Lightroom?

The answer to this has multiple layers. It entirely depends on the purpose of using such software. For any basic editing low-resolution images, you can even go with say 4GB RAM with Photoshop and Lightroom.
But if we have to recommend for the smoothest performance ever, it is always best to go with 16GB if that is what you can afford or else 8GB works alright too.


Final Verdict

Here we are with the list of the best laptop for photo editing under $1000. All the options mentioned in the list are appropriately reviewed and made sure they fit your budget. All you have to do is go through each of the options and learn more about it before picking one out for yourself.

Furthermore, if you are still unable to make the right decision, you can let us know in the comment section below, and we will get back to you.


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