Are you heading off to college? Starting a new semester soon? It's probably about time you upgraded your laptop or computer. But glancing at some of the best laptop deals will show you there are many options out there.
What should you be looking for if there's something specific you want to do, like taking notes with a stylus, researching on the internet, or even a little gaming on the side? What about streaming some movies or shows with friends in your dorm? Don't worry. That's precisely what we're going to review in this guide. We'll cover all of the best laptops for college for the 2024 school year.
Best laptop
Apple MacBook Air M2
- Incredibly thin
- Upgraded webcam and speakers
- Shockingly good performance
- Battery life stomps the competition
- Screen and keyboard are world-class
- Worryingly hot internal temperatures
- Still only supports one monitor
| Specification: | |
| CPU / GPU | M2 |
| RAM | 16GB, 24GB |
| Storage | 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, 2TB |
| Display | 13.6-inch 2560-by-1664 IPS |
| Dimensions | 11.97 inches x 8.46 inches x 0.44 inches, 2.7 pounds |
The MacBook Air is the best Apple laptops for students. It's insanely thin, has a great display, and it gets the best battery life of any thin-and-light machine. The 13.6-inch Retina display is very good, and its Magic Keyboard and Force Touch haptic touchpad are among the best on a laptop today.
While the M2 chipset is a generation behind, and the M4 is coming in 2025, it still provides plenty of performance for the tasks most students will be performing. And the 18 hours of battery life mean a student can take notes during the day, finish their assignments in the evening, and still have power left over for the next day. For $999, you won't find a better laptop.
Best Windows laptop
Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x
- Solid build and attractive aesthetic
- Quite thin
- Efficient performance and battery life
- Spectacular OLED display
- Attractive pricing
- Graphics performance is disappointing
- So-so mechanical touchpad
| Specification: | |
| CPU / GPU | Snapdragon X Elite / Adreno |
| RAM | 16GB, 32GB |
| Storage | 512GB, 1TB |
| Display | 14.5-inch 3K (2944 x 1184) OLED |
| Dimensions | 12.79 inches x 8.86 inches x 0.51 inches, 2.82 pounds |
College students need fast performance and good battery life, and for Windows laptops today, that means Qualcomm's Snapdragon X is the right chipset. Laptops built around that platform run Windows on Arm, but there are far fewer compatibility concerns today than in the past. And the Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x is one of the best options available.
It's a well-built and an attractive machine, and it offers plenty of speed and multi-day battery life. For $1,200, you get 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD, which is plenty, but you also get an awesome 14.5-inch 3K OLED display that's great for those after-hour binge sessions. It's not the least-expensive laptop you can buy, but for the money, it might be the best value.
Best tablet or 2-in-1
Microsoft Surface Pro 11
- Gorgeous OLED screen
- Keyboard now works disconnected
- Upgradable storage
- Excellent trackpad and keyboard
- Spectacular webcam
- Great performance and battery life
- Not a great tablet without the keyboard
- Lacks a headphone jack
| Specification: | |
| CPU / GPU | Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus or Elite / Adreno |
| RAM | 16GB, 32GB |
| Storage | 256GB, 512GB, 1TB |
| Display | 13.0-inch 2.8K (2880 x 1920) IPS or OLED |
| Dimensions | 11.3 inches x 8.2 inches x 0.37 inches, 1.97 pounds |
If you're looking for a tablet or a 2-in-1 that can work as a "real" computer, then the Microsoft Surface Pro 11 is the best choice. Once again, it's not the least-expensive option starting at $999, but it's still within range for a student looking for a good long-term investment.
You'll get the ability to write and draw on the display with an active pen featuring haptic feedback for a more realistic feel, in a tablet format that's thin and light enough to hold in one hand. Plus, the Qualcomm Snapdragon X chipset provides great battery life to get you through a full day of classes, along with great performance. The 13-inch 2.8K IPS display is more than good enough, but there's an OLED option that's spectacular.
Best budget laptop
Asus Zenbook 14 OLED
- Excellent value
- Competent productivity performance
- Great battery life
- Comfortable keyboard and NumberPad 2.0 touchpad
- Solid build and attractive aesthetic
- Outstanding OLED display
- Creative performance is lacking
| Specification: | |
| CPU / GPU | AMD Ryzen 5 7530U, AMD Ryzen 7 7730U |
| RAM | 8GB, 16GB |
| Storage | 256GB, 512GB |
| Display | 14.0-inch 2.8K OLED |
| Dimensions | 12.34 inches x 8.68 inches x 0.67 inches, 3.06 pounds |
Not every college student has a lot to spend on a laptop, so the others on our list might be out of reach. That's what makes the Asus Zenbook 14 OLED so attractive. It starts at just $545 with an AMD Ryzen 5 chipset that's more than fast enough and offers up good battery life.
But that's not all. In addition to great performance, you also get a 14-inch 2.8K OLED display that's better than many displays on laptops costing more than twice as much. The build quality is great, the keyboard and touchpad are very good, and there really aren't any significant compromises.
Best gaming laptop
Acer Chromebook Plus 516 GE
- Very good 16-inch display
- Surprisingly good audio
- RGB keyboard lighting
- Fast enough performance
- Very affordable
- Plastic build quality
- Keyboard isn't the best
| Specification: | |
| CPU / GPU | Intel Core 5 120U / Intel Graphics |
| RAM | 8GB |
| Storage | 256GB |
| Display | 16.0-inch QHD+ (2560 x 1600) IPS |
| Dimensions | 14.04 inches x 9.83 inches x 0.84 inches, 3.81 pounds |
College students like to game, and there's nothing wrong with that as long as all the studying is done. But they don't always have money to spend on a dedicating gaming machine. That's where the Acer Chromebook Plus 516 GE comes in.
To begin with, it runs Chrome OS, which is a great option for school — especially for connecting to many college systems. It's a great option for getting work done with minimal RAM and storage requirements. The Chromebook Plus leverages a fast-enough chipset to run Nvidia's Geforce Now gaming platform on the surprisingly good 16-inch QHD+ display.
Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x
Frequently Asked Questions
As a college student, likely on a tight budget, the compromises you're willing to make for a great PC will always be different from those of someone with money to burn who wants the best. That doesn't necessarily mean you don't want the best possible for your price range, but there are factors to consider that are more important than others.
You have a budget, and you need to stick to it. We don't blame you. That's why we prioritized laptops from all affordable but capable brands, especially compared to more expensive counterparts. Aside from our gaming choice, which was selected for power above all, everything else on this list should be accessible.
From studying in a library for long hours to hanging out in a friend's dorm, you'll probably opt for laptops with reliable battery life. Again, aside from our gaming pick, everything else on this list has excellent battery life to offer and should get you through most of your day, even without a quick charge.
Even at a budget price, there's no reason why you shouldn't have a Full HD resolution display in this day and age. Every laptop we selected has at least that or better.
