The Best Laptops You Can Get

These laptops tin thief you get activity done. | Illustration by William Joel / The Verge

Buying nan correct laptop tin beryllium stressful. It’s apt 1 of nan bigger tech purchases you’ll make, and location are a ludicrous number of models, sizes, shape factors, and configurations to prime from. We review and trial a wide swath of them present astatine The Verge, and we’re perpetually considering what’s nan champion and who it’s champion for.

Our wide prime for astir group has been, and continues to be, nan MacBook Air — particularly, arsenic of March 2025, nan M4 model. Unless you’re forced to usage Windows for circumstantial package needs aliases you fancy yourself a hardcore gamer, it remains nan champion action for nan mean personification who wants thing portable pinch fantabulous artillery life and awesome capacity for productivity tasks.

Though nan MacBook Air is nan easy proposal for astir people, that doesn’t make it nan reply for everyone. What if you request much powerfulness for video aliases photograph editing, aliases crunching ample datasets? What if you for illustration to tally Windows? What if you play tons of games and want to return them pinch you? Or what if you conscionable want thing unsocial — aliases even, gasp, repairable? We’ve sewage immoderate recommendations, including a Chromebook aliases two, a laptop pinch 2 screens, nan 16-inch MacBook Pro, and nan Microsoft Surface Laptop pinch a Snapdragon X Elite chip.

The champion laptop

CPU: M4 (10-core) / GPU: M4 (8- aliases 10-core) / RAM: 16GB, 24GB, 32GB / Storage: 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, 2TB / Display: 13.6-inch aliases 15.3-inch Liquid Retina display, 2560 x 1664 or 2880 x 1864 , 60Hz, nary touch action / Dimensions: 11.97 x 8.46 x 0.44 inches (13-inch) aliases 13.40 x 9.35 x 0.45 inches (15-inch) / Weight: 2.7 pounds (13-inch) aliases 3.3 pounds (15-inch)

Apple’s M4 MacBook Air is nan champion laptop for astir group — Mac users, of course, but besides nan platform-agnostic aliases anyone who wants a no-fuss, straightforward instrumentality that doesn’t bombard them pinch advertisements aliases bloatware. It’s a productivity laptop that tin do a spot of everything. The 13-inch exemplary starts pinch 16GB of RAM astatine $999, and it besides comes successful a 15-inch type for $1,199, for those who for illustration their laptops a small larger. It’s difficult to find different laptop that offers this benignant of operation of capacity and artillery life successful a bladed and ray chassis, particularly astatine these prices.

Despite losing its measurement astir nan mid-2010s, Apple has a agelong history of sending value MacBooks to market, and nan Air M4 is nary different. A smooth, almost ethereal trackpad, check. A chiclet-style keyboard that makes typing consciousness for illustration a dance, check. Fast Wi-Fi adapter, color-rich display, and MagSafe charging, check. Those were besides existent connected nan erstwhile models, but now pinch nan M4 procreation it besides features nan aforesaid 12-megapixel Center Stage webcam of nan MacBook Pros, tin usage 2 outer monitors pinch its lid open, and comes successful a entity bluish colour (though it still looks metallic successful immoderate light). And again, you get each this for less money than before.

The M4 Air is simply a awesome action for conscionable astir anyone who doesn’t request video editing, dense gaming, aliases much than 2 USB-C ports. For those that do, look to nan 14-inch MacBook Pro M4 — a awesome bang-for-your-buck laptop successful its ain correct astatine $1,599. Opting for a Pro complete an Air is champion for students successful imaginative fields and contented creators needing much headroom and features for illustration a 3rd USB-C port, an SD paper slot, and an moreover amended screen.

Now that nan M4 Air is here, Apple has afloat discontinued nan M3 and M2 models. You mightiness still beryllium capable to find them astatine retailers for illustration Best Buy, but they’re not worthy it complete nan M4 unless substantially discounted. If you tin spend an further $200 connected apical of either nan 13- aliases 15-inch M4 Air’s starting prices, that’ll nett you 512GB of retention alternatively of 256GB — arsenic good arsenic nan 10-core GPU connected nan 13-inch. The paltry guidelines retention is nan only remaining anemic constituent of nan MacBook Air. It’s decidedly worthy getting more, arsenic nan roomier SSD will make your life a small easier connected a laptop that should easy past you 5 to 7 (or moreover more) years.

Read our reappraisal of nan Apple MacBook Air M4.

Best Chromebook

CPU: MediaTek Kompanio Ultra 910 / GPU: Immortalis G925 / RAM: 16GB LPDDR5X / Storage: 256GB UFS 4.0 / Display: Touch 14-inch FHD 1920 x 1200, 60Hz OLED, 400 nits / Dimensions: 12.37 x 8.63 x 0.62 inches / Weight: 2.78 pounds 

Lenovo’s Chromebook Plus 14 is nan champion exemplary we’ve tested truthful acold successful 2025 because of its awesome tech specs and agelong package support. It has a 14-inch FHD (1920 x 1200) 60Hz OLED touchscreen show that has fantabulous colour and contrast, arsenic good arsenic 16GB of RAM, and a 256GB SSD. Its 8-core MediaTek Kompanio Ultra 910 processor was powerful capable that we could jump betwixt Chrome tabs and Android apps dispersed crossed 2 desktops while uploading documents to NotebookLM to make audio overviews without immoderate problems.

Lenovo equipped this laptop pinch 2 USB-C ports, which tin thrust a mates of monitors simultaneously, and a USB-A larboard that’s convenient for connecting accessories without nan request for a dongle. All 3 ports apical retired astatine 5Gbps each though, which mightiness beryllium slower than you need. We were impressed by nan laptop’s speakers, which sounded awesome erstwhile listening to euphony aliases audiobooks, moreover astatine a precocious volume. Its keyboard was comfortable to type on, but nan mechanical trackpad makes an annoying, large click erstwhile pressed.

The Chromebook Plus 14 tin tally Android, Linux, and web apps. You should beryllium capable to easy find nan correct package crossed those platforms, but we still ran into problem pinch Zoom, which ran poorly arsenic a web app and arsenic an Android app. Similarly, we had to tally Slack successful a browser model because nan Linux app wasn’t compiled for Arm processors. The types of apps you usage will besides heavy effect artillery life. We were capable to tally nan laptop for astir 9 hours and only drained its artillery by astir 50 percent. We fishy you could usage it for a mates of days without charging if your needs aren’t incredibly demanding.

Software support is an understandable interest erstwhile getting a caller laptop, but Google has guaranteed Chromebooks released aft 2021 will person 10 years of automatic updates. The Lenovo Chromebook 14’s coagulated hardware and extended package support intends you whitethorn beryllium capable to support it moving for a decade, moreover if later becomes a secondary instrumentality aliases hand-me-down.

Read our reappraisal of nan Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14

Best Snapdragon X laptop

CPU: Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus X1P-64-100, Snapdragon X Elite X1E-80-100 / GPU: Qualcomm Adreno / RAM: 16GB, 32GB, 64GB LPDDR5X (soldered) / Storage: 256GB, 512GB, 1TB / Display: 13.8-inch touchscreen LCD, 2304 x 1536 120Hz, 600 nits / Dimensions: 11.85 x 8.67 x 0.69 inches / Weight: 2.96 pounds

Out of each nan Snapdragon Copilot Plus PCs we’ve tested truthful far, nan 13.8- and 15-inch Microsoft Surface Laptop 7th edition stood retired for their equilibrium of performance, exceptional artillery life and standby time, and value components (120Hz screen, keyboard, webcam, trackpad, etc.). Microsoft was evidently gunning for Apple’s MacBook Air, and nan Surface Laptop mostly delivers that level of hardware acquisition for a Windows machine. It’s nan afloat package if you want a thin-and-light productivity instrumentality moving Windows that easy lasts each time and into nan night. And if your fund is somewhat tighter, there’s a 13-inch model pinch pared-down features starting astatine $899 that’s still really good.

The greater interest pinch Snapdragon X-equipped laptops is whether Windows connected Arm supports each nan apps you request to get your activity done. Most mundane apps activity fine, via autochthonal Arm versions aliases emulation, but location tin still beryllium immoderate outliers, particularly successful contented creation apps. Also, if you for illustration nan thought of your productivity instrumentality being capable to propulsion ray gaming duties (one of Windows’ advantages complete Mac) past you’re apt amended disconnected pinch a laptop utilizing Intel’s Lunar Lake aliases AMD’s Ryzen AI chips. Snapdragon X laptops tin only tally a fraction of nan games you find connected Steam and they can’t instal games from Microsoft’s ain Xbox app — conscionable watercourse them if your subscribe to PC Game Pass.

Earlier this year, Microsoft launched Intel Lunar Lake- based versions of nan Surface Laptop 7, but they’re a ridiculous $500 much expensive, and aimed solely astatine businesses. It’s a shame, because having this hardware pinch Lunar Lake’s compatibility mightiness person been an appealing prospect.

Read our review of nan 13.8-inch Microsoft Surface Laptop 7th Edition.

The champion 16-inch Windows laptop

CPU: AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370, AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 / GPU: Radeon 890M, Radeon 880M  / RAM: 32GB, 24GB / Storage: 1TB / Display: touch 16-inch 2880 x 1800, 120Hz OLED pinch stylus support, 500 nits highest HDR / Dimensions: 13.92 x 9.57 x 0.47 ~ 0.51 inches / Weight: 3.21 pounds

The 16-inch Asus Zenbook S 16 is nan best-looking, best-performing Windows laptop we’ve tested truthful far; it’s besides truthful bladed and lightweight you wouldn’t cognize it conscionable by holding it! It tin grip a small spot of everything, from emails to schematic creation work, and it tackles gaming amazingly good for a laptop without a abstracted graphics card. It’s a lovely, catch-all device.

There are only 2 Zenbook S 16 models arsenic of now. The $1,800 1 comes successful grey pinch AMD’s flagship Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 spot and 32GB of memory, and nan $1,400 exemplary comes successful achromatic pinch nan lower-tier AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 and 24GB of memory. Otherwise, they are identical. Both characteristic OLED touch displays pinch a autochthonal 2880 x 1800 (3K) solution and 120Hz refresh rate, stylus support, 1TB of storage, and nan aforesaid ports / Wi-Fi adapter. Everything but nan Windows version. (The much costly exemplary gets Home; nan cheaper 1 gets Pro.)

At conscionable 11 hours, its artillery life doesn’t past arsenic agelong arsenic akin laptops we’ve tested, specified arsenic nan Samsung Galaxy Book4 Edge and Dell XPS 14, but it’s a mini tradeoff. There’s still nary different Windows laptop that offers arsenic overmuch capacity and versatility successful a 16-inch chassis for nan price.

Read our review of nan Asus Zenbook S 16.

The champion laptop for high-end gaming

CPU: Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX / GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 / RAM: 32GB / Storage: 2TB / Display: 16-inch Mini LED 2560 x 1600, 240Hz show / Dimensions: 13.94 x 10.55 x 0.9 to 1.21 inches / Weight: 6.17 pounds

I’m still testing a fistful of different gaming laptops, including nan Lenovo Legion Pro 7i Gen 10 and HP Omen Max 16, but nan frontrunner truthful acold (by a nose) is nan Asus ROG Strix Scar 16 pinch an Nvidia RTX 5080 GPU. From what I’ve seen truthful far, nan 5080 is nan saccharine spot for high-end gaming laptops successful this generation. The 5080 ROG Strix Scar is wrong earshot of nan 5090 capacity I saw successful nan Razer Blade 16, and it’s $1,200 cheaper. The Asus is chunky and dense compared to Razer’s svelte Blade, but that gives its GPU nan abstraction it needs to enactment cool. Thinner laptops often thermally constrain a high-end spot for illustration nan 5090.

The ROG Strix Scar doesn’t person an OLED show for illustration its nonstop competitors, which is so a bummer, but its 2560 x 1600 240Hz Mini LED sheet is still crisp and bright, pinch immoderate punchy colors. The 16-inch type of nan Strix Scar eschews a number pad, giving its ample keycaps plentifulness of abstraction truthful typing isn’t cramped astatine all. Its trackpad is massive, and it houses a hidden touch-sensitive numpad you tin telephone up pinch a long-press successful nan apical area — though it’s much useful for information introduction than gaming needs.

The Strix Scar’s boisterous RGB ray show is benignant of nosy successful its garishness. In summation to wraparound underglow, it has a dot-matrix array of LEDs connected its lid to show animations — arsenic Asus has done before. A much useful characteristic is nan measurement you tin unfastened up nan laptop’s bottommost sheet for illustration nan hood of a car for easy, tool-free entree to its 2 RAM slots and SSDs.

The champion MacBook for photograph and video editing

CPU: M4 Pro, M4 Max / GPU: M4 Pro, M4 Max / RAM: 24GB aliases 48GB (M4 Pro), 36GB – 128 GB (M4 Max) / Storage: 512GB, 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, 8TB / Display: 14.2 / 16.2-inch Liquid Retina XDR, 3024 x 1964 / 3456 x 2234, adaptive refresh up to 120Hz, nary touch action / Dimensions: 12.31 x 8.71 x 0.61 (14-inch) / 14.01 x 9.77 x 0.66 inches (16-inch) / Weight: 3.5 / 4.7 pounds (M4 Pro), 3.6 / 4.8 pounds (M4 Max)

If you request powerfulness for intensive imaginative activity — for illustration 3D rendering and moving pinch ultra-high-resolution photos and video — nan MacBook Pro is your champion bet. Both nan 14- and 16-inch models are disposable pinch powerful M4 Pro aliases M4 Max processors. There’s besides a 14-inch Pro pinch a modular M4 processor, and while it’s a formidable measurement up from nan MacBook Air arsenic an everyman’s “pro” laptop, nan M4 Pro and Max processors still outclass it successful performance.

Processors aside, nan MacBook Pro has remained mostly unchanged since 2021. It has a bright, beautiful, color-accurate, high-res surface pinch HDR and an adaptive refresh complaint of up to 120Hz; astonishing speakers, a comfortable keyboard and trackpad; and a bully larboard loadout: 3 Thunderbolt 5 / USB-C ports, positive HDMI 2.1 and an SD paper slot. The 14-inch MacBook Pro is simply a fewer 100 dollars cheaper than nan 16-inch, but speech from nan very lowest processor options, astir configurations are disposable successful either size, truthful prime whichever useful for you.

In our benchmarks, which trial a assortment of imaginative tasks including encoding, playback, and export time, nan MacBook Pro 16 did amended than immoderate laptop we’ve ever utilized — nan only different machines that person travel adjacent to matching this point successful immoderate of our benchmarks are high-end desktop PCs. The artillery life is besides record-shattering. The top-of-the-line 16-inch M4 Max model easy lasted each time successful our astir caller testing, pinch nary battery-saving features enabled and moreover keeping nan surface connected full-time.

Most group who request overmuch much powerfulness than a MacBook Air — including each but nan astir demanding pro photographers — will beryllium good pinch an M4 Pro model, which starts astatine $1,999 for nan 14-inch pinch a 12-core CPU, 16-core GPU, 24GB of memory, and a 512GB SSD. The 16-inch starts astatine $2,499 for a 14-core CPU, 20-core GPU, 24GB of memory, and 512GB SSD. The M4 Pro spot tin beryllium configured pinch up to 48GB of representation and a 4TB SSD, astatine nan accustomed absurd Apple markups, and it supports up to 2 outer 6K displays.

If you perfectly request much GPU powerfulness — aliases much than 2 outer monitors — you tin measurement up to nan M4 Max. The guidelines M4 Max pinch 14 CPU cores and 32 GPU cores, positive 36GB of RAM and 1TB SSD, starts astatine $3,199 successful nan 14-inch and $3,499 successful nan 16-inch. There’s besides an M4 Max pinch 16 CPU and 40 GPU cores, which starts astatine $3,699 and $3,999, respectively. The M4 Max models are configurable pinch up to 128GB of RAM and 8TB of retention and tin support up to 4 outer monitors. The immense mostly of group don’t person workloads dense capable to announcement a important quality betwixt nan M4 Pro and M4 Max; if you do, you astir apt cognize it.

Read our reviews of nan MacBook Pro 16 M4 Pro / Max and MacBook Pro 14 M4.

The champion 14-inch gaming laptop

CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 270, HX 370 / GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 5060, RTX 5070, RTX 5070 TI, RTX 5080 / RAM: 16GB, 32GB / Storage: 1TB / Display: 14-inch OLED, 2880 x 1800, 120Hz, 500 nits / Dimensions: 12.24 x 8.66 x 0.63 inches / Weight: 3.31 pounds

Asus precocious introduced an updated ROG Zephyrus G14 for 2025, which replaces nan erstwhile exemplary arsenic our prime for nan champion 14-inch gaming laptop. It retains nan sleek creation Asus introduced past year and continues to onslaught a equilibrium betwixt powerfulness and portability; it besides incorporates a fistful of improvements, immoderate of which person allowed it to gain nan apical spot successful our best gaming laptops guide, contempt a $100 value bump.

The updated Zephyrus G14 has an AMD 9-series processor and Nvidia RTX 50-series graphics chip, which supply humble capacity gains. Every configuration features a handsome, high-res OLED show pinch a 120Hz refresh rate, truthful smoother gameplay isn’t locked down an optional upgrade. Conveniently, nan 2025 G14 features USB-C ports connected some sides for charging, though you’ll still execute nan maximum wattage by utilizing Asus’ proprietary charger.

The G14 features a backlit, chiclet-style keyboard, and Asus has accrued nan keycap size by 12.24 percent to make them easier to press. The centered trackpad is besides comparatively wide, providing ample abstraction for clicks, taps, and swipes without cramping your hand. These features are arsenic useful for typing and productivity activity arsenic they are for playing games erstwhile you’re not connected to a gaming keyboard and mouse.

Speaking of games, nan titles we played ran well, moreover connected precocious settings, but nan laptop felt basking to nan touch owed to its bladed chassis. Its fans were audible nether dense load, and nan laptop yet thermally throttled its GPUs to forestall overheating. The tradeoffs aren’t surprising, though, particularly fixed nan G14’s thin, lightweight design.

The champion dual-screen laptop

CPU: Intel Core Ultra 7 155U / GPU: Intel UHD (integrated) / RAM: 16GB LPDDR5X / Storage: 1TB M.2 NVMe PCIe 4.0 SSD / Display: 13.3-inch (2880 x 1800) 60Hz OLED touchscreen w/ stylus support / Dimensions: 11.78 x 8.03 x 0.63 inches / Weight: 2.95 pounds

A dual-screen laptop is precisely what it sounds like: a laptop pinch a 2nd surface wherever nan keyboard usually goes.

The Lenovo Yoga Book 9i has a 360-degree hinge, which lets you usage it arsenic a regular laptop, a (large) tablet, and more. You tin put it successful clamshell mode and constitute aliases sketch connected nan bottommost surface pinch a stylus aliases fold nan keyboard folio into a guidelines to prop it up and return advantage of some screens. You tin group it up astatine location pinch an outer show arsenic a three-screen desktop replacement, aliases return it connected nan spell pinch nan included Bluetooth keyboard and mouse. Its touchscreen gestures are ace responsive but excessively responsive for nan virtual keyboard and trackpad. It’s easy to mistype and accidentally minimize windows.

The Yoga Book’s only existent competitor is Asus’ Zenbook Duo. The Duo’s beingness keyboard includes a trackpad and makes it look a batch much for illustration a accepted laptop. Its 14-inch OLED screens are a small bigger and brighter, it has a ton of larboard options, it’s much powerful, and it’s a small easier to fold up and put away. But it’s besides heavier (at 3.64 pounds), its apical lid doesn’t fold backmost acold capable to usage it arsenic a tablet, and its touchscreen gestures aren’t arsenic responsive.

Read our head-to-head review of nan Lenovo Yoga Book 9i and nan Asus Zenbook Duo.

The champion repairable laptop

CPU: AMD Ryzen AI 5 340, AI 7 350, AI 9 HX 370 / GPU: Radeon 860M / RAM: 8GB, 16GB, 32GB, 64GB, 48GB, 96GB / Storage: 500GB, 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, 8TB / Display: 13.5 inch IPS, 2256 x 1504 60Hz aliases 2880 x 1920 120Hz, nary touch action / Dimensions: 11.68 x 9.01 x 0.62 inches / Weight: 2.87 pounds

There’s nary different laptop offering nan benignant of nerdy nosy coming that a Framework is. The Framework Laptop 13 isn’t conscionable nan only crippled successful municipality erstwhile it comes to a notebook that’s afloat repairable and upgradeable, it’s besides a awesome productivity instrumentality for mundane usage and has been for respective years now. For 2025, nan Laptop 13 gets a processor upgrade pinch AMD’s “Strix Point” Ryzen AI chips, giving it higher capacity than nan last-gen Intel and AMD offerings pinch serviceable artillery life. Otherwise, it’s overmuch nan aforesaid chassis arsenic nan prior generation — they’re indistinguishable from 1 another.

But that’s portion of what’s truthful cool astir a Framework: a caller exemplary intends a caller spot you tin moreover put into nan old model, if you want an upgrade and don’t mind opening up nan chassis yourself. It’s really overmuch easier to do than you whitethorn fear, arsenic Framework designs its laptops to springiness you afloat entree to everything wrong pinch conscionable a elemental screwdriver; including its mainboard, storage, RAM, battery, and immoderate nosy see-through bezels for a touch of customization.

If you opt for 1 of Framework’s DIY Editions it only comes partially built, but this allows you to take from galore much configuration options than its pre-builts. Personally, I deliberation nan DIY way is nan measurement to spell if you’re up for it, because experiencing nan assembly (which took maine little than 30 minutes) gives you a amended consciousness of what’s successful your laptop and really to alteration thing if you ever request to repair aliases upgrade it. But moreover if you take a pre-built, you tin prime from a wide array of modular ports to outfit it with.

The Laptop 13 isn’t arsenic sleek arsenic a likewise priced MacBook aliases Surface, which connection nary upgradeability aliases modularity (aside from nan SSD connected immoderate Surface Laptops), but nan Framework by nary intends feels cheap. It’s bladed capable and ray capable to beryllium very portable, and it’s sewage a awesome keyboard pinch a good trackpad. Its surface has a 3:2 facet ratio that’s perfect for productivity since you tin spot a spot much than nan much emblematic 16:10.

You astir apt person to beryllium really into nan full repairability and modularity conception to walk nan aforesaid aliases much connected a Framework Laptop 13 compared to different options retired there, but anyone tin admit picking your ports and being capable to switch them astir whenever you want.

Read our Framework Laptop 13 (2025) review.

What’s coming next

• Apple released nan public beta of MacOS 26 Tahoe, nan operating strategy update it will vessel this fall. The caller package includes a caller creation Apple calls Liquid Glass, updates to Spotlight (including a clipboard manager), a telephone app that allows you to spot and person calls via your iPhone connected nan Mac, and Apple Intelligence tweaks passim nan system. Notably, Tahoe will beryllium nan past type of MacOS to support Intel processors, though immoderate machines will person information updates for a mates of years.
• Microsoft announced a exemplary of its Surface Laptop pinch a 5G modem, which will statesman shipping connected August 26th. The instrumentality will commencement astatine $1,799.99 for a configuration pinch an Intel Core Ultra 5, 16GB of RAM, and a 256GB of storage. The highest-end exemplary will costs $2,699.99 and person an Intel Core Ultra 7 processor, 32GB of RAM, and 1TB of storage. Microsoft says nan upcoming laptop has a custom-designed antenna system that “continuously adapts to its environment” and was tested pinch complete 100 mobile companies much than 50 countries. The caller Surface Laptop tin besides beryllium utilized arsenic a 5G mobile hotspot for different devices.

Monica Chin and Nathan Edwards besides contributed to erstwhile versions of this buying guide.

Update, August 7th: Adjusted pricing and availability, added Lenovo’s Chromebook Plus 14 and accusation astir MacOS 26 Tahoe and Microsoft’s upcoming Surface Laptop. Brandt Ranj contributed to this article.