Best laptops for college students: 7 picks for every budget

Who should buy the Acer Swift 16 AI?

If you’re looking for a great college laptop, the Acer Swift 16 AI is easy to recommend. It’s light enough to carry around campus at just over three pounds, and the 16-inch 2880×1800 OLED screen looks amazing whether you’re typing up notes or watching Netflix after a full day of exams. It comes with an Intel Core 7 chip, Intel Arc graphics, 16GB of RAM, and 1TB of SSD, so it’s fast enough for schoolwork or research.

Battery life is pretty darn good, too. It lasted around 17 hours in our testing, and you can charge it quickly using one of the two USB-C Thunderbolt 4 ports.

Acer Swift 16 AI: Further considerations

The OLED screen is the real highlight here. It’s bright, colorful, and clear. The keyboard also feels really good for long typing sessions, and even though the touchpad’s a bit smaller than most, it still works fine for the day-to-day stuff.

If you’re after something lightweight and reliable, the Acer Swift 16 AI is one of the best around.

Who should buy the Acer Aspire Go 15?

If you’re on a tight budget and just need a laptop for research and writing essays, the Acer Aspire Go 15 is a good pick. It’s nothing fancy, but you shouldn’t have any problems streaming lectures or writing papers.

It comes with solid basics for the price — an Intel Core i3 processor, 8GB of RAM, and 256GB of storage — which is enough to handle most of your school work without any problems. Battery lasts around 12 hours, so you don’t have to constantly look for a charger. The 15.6-inch 1080p screen is spacious, which is nice for both work and Netflix binges.

Acer Aspire Go 15: Further considerations

This laptop keeps it simple — no touchscreen, no backlit keys. But it runs smoothly, the battery holds up, and it gets through college tasks without a fuss.

Who should buy the HP OmniBook 5 14?

If you’re a student who wants a Windows laptop to last throughout the day, the HP OmniBook 5 14 should definitely be on your shortlist. It lasted an incredible 25 hours in our battery tests, a jaw-dropping result. Plus, it charges fast, reaching 50 percent in as little as 30 minutes. It also comes with a tiny GaN charger that’ll fit perfectly in your school bag.

It’s also built for writing papers and juggling a bunch of research tabs thanks to the Snapdragon X Plus chip and whopping 32GB of RAM. The 14-inch 1200p OLED touchscreen is a nice bonus, too.

HP OmniBook 5 14: Further considerations

The OmniBook’s not a powerhouse, so it’ll struggle with heavy-duty creative apps or serious gaming. However, for everyday life, it’ll run just fine. The keyboard also feels nice and it’s lightweight at just under three pounds. The battery life is just plain ridiculous at this price.

Who should buy the MacBook Air?

If you want a MacBook that’s quick and easy to take anywhere, the new MacBook Air M4 is tough to beat. It’s got a 10-core CPU, 10-core GPU, a beefed-up Neural Engine, and faster memory, so it can handle anything you throw at it. Plus, Apple finally fixed a big limitation from past Airs–you can now run two external 6K displays with the lid open, which is perfect if you like a multi-monitor setup. Add the upgraded 12MP Center Stage camera for sharper video calls, and you’ve got a laptop that’s ready for work, school, or whatever else. By the way, it lasted nearly 18 hours in our battery tests, so longevity is king here.

MacBook Air: Further considerations

A few more things to know. This MacBook Air is crazy light at 3.3 pounds and super thin at 0.45 inches, so tossing it in your bag is a breeze. The new Sky Blue color is a nice touch, and prices start at $999 for the 13-inch or $1,199 for the 15-inch. Even better, the base model now comes with 16GB of RAM, so you don’t have to worry about upgrading right away.

The only minor tradeoff? Battery life is about an hour shorter than the M3 in video loop tests, but honestly, it’s still more than enough for a full day without scrambling for an outlet.

Read our full

MacBook Air (M4) review

Who should buy the Asus Chromebook Plus CX34?

If you’re heading to college and want a Chromebook that looks good and runs well (as long as you don’t mind Google’s ecosystem), this one’s it. The Asus Chromebook Plus CX34 is fast enough to keep up with your daily activities — think Zoom, Google Docs, Spotify — and it won’t freeze up when you’ve got a bunch of tabs open. (I see you, serial tab opener.)

It’s got a 14-inch 1080p screen that looks clear. The webcam’s actually really solid too, so you won’t look like a blurry mess on video calls. And yeah, the whole laptop looks great. It’s got that clean, modern vibe that doesn’t scream budget.

Asus Chromebook Plus CX34: Further considerations

The battery lasts around 13 hours, which is fine (no complaints on my end), but I’ve seen other laptops that go much longer. Also, no touchscreen — not a deal-breaker for most, but if you’re someone who loves tapping around, that might be a bummer. And if you’re trying to do anything like video editing or heavy design work? This probably isn’t the machine for you.

But for school notes, research, and lectures? It’s exactly what you need at a nice price.

Who should buy the Microsoft Surface Pro (2025)?

If you’re always on the move — rushing between classes or just hanging out at a coffee shop — the Surface Pro 2025 is the perfect pick. It’s crazy light, like just over a pound, so tossing it in your bag is no big deal. It’s got plenty of power for Zoom calls and writing notes, too. Honestly, the Snapdragon chip does a great job keeping things snappy on a day-to-day basis.

Microsoft Surface Pro (2025): Further considerations

There are a couple of things you should know. The 12-inch screen can feel cramped if a lot of tabs are open at once, especially given the 3:2 aspect ratio. There are also only two USB-C ports, so anyone relying on multiple peripherals or external storage might need a small dongle or dock.

Battery life’s kind of a mixed bag. If you’re just typing or watching stuff with the brightness turned down, it’ll last a good while. But if you’re cranking everything up and bouncing between heavy apps, it could drain faster than you might expect.

Still, if most of your school stuff is in the cloud and you just want something light that gets the job done, this laptop totally delivers.

Who should buy the Lenovo LOQ 15?

If you’re in college and want to game and get schoolwork done without dropping a ridiculous amount of money, the Lenovo LOQ 15 just makes sense. It’s not flashy or razor-thin, but it plays everything you want it to. Inside it’s running an AMD Ryzen 7 250 processor and an Nvidia RTX 5060 graphics card with 8GB of VRAM. That means you can run games like Cyberpunk 2077 or Call of Duty at respectable frame rates without your laptop sounding like it’s about to blast off into outer space.

The 15.6-inch 1080p screen boasts a refresh rate of 144Hz, so games look smooth, even if it’s not the brightest display out there. As for battery life, it’ll last around five hours if you’re not gaming. That’s fine for taking notes in class, but you may want to park at the nearest outlet.

Lenovo LOQ 15: Further considerations

The Lenovo LOQ 15 is cheap and powerful, which is a desirable combination. Right now it’s selling for about $800, which is good for a laptop with an RTX 5060. It doesn’t have all the bells and whistles that you’d expect from a more expensive gaming laptop, but if it’s just raw performance you’re after, it’ll deliver.

Sure, the design isn’t all that interesting and the screen could be brighter, but for the price it’s hard to complain. If you’re a student who wants good gaming power on a budget, the Lenovo LOQ 15 is the one to get.