The best student laptops in 2024: top laptops for college and school
These are the best laptops for students across all budgets and preferences
The best student laptops have to walk the tightrope between good value for money and top-notch performance, while also providing enough battery life to get you from the start of the school day to the end. With these factors in mind, I’ve curated this list of the best laptops for students of all ages – whether you’re heading off to higher education or just need a new laptop for the upcoming year of high school.
Trying to navigate the murky waters of the best laptops on the market can be a daunting tasks, so I’ve tightened the scope of our search here – including a carefully selected list of the best Ultrabooks to the best MacBooks and even some of the best Chromebooks, meaning that whichever operating system you like the most, I’ve got you covered.
Price (or at least, price-for-performance) should be the number one factor when it comes to buying a laptop for school or university. Students are often shopping on a budget, but studies show that a new laptop is typically the biggest individual purchase for a new student; an investment that shouldn’t break the bank but also shouldn’t crap out halfway through a three- or four-year course.
You can check out our best budget laptops if you specifically want something super-affordable, but all the laptops on the list below offer a strong price-to-performance ratio, meaning that you get plenty of bang for your buck – I’ve also made sure to include options for users with specific needs, like 2-in-1 laptops for digital artists who need a touchscreen device and of course the excellent M3 MacBook Air for students in creative disciplines.
Australians can check out our best laptop deals and best cheap laptop deals pages.
If you want to get right to it and see the best student laptop in every category, check out our quick roundup of top picks below. Don’t worry though, you can easily jump to a more detailed view of every pick along with a price comparison tool to help you find the best laptop deals for students no matter your budget.
1. Acer Aspire 5 (2022)
Best student laptop overall
With a solid build and decent weight, this extremely affordable 14-inch laptop offers decent battery life and performance for the price.
2. Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 3 Chromebook
Best budget student Chromebook
It might not be the flashiest, but it’s built to last, especially in terms of battery. ChromeOS is also a great, versatile OS – especially for younger learners.
3. Lenovo IdeaPad Duet 5 Chromebook
Best student Chromebook
The best Chromebook for students overall, the Duet 5 Chromebook features a gorgeous OLED display, excellent battery life, and a portable design.
4. Acer Chromebook Spin 514 (2022)
Best premium Chromebook
It may not be cheap, but its performance more than justifies the extra expense, delivering one of the best Chromebook experiences.
5. Dell XPS 13 Plus (2023)
Best premium Windows laptop
A sleek, lightweight design and powerful performance make this a top-notch pick for Windows fans looking for a premium laptop for college.
6. Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (M3)
Best laptop for creative students
Generally the best laptop out there for most people, this is a dream machine for creative students. Just be prepared to pay the steep price.
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7. Dell Inspiron 14 2-in-1 (2022)
Best affordable 2-in-1 for students
This laptop has an attractive price, good design, great performance, and excellent battery life. And it offers a great degree of versatility.
8. Acer Spin 5 (2022)
Best premium 2-in-1 for students
Sometimes, you need more than just good enough from a 2-in-1, and this delivers performance and build – though it’s generally more expensive.
9. MSI GF63 Thin
Best gaming laptop for students
It can’t be all work and no play, but on a student budget, the MSI GF63 Thin has great performance and affordability you need from a gaming laptop.
Christian GuytonComputing Editor
Understanding what makes a good laptop for students is more than just knowing an awful lot about laptops (although I do know an awful lot about laptops). As someone who went through higher education with a decidedly lackluster laptop, I learned the hard way what’s needed – and I’ve put that knowledge to use here to ensure you get the perfect laptop to carry you through a full course of studies.
The best student laptop overall
1. Acer Aspire 5 (2022)
The best student laptop overall
Specifications
Best for: All students
CPU: Up to Intel Core i7-1165G7 or AMD Ryzen 7 5825U
Graphics: Integrated Iris XE or Radeon graphics
RAM: Up to 16GB DDR4
Screen: up to 17.3-inch 1080p
Storage: Up to 512GB SSD
Today’s Best Deals
Reasons to buy
+
Competitive price+
Solid build, with a 1.7kg weight+
Decent battery life for the price
Reasons to avoid
–
Modest performance-
720p webcam-
Limited port selection
Buy it if:
✅ You’re on a budget: This entry-level model only costs around $600/£450, which makes it a capable option for budgeting students.
✅ You travel a lot: It’s not an ultrabook, but a sturdy design and weight of just 1.7kg mean that the Aspire 5 will happily live in your backpack all day long.
Don’t buy it if:
❌ You’re a gamer: Acer’s website talks about a discrete GeForce graphics card, but most Aspire 5 models rely on more basic integrated graphics.
❌ You need all-day battery life: Six and a half hours certainly isn’t bad for a laptop in this price range, but you’ll need to spend a bit more if you need a long-lasting laptop.
The Acer Aspire 5 (2022) remains our pick as the best student laptop you can buy right now. That’s because it’s got a low price, but decent specs (OK, the 11-gen Intel CPU isn’t the most recent, but it does the job well, especially compared to the processors you find in similarly-priced laptops) mean it’s a dependable performer for most day-to-day tasks students will use it for.
As it’s a Windows 11 laptop, it can run full-desktop applications, unlike Chromebooks which often have to make do with pared-back apps that don’t offer the full range of features.
Of course, you need to set your expectations for this laptop. It’s price and age means this isn’t going to be a powerful laptop that can handle media editing or gaming, but for writing up essays and researching for your course, it remains an excellent choice, especially if you’re on a budget, but don’t want a Chromebook.
Read our full Acer Aspire 5 (2022) review
The best budget Chromebook for students
2. Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 3 Chromebook
The best budget laptop for students
Specifications
Best for: Budget-minded students who don’t need a lot of power
CPU: MediaTek MT8183 Processor (2.0 GHz)
Graphics: Integrated graphics
RAM: 4GB LPDDR4
Screen: 11.6-inch HD 1366 x 768 IPS
Storage: 64GB eMMC Flash Memory
Today’s Best Deals
Reasons to buy
+
Excellent value+
Well built+
Battery life is good
Reasons to avoid
–
Dated design-
Not very powerful
Buy it if:
✅ You’re after a great value 2-in-1 Chromebook: Despite its low price, this Chromebook punches above its weight.
✅ You want the flexibility of a 2-in-1 device: Not only can this be used as a laptop, but it can turn into a tablet-like device as well.
Don’t buy it if:
❌ You need a powerful device: While the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 3 is fine for daily web browsing and media streaming, we wouldn’t recommend it for anything more intensive.
❌ You want a great display: The small size and resolution of the screen keeps the price down, but that means it doesn’t wow.
The Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 3 Chromebook is a decent Chromebook for students who are looking for a bargain. Its low price means this isn’t a particularly powerful device, even by Chromebook standards, but ChromeOS runs impressively well, and it won’t let you down for day-to-day tasks like web browsing, document creation and emailing.
It can also be used for media streaming when you’re winding down after a day of studying, though the small screen isn’t ideal for truly immersing yourself in TVs and films.
The Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 3 Chromebook is a great laptop for students because of its 2-in-1 design, which can be quite rare for laptops at this price. This allows you to use it as both a laptop and as a tablet-like device, and this kind of flexibility is super handy for students – especially as it means they don’t need two separate devices.
The battery life lasted an excellent 16 hours in our video playback test when we reviewed the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 3 Chromebook, so it’ll easily last an entire school day without needing to be charge.
Read our full Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 3 Chromebook
The best overall Chromebook for students
3. Lenovo IdeaPad Duet 5 Chromebook
The best Chromebook for students overall
Specifications
Best for: All students who have some room in their budget
CPU: Qualcomm Snapdragon 7c Gen2 2.55GHz
Graphics: Qualcomm Adreno GPU
RAM: 8GB LPDDR4
Screen: 13.3-inch 1920 x 1080p multitouch OLED, 400 nits
Storage: 128GB eMMC
Today’s Best Deals
(13.3-inch)
Reasons to buy
+
Excellent screen+
Phenomenal battery life+
Respectable performance
Reasons to avoid
–
Flimsy keyboard-
Difficult kickstand-
Stylus not included
Buy it if:
✅ You want the best 2-in-1 Chromebook around: The flexible design of this Chromebook is ideal for students who want both a laptop and a tablet-like device.
✅ You want outstanding battery life: Hitting almost 19 hours on a single charge, there are few laptops or other Chromebooks that can match the IdeaPad Duet 5’s lasting power.
Don’t buy it if:
❌ You want a cheap Chromebook: The premium features on the Duet 5 Chromebook means that this is relatively expensive, though still a lot less than most Windows laptops.
❌ You want more of a tablet-first form factor: The aspect ratio and 13.3-inch display size makes this bulkier than a standard tablet.
The brilliant Lenovo Duet 5 Chromebook is a great example of how Chromebooks don’t need to be cheap, budget affairs. Thanks to its gorgeous 1080p OLED display, 8GB RAM and Qualcomm Snapdragon 7c Gen2 processor, this is one of the most powerful Chromebooks out there, and is ideal for students who want a device to work and watch movies on.
The design itself is excellent, with a slimline body and detachable keyboard – there’s certainly no chance of this being mistaken for a budget device. And as a 2-in-1 device, you can use this as both a traditional laptop, or a tablet-like device. Putting it into ‘tent mode’ also makes it a small screen for watching TV and movies on – so this is a great option for students who don’t have the money (or space) for multiple devices.
In our review, we were particularly impressed by the stunning OLED screen – which is a rarity in Chromebooks, and thanks to its Snapdragon CPU, battery life is amazing, lasting over 16 hours in our tests. That blows past most Windows 11 laptops and MacBooks – and even a lot of Chromebooks as well. So, students can happily work on the Lenovo Duet 5 Chromebook for multiple school days without needing to charge. All of these premium features does mean the price tag is higher than you may expect from a Chromebook, but it still offers plenty of value, making it a great option for students with a bit of flex in their budgets.
Read the full Lenovo IdeaPad Duet 5 Chromebook review
Get your laptop for less with our Lenovo voucher codes.
The best premium Chromebook for students
Specifications
Best for: High school through college students who need more performance
CPU: Up to 13th-generation Intel Core i7
Graphics: Up to Intel Iris Xe Graphics
RAM: Up to 32GB LPDDR5
Screen: Up to 13.4″ UHD+ (3840 x 2400) InfinityEdge Non-Touch – 13.4″ UHD+ (3840 x 2400) OLED 60Hz Touch
Storage: Up to 2TB M.2 PCIe SSD