The best student tablet blends performance and portability to keep you productive in class, on campus, and on the go.
Our expert review team has tested the best tablets and the best student laptops - and we can help you find the right tablet for you. The Apple iPad Air is our pick for best student tablet - a lightweight, extremely powerful tablet that's ideal for use at school, college, and university.
We've rounded up our top student tablets, reviewing performance, comparing specs, and testing each one across a range of different tasks, from basic office app usage to photo and video editing to see which ones come out top.
For more savings, check out our hub for the best back to school sales.
The quick list
The best student tablet overall
The 5th-gen iPad Air comes with Apple's M1 chip, making it almost as powerful as a MacBook Air, so it's a perfect balance of performance, portability and price.
The best student tablet for university
University students are generally going to have more demanding needs out of their tablet, - and the iPad Pro with M4 chip is arguably the best iPad you can get.
The best Android tablet for students
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra is one of the most powerful Android devices on the market, so if you're into the Android ecosystem, this tablet will get you through several school terms.
The best student tablet for online classes
The affordable, lightweight Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite is an ideal tablet for online classes. The device even includes the comfortable S Pen stylus for note-taking and sketching.
The best student tablet in 2024 in full:
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Below you'll find full write-ups for each of the best school tablet picks on our list. We've tested each one extensively, so you can be sure that our recommendations can be trusted.
The best student tablet overall
The Apple iPad Air with the M1 chip is nearly perfect for a student. The M1 chip is still more than powerful enough to push through late-night study sessions or create presentations for biology. With the advancements of iPadOS 16, the iPad is becoming more and more capable while still staying a light, simple piece of glass. Adding a keyboard, whether Bluetooth or an Apple Keyboard, unlocks even more productivity power.
Candidly, the iPad route won't give you access to everything like you may be used to with a traditional laptop. However, more and more people are making the switch and finding that with a few simple shortcuts or even just a different app, just about everything can be done from an iPad.
Read our full Apple iPad Air 5 (2022) review.
The best student tablet for university
The iPad Pro 13-inch is Apple's biggest and best tablet right now. Packing an M4 processor, performance is excellent - making it a great choice tablet for college and university students who need a device that can keep up with heavier workloads.
Its design is thinner and lighter than previous models, while still feeling robust and durable in the hand. You might not be slinging it around, but it'll comfortable slip into your bag and take a few knocks as you take it around campus and to class. Boasting Tandem OLED technology and an impressive 2752 x 2064 resolution, we found the screen bright, dazzling, with outstanding image quality.
Powered by the M4 chip, Apple says the tablet features 20% better thermal performance, four times the rendering performance of the previous iPad, and 50% faster CPU performance compared to the M2. In our own tests, we found performance was excellent, breezing through a range of AI tools and music editing software. But what really impressed us was the ability to conduct complex content creation tasks that ordinarily would require a MacBook Pro.
We were disappointed to find only a single USB 2.0 cable in the box, and the lack of ultra-wide rear camera is also unfortunate. And yes, it's an expensive bit of kit - but highly capable and well-equipped to deal with almost every task a student could throw at it.
Read our full Apple iPad Pro 13-inch review.
The best Android tablet for students
If you're looking for a tablet outside of the Apple Ecosystem, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra is the best option right now for school use and beyond. The included S Pen unlocks so much for creative students, as well as those who would prefer to handwrite notes or draw diagrams. These tablets can expand their storage thanks to a micro-SD card slot.
This tablet packs a good amount of power, while also having an impressive battery life. All in all, if you choose this tablet for your academic endeavors or otherwise, you shouldn't be disappointed, especially if you're deep into the Android ecosystem and you want to have the best compatibility across your devices.
Read our full Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra review
The best student tablet for online classes
If you're mostly taking online classes, then you won't need am ultra-performance tablet - the light, impressive Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite will more than suffice.
With this student tablet, you can easily stream movies, take notes with the included stylus, and thanks to the 8MP rear camera and 5MP front camera, you can join online lessons and video calls and collaborate without worrying if anyone can see or hear you. You can connect Bluetooth headphones for more privacy, and the tablet also includes a 3.5mm audio jack for wired headsets.
This is tablet is our daily driver, so we can attest to the fact that it's pretty robust, generally fast, and we've experienced has no major issues using the S Pen stylus for graphic design, sketching, and note-taking. The biggest problem we've encountered is with the battery life. While you can squeeze a whole day out of it with some battery optimization, we found it best to use it while plugged into the mains - which makes sense for a student tablet for online classes.
Read our full Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite review
How to choose the best student tablet for you
When choosing which student tablet is best for you, there are a number of factors to consider.
The first choice is whether to opt for an Apple, Android, or Windows tablet. iPads can be expensive, but they're a popular choice for performance and power. The range of Android tablets is more extensive, from affordable student tablets to higher-end models that compete with Apple. When it comes to Windows tablets, check out the Microsoft Surface. To help you decide, we've reviewed the best Android tablets and the best iPad tablets available.
Specs
As with buying a laptop, you'll want to check the specs of your chosen tablet. The more CPU and RAM is has, the faster it should be. This will make it easier to run more resource-intensive apps like Photoshop. For devices with even better specs, see our review of the best business tablets.
Screen
Selecting the right screen size is important, as you'll want one with plenty of space to work, without being too large to carry around campus. For that reason, 10-12in models are very popular. Also check resolution - Full HD is preferable for running standard office apps, streaming movies, and video calls.
Features
Student tablets come equipped with a range of features that are worth checking. Check the webcam and camera quality if you're joining online classes. If you're planning on using the tablet for sketching and note-taking, select a model with stylus support (not to be confused with the best drawing tablets).
Battery life
Some tablets have notoriously low battery life, running out well before the final bell rings - so you'll want to explore this area if you need a reliable school tablet to last throughout the day. During our hands-on testing, we always test battery life, so you can get an idea of what to expect.
Design
Ok, the best student tablets look fantastic, but design goes deeper than that. Make sure to assess the dimensions and weight of your device. You'll want to be certain it's portable and won't weigh you down the whole day. Screen panel type can make a difference here. For more durable models for field-work, we've compared the best rugged tablets.
How we test the best student tablets
Our expert review team has tested, reviewed, and rated everything from the best laptops for engineering students to the best cheap tablets you can get right now - and we take our testing process seriously.
To accurately assess how well these school tablets perform, we compared their tech specs and their real-world performance.
We looked at their weight, dimensions, OS, CPU, resolution, battery life, and camera quality. We checked if they had stylus compatibility, if they came with a stylus, how much storage they offered, and SD card support.
We tested their battery life by running different apps on them and seeing how many hours we could get out of them. We also considered their screen size and pricing, among other things.
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