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The very best Home windows laptops for 2025

Should you’ve held on to an getting older Home windows laptop computer for too lengthy, it’s now a good time to improve. With all of the hype round AI PCs, pc makers are dashing to launch new designs that includes environment friendly new chips from Intel and AMD. And because of Microsoft’s Copilot+ initiative, which launched final 12 months, we’re lastly seeing first rate notebooks powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon chips, that are main to higher battery life and lighter designs.

Whether or not you want a premium ultraportable, a strong gaming rig or a flexible cellular workstation, our present listing of the very best Home windows laptops highlights our favorites which were rigorously examined by our crew. Chances are you’ll even discover a Home windows laptop computer that fits you higher than an Apple MacBook should you’re trying to make the swap. For these on a price range, try our listing of the best cheap Windows laptops to search out nice choices that will not break the financial institution.

Greatest Home windows laptops for 2025

Dell / Engadget

Display measurement: 14.5-inch | Touchscreen: Sure | Processor: Intel Core Extremely 7 | Put in reminiscence: As much as 32GB | Storage: As much as 1TB | Weight: 3.6 kilos | Battery life: As much as 8.5 hours (as examined)

Learn our full Dell 14 Premium review

For 2025, Dell rebranded the XPS 14 into the 14 Premium and gave it some up to date specs. And whereas its new identify is a disgrace, its pedigree stays unsullied (at the least for now), which permits Dell’s flagship 14-inch laptop computer to retain its title as top-of-the-line Home windows notebooks round. It contains a slick, futuristic design with a hidden touchpad and love-or-hate-it multimedia controls together with strong efficiency, adequate battery life and welcome non-compulsory upgrades like a 3.2K OLED show and a discrete RTX 4050 GPU. So should you’re on the lookout for a transportable and well-rounded Home windows PC, it is arduous to go fallacious with the Dell 14 Premium.

Execs

  • Smooth design
  • Vivid non-compulsory OLED show
  • Strong efficiency
  • Big touchpad
Cons

  • Divisive capacitive contact buttons
  • Non-compulsory discrete GPU is one technology outdated

$1,500 at Dell

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Devindra Hardawar for Engadget

Display measurement: 14-inch | Touchscreen: Sure | Processor: Intel Core Extremely 7 258V | Put in reminiscence: As much as 32GB | Storage: As much as 1TB | Weight: 2.6 kilos | Battery life: 16:08

Learn our full ASUS Zenbook S14 review

The Zenbook S14 exhibits how far ASUS has come. It’s a beautiful premium pocket book powered by Intel’s new Lunar Lake chips, giving it a wholesome dose of energy and battery life. In our battery testing, it lasted 16 hours and eight minutes, placing it among the many greatest Home windows PCs we’ve seen. The Zenbook S14 can also be lighter than Apple’s MacBook Air, whereas additionally providing extra ports (two USB-C, one USB-A, HDMI and a headphone jack). Total, although, we have been simply gained over by the whole lot ASUS did proper. Its Ceraluminum case feels extremely polished, and its OLED display screen additionally makes nearly the whole lot look nice.

Execs

  • Engaging trendy design
  • Unimaginable battery life
  • Glorious OLED display screen
  • Helpful port choice
  • Responsive and enormous trackpad
Cons

  • Keyboard may use extra suggestions
  • Efficiency is not a lot better than Intel’s final gen
  • We’re nonetheless ready for extra AI prepared apps to seem

$1,400 at Best Buy

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acer

Display measurement: 15-inch | Touchscreen: No | Processor: Eleventh-gen Intel Core i3 | Put in reminiscence: 8GB | Storage: 128GB | Weight: 3.64 kilos | Battery life: As much as 10 hours

There’s a cause we chosen the Acer Aspire 5 as our best choice in our best budget Windows laptop information: It’s sturdy, quick sufficient and affords good battery life. It additionally comes with a Home windows 11 Dwelling (S Mode) working system with superior safety features. We sometimes don’t count on a lot with laptops beneath $500, however the Aspire 5 has constantly been a strong performer. It’s a super laptop computer for college kids or children, or for anybody who isn’t notably demanding. We’re additionally shocked by the port choice it affords, together with HDMI and Ethernet. Whereas we usually don’t advocate laptops with simply 8GB of RAM and tiny 128GB SSDs, these specs are extra excusable within the Aspire 5 because it’s so darn low-cost. Simply consider it as a barely extra succesful Chromebook, however one that may launch a number of apps and do a bit extra than simply internet shopping.

Execs

  • Consists of HDMI and Ethernet ports
  • Sturdy design
  • Respectable efficiency for the value

$362 at Amazon

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Will Lipman Pictures for Engadget

Display measurement: 14-inch | Touchscreen: No | Processor: AMD Ryzen 7/9 | Put in reminiscence: As much as 16GB | Storage: As much as 1TB | Weight: 3.53 kilos | Battery life: As much as 10 hours

Learn our full ASUS ROG Zephyrus G14 review

One in all our favourite gaming PCs for years, the ROG Zephyrus G14 stays our selection as the best gaming laptop for most users. It weighs simply 3.5 kilos, it sports activities AMD’s highly effective new Ryzen chips and it additionally has the corporate’s quickest Radeon RX 6000-series cellular graphics. The ROG Zephyrus G14 has a modern retro-future aesthetic, a snug keyboard and a clean 144Hz, 14-inch display screen. When you’d be extra immersed in a 15-inch pocket book, these sometimes value extra and are far heavier than the Zephyrus G14. Should you’re on the lookout for a stability between good efficiency, type and worth, the G14 is a wonderful possibility.

Execs

  • Highly effective efficiency
  • Smooth design
  • Nice 14-inch, 144Hz display screen
Cons

  • Somewhat on the heavy facet

$1,299 at ASUS

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Photograph by Devindra Hardawar / Engadget

Display measurement: 13-inch | Touchscreen: Sure | Processor: Snapdragon X Plus/X Elite | Put in reminiscence: As much as 32GB | Storage: As much as 1TB | Weight: 1.97 kilos | Battery life: As much as 14 hours

Learn our full Microsoft Surface Pro Copilot+ review

The Surface Pro is the whole lot we’ve needed the Floor pill line to be for years. It’s extremely quick and environment friendly, due to Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon X Elite and Plus chips. Its neural processing unit (NPU) additionally permits probably highly effective AI options, although the present crop gained’t be helpful to everybody. We’re additionally nonetheless ready to see Microsoft’s controversial Recall characteristic in motion, which has been delayed to handle its many safety issues.

The brand new OLED display screen possibility appears great: It makes colours pop off the display screen and in addition ensures inky darkish black ranges. Coupled along with surprisingly highly effective audio system, the Floor Professional is a strong possibility for watching video on the go.

When it’s paired along with the brand new Floor Professional Flex keyboard ($350), you’ll be able to sort and mouse across the Floor fully wirelessly, which opens up totally new methods of utilizing it. So long as there’s a small desk close by, or someplace to prop up the pill, you’ll be able to work with only a skinny and lightweight keyboard in your lap. It’s additionally good to see Microsoft pack in 16GB of RAM with the bottom Floor Professional mannequin.

Whereas we’d nonetheless wish to see the corporate bundle in a keyboard and refine its kickstand, the Floor Professional stays some of the progressive PCs out there immediately.

Execs

  • Snapdragon X Elite and Plus chips are splendidly quick
  • Strong battery life
  • Glorious OLED display screen possibility
  • NPU permits for highly effective AI options
  • Flex keyboard makes it extra versatile
  • Strong AI options
Cons

  • All keyboards bought individually
  • Nonetheless arduous to make use of in your lap
  • Will get costly shortly

$999 at Microsoft

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Photograph by Sam Rutherford / Engadget

Display measurement: 14-inch | Touchscreen: Sure | Processor: Thirteenth-gen Intel Core i7 | Put in reminiscence: 16GB | Storage: As much as 1TB | Weight: 3.09 kilos | Battery life: As much as 14 hours

Learn our full Lenovo Yoga 9i review

Adaptability is the most important energy of a 2-in-1, with gadgets just like the Yoga 9i able to reworking into quite a lot of totally different modes at a second’s discover. And though it’s acquired a comparatively transportable 14-inch OLED show, Lenovo nonetheless discovered room on the Yoga 9i for 3 USB-C ports, a fingerprint scanner and a intelligent rotating soundbar to make sure audio sounds good in any place. Lenovo additionally features a free stylus within the field although, sadly, not like earlier fashions there isn’t a devoted storage slot for it on the machine anymore. And whereas its common design hasn’t modified a lot, Lenovo has improved the Yoga 9i’s efficiency with up to date Thirteenth-gen Intel processors. There are additionally numerous configurations to select from, together with the selection between a Home windows 11 Dwelling or Professional working system.

Execs

  • Beautiful OLED show
  • Highly effective audio system
  • Sturdy battery life
  • 4 USB-C ports
  • Bodily webcam shutter
  • Included stylus and journey sleeve
Cons

  • Whiny followers
  • Shallow keyboard
  • No built-in stylus storage

$1,400 at Lenovo

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Photograph by Sam Rutherford / Engadget

Display measurement: 14-inch | Touchscreen: No | Processor: Twelfth-gen Intel Core i5/i7 | Put in reminiscence: As much as 16GB | Storage: As much as 1TB | Weight: 3.75 kilos | Battery life: As much as 5.5 hours

Learn our full MSI Stealth 14 Studio review

No matter should you’re modifying movies or enjoying video games, MSI’s Stealth 14 Studio packs a whole lot of processing energy in a really transportable bundle. The bottom mannequin comes with a 1080p display screen, however when you have the cash, you’ll need to think about the non-compulsory 2,560 x 1,600 show, which boasts a sooner 240Hz refresh fee and wider shade gamut (100% of DCI-P3). At simply 3.75 kilos, the Stealth 14 Studio weighs half a pound lower than equally sized rivals whereas nonetheless supporting as much as an NVIDIA RTX 4070 GPU. And the redesigned mannequin has a shocking magnesium and aluminum chassis that’s additionally out there in a bigger 16-inch mannequin.

Execs

  • Hanging design
  • Light-weight and transportable
  • Strong efficiency
  • Brilliant 240Hz show
  • Up-firing stereo audio system
Cons

  • Runs sizzling
  • No SD card slot
  • Decrease-res 720p webcam

$1,900 at Microcenter

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Photograph by Sam Rutherford / Engadget

Display measurement: 18-inch | Touchscreen: No | Processor: Thirteenth-gen Intel Core i9 | Put in reminiscence: As much as 64GB | Storage: As much as 1TB | Weight: 6.75 kilos | Battery life: As much as 3 hours

Learn our full Razer Blade 18 review

Razer’s revamped Blade 18 is a monster. It packs full-fat variations of essentially the most highly effective elements you’ll be able to put in a laptop computer together with as much as an Intel Core i9 13-980HX CPU and an NVIDIA RTX 4090 GPU that runs at as much as 175 watts. You additionally get a large 18-inch QHD+ show with a 240Hz refresh, tons of ports (together with an SD card reader) and beautiful per key RGB lighting. Holding the whole lot collectively is Razer’s unibody aluminum chassis, which affords a number of the greatest construct high quality on any Home windows laptop computer. The one huge draw back is worth: Beginning at $2,900 (or nearer to $5,000 for a totally loaded mannequin), the Blade 18 isn’t for folks with restricted budgets.

Execs

  • 240Hz show
  • Premium aluminum chassis
  • Helps top-notch elements
  • Nice port choice
Cons

  • Extraordinarily costly
  • Very quick battery life
  • Large
  • No extra show choices

$3,844 at Amazon

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Engadget

Display measurement: 13.8- or 15-inch | Touchscreen: No | Processor: Snapdragon X Plus or Elite | Put in reminiscence: As much as 32GB | Storage: As much as 1TB | Weight: 2.96 kilos | Battery life: As much as 17.5 hours

Learn our full Microsoft Surface Laptop 7th Edition review

After greater than a decade of assessments and trials for Arm-based Home windows PCs, Microsoft’s Floor Laptop computer 7 looks like a breakthrough. It’s quick, it’s quiet and because of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X Elite chip, it delivers effectively above common efficiency and battery life. In the meantime, on the within, Microsoft’s Prism emulator has virtually fully smashed the barrier between Arm and x86, so except for gaming, virtually your entire favourite apps simply work. Tack on a shiny 120Hz show and glorious construct high quality and also you get one thing actually near a super ultraportable PC.

Execs

  • Slick design
  • Glorious battery life
  • Good efficiency
  • Brilliant show
  • Highly effective Prism emulator
  • Responsive haptic touchpad
Cons

  • Some apps and video games nonetheless don’t play properly with Arm-based chips
  • No OLED show possibility

$1,300 at Microsoft

What to search for in a Home windows laptop computer

Efficiency

How a lot energy do you really need? That’s the principle query it’s worthwhile to ask your self when selecting a Home windows laptop computer (or any computing machine, to be trustworthy). It’s simple to overspend and get much more pc than you really need, or skimp an excessive amount of and end up with an under-powered processor and too little reminiscence. We’ve damaged down our suggestions into a wide range of product classes under, however usually you’re trying to get a laptop computer with at the least 16GB of RAM and a contemporary Intel Core Extremely or AMD Ryzen processor. Should you’re a gamer, you’ll additionally need to be sure to get an honest graphics card. (That’s all defined in our guide for best gaming notebooks.)

What are AI PCs, Copilot+ and Arm-based laptops?

Any pc that features an NPU (neural processing unit) is an “AI PC,” since that chip can offload some duties from the CPU and GPU. And since each chipmaker has rushed to affix the AI bandwagon, most programs launched immediately rely as AI PCs. The exceptions are some higher-powered workstation and gaming laptops, which can have NPU-free chips, or extraordinarily low-cost notebooks operating low-end chips.

To make it simpler to search out premium AI PCs, Microsoft unveiled its Copilot+ program final 12 months. It requires notebooks with NPUs that assist at the least 40 TOPS of AI processing energy, 16GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. The primary batch of Copilot+ programs included the brand new Surface Pro and Surface Laptop.

To make issues much more complicated, Copilot+ programs embody PCs powered by Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon Arm-based CPUs, which might run trendy Home windows apps however could have bother with older software program and drivers.

Show and webcams

No matter whether or not a pocket book has a touchscreen or a extra conventional panel, we search for shiny shows (300 nits or extra) which can be simple to make use of outside or in sunny rooms, with correct colours and extensive viewing angles. Screens with excessive refresh charges are nice for aggressive players (or anybody who needs smoother doc scrolling), whereas these with wider shade gamuts are vital for content material creation and video modifying. And even should you don’t plan on spending a ton of time on video calls, each laptop computer wants an honest webcam — 1080p or larger is most well-liked.

Ports and connectivity

Even with developments in mobile modems and Wi-Fi, devoted ports for transferring knowledge or connecting peripherals could make or break a laptop computer. Ideally, all however the thinnest and lightest programs include three USB-C ports, whereas issues like built-in SD card readers could be extraordinarily useful when making an attempt to import media from a digital camera. And if a pocket book is saddled with a gradual or outdated Wi-Fi modem (we’re on the lookout for Wi-Fi 6 or later), that’s mainly an instantaneous disqualification.

Battery life

It doesn’t matter how highly effective a laptop computer is that if it conks out whenever you want it essentially the most. Usually we search for runtimes of at the least ten hours on a cost, however in the case of good battery life, longer is at all times higher. That mentioned, on gaming machines with thirsty graphics playing cards, you might have to accept a bit much less. And on greater machines, it’s additionally vital to think about if the system can cost through USB-C or if it wants a bigger, proprietary energy brick.

Home windows laptop computer FAQs

What is the distinction between a Home windows laptop computer and a Chromebook?

The principle distinction between a Home windows laptop computer and a Chromebook lies of their working programs. Home windows laptops run on Microsoft’s Home windows OS, whereas Chromebooks use Google’s Chrome OS.

Apart from utilizing totally different working programs, efficiency is among the main variations between a Home windows laptop computer and a Chromebook. Home windows laptops could be outfitted with highly effective processors and discrete graphics, making them appropriate for demanding duties like gaming or video modifying. Chromebooks, alternatively, are usually optimized for velocity and ease, specializing in lighter duties like phrase processing and internet shopping.

When it comes to software program, Home windows laptops assist a variety of desktop packages, whereas Chromebooks primarily use internet apps or Android apps from the Google Play Retailer. Due to their variations, Chromebooks are usually extra inexpensive since they’re primarily designed for fundamental, on a regular basis duties. Home windows laptops can vary in worth from price range to premium, with the latter appropriate for gaming, professionals or creatives.

What is the distinction between macOS and Home windows?

In relation to macOS and Home windows, they’re mainly two totally different worlds within the realm of computer systems, every with its personal persona. MacOS is modern, minimal and feels fairly intuitive, particularly should you like issues that simply “work” out of the field. Apple designs macOS to work in tandem with its {hardware}, so when you have an iOS machine like an iPhone or an iPad, the entire ecosystem syncs up seamlessly.

Home windows is extra just like the jack-of-all-trades. It is identified for being tremendous versatile and customizable. Whether or not you need to tweak how issues look or run all kinds of software program, Home windows offers you that freedom. It is also extra extensively utilized in enterprise settings, primarily as a result of it has been round longer and is appropriate with tons of various packages and {hardware}.

Latest updates

August 2025: Up to date our high picks to incorporate the Dell 14 Premium.

March 2025: Up to date one in all our high picks and added new details about AI PCs.

September 2024: Added an FAQ part.

July 2024: We up to date our high picks to incorporate the Microsoft Floor Laptop computer seventh Version.

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