We pick the best student laptops for different needs and budgets, from value options to creative powerhouses.
(Image credit: Apple / ASUS / HP)
The best student laptops will provide everything you need to get through your course, keep up with project deadlines and help you prepare for tests. Whether you’re pursuing a subject that requires a lot of computing power, such as 3D animation or editing video, or you just need to write essays, do research and keep up with emails, it’s an investment that’ll pay for itself many times over.
Right now, our top pick is the MacBook Air (M2) 2022, which offers speed and power without incurring the sky-high price tag of the latest M3 models. But if you don’t need a very powerful laptop, we’ve also listed some alternatives. Either way, don’t forget to make the most out of student perks like Apple student discounts and Samsung student discounts.
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Best budget laptop for students
1. Acer Swift 3
The best budget laptop for students
Specifications
CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 5700U 1.80GHzGraphics: AMD Radeon GraphicsRAM: 16GBScreen: 14in IPS LEDStorage: 1TB
Reasons to buy
+Lightweight
+Nice and bright screen
+Comfortable typing experience
Reasons to avoid
-Underpowered
-Graphically limited
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What you need to know: The Acer Swift 3 is our pick as the best budget laptop for students right now. It’s not the latest laptop, in that it isn’t stuffed to bursting with largely unasked-for AI features and more computing power than you need. However, it is a capable laptop for the majority of tasks that students are likely to throw at it.
Design and build: Built with an aluminum body in classic silver, the laptop features a traditional 16:9 display with slightly thicker bezels than premium models. At just 1.19kg, it’s highly portable. The keyboard offers good resistance with white backlighting, and the device includes thoughtful features like a fingerprint reader and Kensington lock slot. Port selection includes USB-C with DisplayPort support, two USB-A ports, and HDMI.
Display: The 14-inch Full HD IPS screen is good without being exceptional, though gamers may be put off by the 60Hz refresh rate. In our tests, it delivered 320 nits brightness and respectable color accuracy (100% sRGB, 76% AdobeRGB, 76% P3). While not suitable for professional color work, it’s more than adequate for general use and basic photo editing.
Performance: This laptop did come in a little under-par in our benchmark tests, and so it’s not going to be anyone’s laptop of choice for intensive 3D modelling. However, for general design work it’s more than fine – our reviewer did various Photoshop tasks on it without any problems.
Buy it if
✅ You need a reliable everyday laptop:Perfect for students and office work with good battery life.
✅ Portability is a priority:Weighing just 1.19kg, it’s ideal for carrying between classes.
Don’t buy it if:
❌ You need graphics power:The integrated graphics make it unsuitable for 3D work or gaming.
❌ You’re a creative professional:Limited colour accuracy and processing power may frustrate serious creators.
The bottom line
🔎The Acer Swift 3is affordable, reliable and basically capable. For all but those with the most intense needs, it’s realistically going to be more than adequate, and it comes at a tempting price point for students. ★★★½
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Best student laptop for creatives
02. Asus Vivobook Pro 15 OLED
The best laptop for students on creative courses
Specifications
CPU: 14th Gen Intel Core Ultra 7 155HGraphics: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPURAM: 16GBScreen: 15-inch 2880×1620 OLED, 120Hz, 617 nits peak brightnessStorage: 1TB SSD
Reasons to buy
+Fantastic screen
+Serious power
+Great ergonomics
Reasons to avoid
-No touchscreen
-Speakers aren’t the best
What you need to know:As a photography student, this is the laptop that I owned while studying for my Master’s. I highly recommend it for students as an excellent choice for multitasking as it offers a great balance between professional and personal use. For example, I used it for essay writing, photo editing, online lectures and Teams meetings, plus it could handle light gaming sessions in the evening.
Design and build:The laptop maintains the sleek and minimal metallic-lid design of its predecessor, coming in Earl Grey and “Cool Silver” color options. It weighs 1.8 kg and retains a slim profile, making it portable without compromising power. The keyboard is ergonomic, with a numpad that feels slightly cramped but still manageable. Port options are excellent, including Thunderbolt 4, HDMI, USB-C, USB-A, an SD card reader, and more, ensuring connectivity for a range of devices.
Display:The 15-inch, 3K OLED display is a highlight, reaching a peak brightness of 617 nits in our tests, exceeding ASUS’s own brightness claims. With 120Hz refresh rate, 100% DCI-P3 coverage, Pantone certification, and near-infinite contrast ratio, the screen is excellent for creatives working with color-sensitive projects. However, the lack of touch capability could be a drawback for some.
Performance:Powered by Intel’s 14th-gen Core Ultra processor and a GeForce RTX 4060 GPU, the Vivobook Pro 15 OLED performs excellently in both creative tasks and gaming. I love that it has enough processing power to run any creative software, including 3D modelling slicers as the image above demonstrates, as well asAdobe’s suite of Creative Cloud apps. I loved the small design features like the built-in privacy shutter, fingerprint reader, and backlit keyboard for late-night essays.
Buy it if
✅You do either creative work or gaming:It’s ideal for 3D work, video editing, and graphic-intensive games.
✅You need strong connectivity: Thunderbolt 4, HDMI and more make this a solid travel-friendly workhorse.
Don’t buy it if:
❌You need a touchscreen:This laptop’s display isn’t touch-sensitive.
❌You want a compact device:At 1.8 kg, it’s portable but not as light as some ultraportable options.
The bottom line
🔎ASUS Vivobook Pro 15 OLED (2024)is a compelling choice for creative professionals and gamers who need powerful specs, excellent screen quality, and the ability to switch between work and play seamlessly. ★★★★½
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The best student laptop overall
03. MacBook Air (M2, 2022)
The best MacBook for students overall
Specifications
CPU: Apple M2 chip with 8‑core CPUGraphics: 8- to 10-core GPURAM: 8GB – 16GB unified memoryScreen: 13.6-inch Liquid Retina displayStorage: 256GB – 2TB SSD
Reasons to buy
+Powerful performance with M2 chip
+Excellent battery life
+Beautiful new design
Reasons to avoid
-Replaced by the Air M3 model
-Gets hot when under pressure
What you need to know:We think the M2MacBook Airis perfect for students looking for a balance between price and performance. For the price, it offers exceptional value with a great processor, larger screen (13.6-inch) and lighter build than itsMacBook Prosibling.
Design and build:The Air abandons the classic wedge shape for a modern, uniform design that’s super-thin at 11mm and light at 2.7 pounds. Available in Space Gray, Silver, Starlight and Midnight Blue, it features MagSafe charging, two Thunderbolt ports, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. The design is particularly impressive as it houses a large display in a small footprint.
Display:The 13.6-inch Liquid Retina display offers a 2,560 x 1,664 resolution with 500 nits brightness, supporting one billion colours. The screen is both larger and brighter than its predecessor, with slimmer bezels that incorporate a notch for the 1080p FaceTime camera.
Performance:It might not have an M3 chip, but we doubt you’ll need one. To be honest we only recommend models with an M3 processor to creative pros who will really notice and benefit from the difference in power and performance. In our tests, we found this laptop can perform well enough to handle most students’ needs, no problem. While it lacks fans, which can lead to thermal throttling during intensive tasks, it handles creative applications likePhotoshopand 4K video editing with ease. Battery life is exceptional too, lasting over 16 hours in video playback tests.
Buy it if
✅ You need a powerful yet portable laptop:The M2 performance and ultra-thin design makes it perfect for creative work.
✅ You value display quality:The larger, brighter screen with thin bezels makes it ideal for visual creative work.
Don’t buy it if:
❌ You’re on a tight budget:It’s certainly not the cheapest laptop on the market.
❌ You need sustained performance:The lack of active cooling means performance throttling on intensive tasks.
The bottom line
🔎MacBook Air M2 2022has a gorgeous design, superb battery life, and large, brighter display, making it a compelling choice for students with a healthy budget. ★★★★½
The best Chromebook for students
04. Acer Chromebook Spin 514
The best Chromebook for students
Specifications
CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3500U processor quad-core 3.7 GHzGraphics: AMD Radeon Graphics shared memoryRAM: 8 GBScreen: 14in Full HD (1920 x 1080) 16:9 TouchscreenStorage: 128GB eMMC
Reasons to buy
+Fast and reliable performance
+Large 14-inch FHD touchscreen
+Sturdy aluminium frame
Reasons to avoid
-Flash memory rather than SSD
What you need to know:If you’re a student on a tighter budget, or you only need a laptop for simpler tasks such as taking notes and writing essays, aChromebookmay be all you need. These excellent value stripped-back laptops run ChromeOS, which means you won’t be able to use some of the desktop software that you would use on a Windows or Mac computer; however, there is now a wide range of apps available for ChromeOS.
Design and build:Built with a brushed aluminum chassis, the device feels solid and durable. The keyboard offers slightly raised keys, which should be comfortable enough for those writing essays for university, and the solid metal chassis and sturdy hinges make this a reassuringly solid option for lugging around in a bag. There are plenty of ports on this laptop too for those who need to connect peripherals.
Display:Our reviewer found the 14-inch Full HD IPS touchscreen to be a standout feature of the Spin 514, offering 1920 x 1080 resolution with a 16:9 aspect ratio. It delivers vibrant colours, crisp whites and ultra-narrow side bezels, making it suitable for both productivity and entertainment. The screen’s size allows for comfortable multitasking with multiple apps and tabs. It could even please student artists, who can make use of the tablet mode function, although it is a little heavy to hold.
Performance:We tested the quad-core AMD Ryzen 5 configuration and found that it could easily handle all the tasks that ChromeOS is capable of. It achieved impressive benchmark scores, with Kraken showing 887 milliseconds, making it one of the faster Chromebooks we’ve tested. Battery life extended to nearly 10 hours of continuous video streaming. It’s not suitable, however, for demanding creative applications or AAA gaming.
Buy it if
✅ You need a versatile 2-in-1:The robust build quality and flexible design make it perfect for laptop and tablet use.
✅ You want a premium ChromeOS experience:It has a large, high-quality display and offers solid performance.
Don’t buy it if:
❌ You need professional creative apps:A Chromebook won’t run full Windows or Mac software.
❌ You want a light tablet:At 1.5kg, it’s a bit heavy for extended use in tablet mode.
The bottom line
🔎Acer Chromebook Spin 514offers excellent value for those seeking a premium ChromeOS experience. With its quality build, vibrant display and reliable performance, it’s a compelling choice for students. ★★★★
Best lightweight laptop for students
05. ASUS Zenbook S 13 OLED
The best lightweight laptop for students
Specifications
CPU: Intel Core i7-1355U (10 cores, 12 threads)Graphics: Intel Iris Xe GraphicsRAM: 8-32GBScreen: 13.3in, 2.8K (2880×1800) OLED, 16:10 aspect ratioStorage: 512GB-1TB SSD
Reasons to buy
+Extremely light and portable
+Fantastic screen
+Good for photo-editing
Reasons to avoid
-Only integrated graphics
What you need to know:One of the smallest and lightest laptops we’ve ever tested, the ASUS Zenbook S 13 OLED is a dream for any students who like to travel light. It also packs in plenty of power and performance.
Design and build:The Zenbook S 13 OLED’ is a marvel of compact engineering, featuring a sustainable chassis made from post-industrial recycled aluminum and magnesium alloys, with keycaps from recycled plastics. At only 1.09 cm thick, it’s designed for those who want a high-quality laptop in a tiny, portable package. Despite its light weight, the laptop feels solid and durable.
Display:ASUS likes to make claims about producing the best OLED screens on the laptop market, but honestly, use the Zenbook S 13 OLED for a spell and you’ll be hard-pressed to disagree. It’s incredibly bright and beautifully sharp, with 100% DCI-P3 colour coverage and a Pantone Validated certification.
Performance:Power-wise, the Zenbook acquits itself well. For 2D design tasks in programs like Photoshop and Krita, we found it to be perfectly smooth and responsive. You’ll get a little fan noise, but nothing anti-social. With moving images though, you start to feel the limits of the integrated GPU, meaning video editors and animators will probably be better off with something else. Plus there’s the impressive battery life, clocking in over 13 hours during our video streaming tests.
Buy it if
✅You want a small, light laptop:This ultraportable is a great choice for commuting and travel.
✅You’re seeking a gorgeous screen: This display is one of our top favourites.
Don’t buy it if:
❌You need a ton of graphics power:It’s a bit too limited for video editing and 3D work.
❌You want a lot of ports:There aren’t many, so you may need to connect a dock.
The bottom line
🔎ASUS Zenbook S 13 OLEDis an excellent option for those prioritising portability. Its lightweight design and beautiful screen make it an appealing choice for students looking for an ultraportable. ★★★★½
Best 2-in-1 laptop for students
06. HP Spectre x360 14 (2024)
The best 2-in-1 laptop for students
Specifications
CPU: Intel Core Ultra 7 155HGraphics: Intel Arc integratedRAM: 32GBScreen: 14-inch HDR OLEDStorage: 2TB SSD
Reasons to buy
+Great OLED touchscreen
+Comes with a stylus
+Excellent design
Reasons to avoid
-A little heavy
-Noticeable fan noise
What you need to know:A lot of students opt for 2-in-1 laptops for college and university as an alternative to using both a laptop and a separate tablet for drawing and note organising. If you enjoy using a touchscreen or require a touchscreen for your course, then a 2-in-1 laptop is usually a more affordable option (and very classy too).
Design and build:The device features a robust design that’s a great choice for student, as it’s super sleek and weighs just 1.44kg, making it portable enough for travelling around campus. The 2-in-1 design is super-flexible and it has a strong hinge so you can feel confident that it will fold smoothly, plus ou can also use it in tent mode for watching movies hands-free. The port selection includes two Thunderbolt 4 ports and a slim-design USB-A port.
Display:The 14-inch HDR OLED touchscreen is a a standout feature of this laptop, offering a resolution of 2880 x 1800, a 120Hz refresh rate, 100% P3 color coverage and i Gorilla Glass. The display quality delivers the deep blacks and vibrant colours characteristic of OLED technology, and you also get a magnetic stylus for digital artwork or note-taking.
Performance:With powerful components, our reviewer found this laptop handled productivity tasks with ease. The only thing that really lets it down was the Intel Arc integrated graphics cores, which could prove problematic down the line, as it has the potential to slow down graphics-heavy tasks. With that said, our reviewer found that it responded very well to Photoshop software, and didn’t tax the GPU too much at all. Battery life extends to approximately 8.5 hours under typical work conditions.
Buy it if
✅You prioritise display quality: The touchscreen is a standout feature, offering a resolution of 2880 x 1800.
✅ You want the latest AI features: This comes with Intel Core Ultra processors that boast AI capabilities.
Don’t buy it if:
❌ You like silence: We found the fan a little noisy.
❌ You need a discrete GPU: This doesn’t have one, isn’t the best choice for gaming or graphics-heavy tasks.
The bottom line
🔎HP Spectre x360is a good choice if you’re looking for a 2-in-1 device with AI smarts. More generally, you’ll be getting an excellent laptop for productivity tasks, creative work and watching content. ★★★★½
Best powerful laptop for students
07. MacBook Pro 16 (M3 Pro, 2023)
The most powerful student laptop
Specifications
CPU: Apple M1 Pro / M1 MaxGraphics: Integrated 14-core or 16-core GPU with M1 Pro / M1 Max chipRAM: 8GB – 64GBScreen: 13.3in, 2,560 x 1,600Storage: 512GB – 8TB
Reasons to buy
+Top-of-the-line Apple hardware
+Great battery life
+Can run iOS apps
Reasons to avoid
-No USB-A port
-Exceedingly expensive for many student budgets
What you need to know:The MacBook Pro 16 isn’t just one of the best laptops for students right but one of the best laptops period. As such, it comes with a pretty hefty price tag, and it’s a lot more than almost any student needs. That said, power uses on courses in 3D animation, video editing and other graphically demanding disciplines will without doubt appreciate the power and efficiency on offer here.
Design:The Pro is sleek and streamlined, just like you’d expect fromApple, and the overall design is little different from its predecssor. In terms of connectivity, you get two USB-C ports on the left, a single USB-C, an HDMI and an SDXC card slot on the right. The base level M3 are USB-C 4 while the Max supports Thunderbolt 4.
Display:The Liquid Retina XDR display is one of the best things about this laptop. It’s big and bright, with a peak brightness of 1,600 nits if working in HDR (compared to 1,000 otherwise). Our tests found the colour accuracy was extraordinary, with a 116.70% sRGB color gamut. And the 16-inch screen gives you plenty of space to work on.
Performance:Running benchmarks using Blender, we concluded that the Pro 16 is a viable replacement for a desktop machine in many scenarios. It feels smooth and fluid, interactive rendering runs with ease and high polygon and model count scenes showed no signs of slowdown and when video editing – even 8K or multicam timelines are responsive. Blackmagic Design DaVinci Resolve and Fusion projects feel super smooth. While many rival workstation laptops often sacrifice battery life in exchange for power, in our own tests we worked for 10 hours inCinema 4Dbefore the power indicator turned red. And the laptop never got uncomfortably hot.
Buy it if
✅ You have a heavy workflow:If your work uses a monster amount of apps and 3D or motion work, the M3 Pro and Max power does the job with zero lag.
✅ You want a glorious screen:See your work in crystal clear definition, and at a peak brightness of 1,600 nits for HDR work.
✅You want the latest Apple chips:The M3 Pro/Max means you won’t have to upgrade for a good while.
Don’t buy it if:
❌ Your apps aren’t optimised for Apple:Some 3D and CAD-based apps aren’t available for macOS. This won’t bother most graphic designers, but it’s something to be aware of.
❌ You don’t need top-spec power:For graphic design alone, this laptop may be overkill for many people.
❌Price is an issue:The newest, most powerful MacBook comes at a high price. There are more affordable options.
The bottom line
🔎MacBook Pro M3 Procan’t be beaten if you’re a professional. It will handle any graphic design task with ease, no matter the assets or apps (even if there is 3D crossover). The screen is excellent, and the battery lasts all day. ★★★★½
How to choose the best student laptop
Choosing the best student laptop will depend on your needs and budget. Naturally, different students will have very different requirements for a laptop depending on what they’re studying. Many will not need massive amounts of power, while those studying subjects such as video production and 3D design will have greater needs.
Students of creative subjects are likely to need at least 16GB of RAM and possibly a laptop with a dedicated GPU. They’ll likely also have greater demands for the display of their laptop, requiring a good colour gamut for visual work. Other students can better prioritise value and portability.
We’ve considered these different needs when selecting the options to include in our guide above. In our experience, there are three major factors to consider:
Portability:If you’re ferrying your laptop to lectures, seminars and the library for all-night cram sessions, you don’t want it to be giving you back problems. A laptop that doesn’t weigh too much and can easily fit into a standard backpack or shoulder bag should definitely be a priority for a student.
Battery life:The last thing you want is your laptop running out of power at a critical moment, and if your laptop can’t get you through the day, it’s probably not going to be hugely useful to you as a student.
Affordability:Of course, everyone is looking for value with any purchase they make, particularly tech, but for many students, affordability is a more important factor than it is for working professionals who still need a solid laptop. Thus, getting as much computing power on the dollar as possible is paramount.
FAQs
How much computing power do I need for a student laptop?
Different laptops offer varying levels of computing power, and different students will have different needs in this area. If your area of study doesn’t require the use of demanding creative software for things like video editing or 3D rendering and you’ll be using your laptop mainly for online research, writing essays or programming, you don’t need a lot of power.
In this case, one of the Chromebooks or 2-in-1 hybrid laptops on our list with RAM in the 4GB to 8GB range should serve you just fine, still providing enough memory to handle entertainment needs outside of study time .
However, you may be studying a course that requires more intensive processing power, in which case a student laptop won’t necessarily be a budget option. If you’re editing video, for instance, or working with 3D software, you’ll need 16GB of RAM or more.
A laptop with a good dedicated graphics card can also be a useful investment for those working in visual arts or design (or just if you plan to do a fair amount of gaming in your downtime). The products featured in ourmost powerful laptopsguide may be worth checking out if this is the case.
Which laptop brand is best for students?
When buying a student laptop, you want a device that is well built, affordable and reliable. For that last point, we generally recommend opting for brands that have a good reputation – you want your laptop to get you through at least your whole course of study, if not a lot longer.
Good brands for reliability that have consistently done well in our own testing over the years include Dell, HP, Acer, Asus and Microsoft for Windows laptops, and, of course, Apple. For creatives, Asus’s VivoBook range offers good prices on devices built with creative work in mind, and we recommend considering these if you’re starting a course for video editing or digital illustration.
It’s also always worth checking whether your college has a particular policy or recommendation. Some recommend using Windows-based laptops to reduce software incompatibility issues or facilitate technical support.
