Looking for the best laptops you can buy in 2024? Then we're here to help, as on this page you'll find a wide variety of laptops, MacBooks, Chromebooks and more that are ideal purchases for a wide range of needs and budgets - and every single one has been tested by our laptop experts here at TechRadar.
As well as using the laptops as our day-to-day devices, we also put them through a wide range of benchmark tests, and only the very best performing laptops make it onto this page. You can read more on how we test laptops, which lists all the ways we put laptops through their paces during our reviews.
Since joining TechRadar in 2014 I've reviewed hundreds of laptops, and for the past few years this buying guide has been dominated by MacBooks. However, I'm excited to say that for the first time ever, the best laptop of 2024 is a device from Apple's arch nemesis Microsoft. That's right, the best laptop you can buy today is the brilliant Surface Laptop 7, a truly excellent all-rounder with a gorgeous design and all-day battery life. With the stunning new Dell XPS 13 (2024), which has also been added to this guide, this could be the start of a renaissance for Windows 11 laptops.
However, if you don't fancy a Windows laptop, I've included a huge range of other options, including MacBooks, budget Chromebooks, powerful gaming laptops and everything in between. With a new generation of artificial intelligence-enabled laptops hitting the market (including the Surface Laptop 7), there has never been a more exciting time to buy, so read on for our top picks.
Recent updates
This page has been updated as of 20/08/2024 with the new Dell XPS 13 (2024) added as the best Windows 11 laptop money can buy right now.
The best laptop overall
After years of this year being dominated by various MacBook Air models, Microsoft has surprised us all with the release of the Surface Laptop - a device that's stylish, powerful and with a long lasting battery, and has earned its place as the best laptop for most people in 2024.
Microsoft is calling the 2024 edition simply the Surface Laptop, in a bid to highlight that despite this actually being the seventh version, it's a major reinvention - and for once, this isn't just marketing bluff. Thanks to the revolutionary Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite chip that powers the new Surface Laptop, not only does Windows 11 feel fast and responsive, but thanks to how efficient it is, battery life is seriously impressive - and the fans rarely kick in, so you're not distracted by their whirring.
As a flagship entry in a new range of 'Copilot+ PCs', the Surface Laptop also has deeply integrated AI (Artificial Intelligence) features included, such as the Copilot assistant and Cocreator tool that turns your scribbles in Paint into AI-generated art. Most of this is all done on-device thanks to the Snapdragon X chip, which means you don't need an internet connection, and your data is kept safe and secure. The AI features are currently in their infancy and far from essential, but the potential is huge - and even without them, the Surface Laptop is a brilliant device that will the ideal laptop for most people. Microsoft has finally come up with a MacBook killer.
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Reasons to buy
✅ You want the best laptop in the world: The new Surface Laptop is a stunning reinvention, offering build quality, performance and battery life that puts most competitors to shame.
✅ You want a long-lasting portable laptop: The Surface Laptop comes in 14-inch and 15-inch configurations, and even the larger model is thin and light enough to carry around - and its battery life means you won't need to look for a plug socket.
✅ You want a great productivity machine: The Surface Laptop offers excellent performance thanks to the new Qualcomm chip that powers it. Designed for AI tasks, it works particularly well with Windows 11's Copilot features.
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Reasons to avoid
❌ You need lots of ports: Sadly, the thin and light design of the Surface Laptop comes at a price, as you only get two USB-C ports and a USB-A port (though the 15-inch model also sports a microSD slot).
❌ You want to play games: The ARM-based chip comes with an integrated GPU, which is fine for most tasks, but isn't able to handle demanding games.
❌ You hate Windows 11: The Surface Laptop offers a stylish design and dependable performance you'd usually expect from an Apple device... but running Windows 11. If you don't like that operating system, then get the MacBook Air (M3) instead (which is also in this guide).
In-depth analysis
Microsoft's Surface devices have always been stylish products, and 2024's Surface Laptop is no different. It has a thin and light chassis that is easy to carry around, yet feels sturdy and premium. The keyboard feels comfortable and responsive to use, the screen screen with HDR support and 120Hz refresh rate is stunning and the overall design is very reminiscent of MacBooks. The only issue is a lack of ports.
Thanks to the ARM-based Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite chip, the Surface Laptop is an incredible productivity performer, and in our review we found that Windows 11 felt fast and responsive, and all the apps we loaded up worked without issue. This is great to see, as previous ARM-based Windows laptops could not run apps that were designed for Intel or AMD chips. Thankfully, that's no longer the case. While you can't play demanding games on this thing, for day-to-day use, it's an incredible laptop.
Thanks to the power efficiencies of the ARM chip inside the Surface Laptop, the battery life of this device is excellent, offering 15 hours of life on a single charge during our time with the device. In real-world use, I found I only needed to charge the 15-inch model once, then happily used it as my main work laptop for three work days before needing to charge it again - which is seriously impressive. The 15-inch model has a larger battery, but due to the larger screen, battery life should be similar between 13-inch and 15-inch models.
The smaller model of the Surface Laptop starts at $999.99 / £1,049.99 / AU$1,899, while the larger model starts at $1,299.99 / £1,349 / AU$2,399. While these certainly aren't budget prices, they still offer excellent value for money compared to similarly-powerful laptops - and it means the Surface Laptop is also cheaper than the MacBook Air (M3) as well.
| Attributes | Notes | Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Price | The price of the new Surface Laptop is excellent considering what you get for your money | ★★★★☆ |
| Design | As with other Surface devices, this laptop looks and feels premium | ★★★★★ |
| Performance | Thanks to the new ARM chip from Qualcomm, the Surface Laptop offers a huge upgrade from its predecessors | ★★★★★ |
| Battery life | You can expect between 15 to 20 hours of battery life from this laptop | ★★★★★ |
💻 The Surface Laptop is truly an incredible portable machine, all thanks to the Qualcomm Snapdragon chip it's equipped with. Performance, battery life, light and thin, price, sound quality, and more are all top-notch, making it an easy pick for best laptop of 2024. Read the full review: Microsoft Surface Laptop 7
The best budget laptop
The Lenovo IdeaPad Duet 5 Chromebook is the best ultra-low price laptop you can buy, and it's a brilliant follow-up to the original IdeaPad Duet. While it’s been out for a while, Chromebooks don’t date as quickly as Windows laptops, and it's still one of the best Chromebooks we've used. If you're a Chromebook skeptic, the IdeaPad Duet 5 Chromebook just might convert you. It can be used as both a laptop and a tablet thanks to its detachable keyboard, while also boasting an impressively long battery life. You're simply not going to find a Windows 11 laptop that can outlast the over 16-hour battery life the Lenovo IdeaPad Duet 5 Chromebook offers – especially at this price. It’s a particularly good choice for students who want something reliable, flexible and affordable.
Reasons to buy
✅ You want an OLED Chromebook: An OLED display on a Chromebook is uncommon, so if that's what you're looking for, this is the best choice.
✅ You need long battery life: It's possible to squeeze over 16 hours of battery life out of this Chromebook if you make the right adjustments in settings.
✅ You want a more robust system than Android or iOS can offer: As powerful as Android and iOS have become, mobile operating systems are still far more restricted than Windows, macOS, or Linux OS.
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Reasons to avoid
❌ You have more limited manual dexterity: Some may find the Duet's smaller-than-standard keyboard a bit fiddly. If that's likely to be the case for you, a larger laptop such as the Acer Swift 3 (skip to that entry) may be a better option.
❌ You're on a tight budget: The Duet 5 Chromebook is incredibly affordable for the premium features it offers, but it's not the best option out there for those on a tight budget.
❌ You want a traditional laptop OS: Chrome OS isn't as robust as Windows 10 or macOS and it isn't meant to be. If you want a traditional laptop environment, a Chromebook will only get you part of the way there, which may not be enough to satisfy your needs.
In-depth analysis
The Duet 5 Chromebook's keyboard is Ultrabook-worthy in quality and comfort, and it can be easily detached, turning the Duet 5 into a tablet-like device. Meanwhile, the magnetized backplate on the Duet 5 Chromebook has a small clip to house a Lenovo Active Pen stylus, even though the stylus isn't included in the box. The best thing about the design, however, is the gorgeous 1080p OLED display, which offers exceptional image quality - especially considering the price.
When it comes to general web browsing, video streaming, and basic productivity use, the Duet 5 does exactly what you want it to do without so much as a hiccup. Its CPU is upgraded to the Qualcomm Snapdragon 7c Gen2 processor, which is a step up from the last model, and the 8GB of RAM is a decent amount for a Chromebook, keeping things running very smoothly.
While Chromebooks on average get about 10 hours of life on a fully-charged battery, the Lenovo Duet 5 lasted a huge 16 hours. This is a drop from the previous model (which managed over 20 hours), which is disappointing.
As far as Chromebooks and 2-in-1 laptops go, this is hands down the best value you're going to find in a portable device of its kind. When it launched, it was more expensive than its predecessor, but over time, its price has dropped, making it superb value for money. However, it would be even better value for money if a stylus was included. If you want to make the most out of this Chromebook, you’ll need to spend a bit more money for a compatible stylus.
| Attributes | Notes | Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Price | It's by far the best budget laptop around | ★★★★★ |
| Design | The 2-in-1 design and OLED screen sets this Chromebook apart | ★★★★☆ |
| Performance | Dependable rather than ultra powerful | ★★★☆☆ |
| Battery life | Over 16 hours will keep you going through an entire work day | ★★★★★ |
💻 The Lenovo IdeaPad Duet 5 Chromebook packs a punch with outstanding battery life, a gorgeous display, and a new form factor that improves on last year's model – as long as you're looking for a laptop more than a tablet. Read the full review: Lenovo IdeaPad Duet 5 Chromebook
The best MacBook
The Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (M3) is the best MacBook you can buy right now. The design remains thin, light and stylish, and it's packed with Apple's latest M3 chip, giving this slimline laptop excellent performance for day-to-day tasks - and it even does a great job of handling more intensive workloads like editing videos. A new lower price for the entry-level model means this is an easy recommendation for people looking for a brilliant all-rounder of a laptop, but be warned: the base model’s specs - especially the 8GB of memory and 256GB SSD storage - feel a bit outdated in 2024.
Reasons to buy
✅ You want the best MacBook for your money: The new MacBook Air 13-inch is now the MacBook we'd recommend to pretty much anyone thanks to a great design, excellent performance and relatively affordable price.
✅ You want a laptop for traveling with: The stylish thin and light design, plus the long battery life, makes this an excellent laptop for going out and about with.
✅ You want power - but not too much: The new M3 chip powering the MacBook Air is great at day-to-day tasks, as well as video editing and AI.
Show expert analysis ▼
Reasons to avoid
❌ You only have the budget for the cheapest MacBook: The MacBook Air 13-inch (M3) comes with a new, lower price, but the M2 model (also in this list) has also dropped in price, making that the cheapest MacBook you can buy.
❌ You want plenty of ports: The MacBook Air (M3) once again features just two Thunderbolt ports. If you have a lot of peripherals to plug in, you'll need to use a hub or adaptor.
❌ You want a bigger screen: The 13-inch screen of the new MacBook Air makes it nice and portable, but some people may find it a bit too small to work on - in that case, you should consider the 15-inch model instead.
In-depth analysis
The latest MacBook Air sticks to the same design as the previous M2 model - but that's fine with us. It has a stylish and modern look that's easy to carry around and comfortable to work on. This does mean that port selection remains limited, which won't be a deal breaker for many people, but if you have lots of peripherals you need to plug in, you'll want to invest in a USB-C hub or look into getting a MacBook Pro.
The new MacBook Air comes with the latest M3 chip - and there are actually two versions you can buy: a base model with an 8-core CPU and 8-core GPU, and a more powerful version with an 8-core CPU and 10-core GPU. The base model also comes with 8GB of memory, which is quite low by today's standards. If you have the budget we recommend configuring the MacBook Air (M3) to come with more memory, up to a maximum of 24GB. While reviewing the MacBook Air (M3), we found it to perform brilliantly, with macOS booting fast and running smoothly, even with multiple apps open at once.
Apple claims the MacBook Air 13-inch (M3) can last up to 18 hours watching Apple TV shows and 15 hours browsing the internet, though in our battery life benchmark tests (which involve playing a looped 1080p video) the 13-inch MacBook Air lasted a bit less than that, at 14 hours and 19 minutes. That's an excellent time for a laptop of this power, however it is slightly less than the previous model lasted in the same tests, which could suggest the bump in performance has come at the cost of efficiency.
The MacBook Air 13-inch (M3) starts at $1,099 / £1,099 / AU$1,799. This is slightly higher than the older M1 MacBook Air’s launch price of $999 / £999 / AU$1,599. However, this is less than the M2 model's launch price, which began at $1,199 / £1,249 / AU$1,899 when it launched in 2022. It's great to see prices go down, rather than up, with new models, though it should be noted that with the launch of the M3 model, the M2 model is still being sold by Apple for a new, lower price of $999 / £999 / AU$1,599. So, if you want real value for money when buying a MacBook, the M2 model is now the one to go for.
| Attributes | Notes | Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Apple has lowered the starting price for the latest MacBook Air making it much better value | ★★★★★ |
| Design | No new design, but it remains one of the best looking laptops in 2024 | ★★★★★ |
| Performance | Performance is great thanks to the M3 chip, but it's not a huge leap over the M2 version | ★★★★☆ |
| Battery life | You can work on this laptop for a whole work day on a single charge | ★★★★★ |
💻 The MacBook Air 13-inch (M3) is easily the best MacBook (and one of the best laptops overall) that money can buy for most people, though we recommend boosting the memory and storage space when ordering. That makes it more expensive, but far more future-proof. Read the full review: Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (M3)
