Best laptop for writers in 2025: My top picks as a professional writer for almost 20 years

When selecting the best laptop for writers, the first feature I'm looking at is the depth of key travel - this makes writing more comfortable for prolonged periods. I'm also looking for writing laptops that are portable so you can keep going wherever inspiration strikes, whether you're at home, office, or in the café. You won't normally need the highest specs if you're running a word processor or screenwriting software, but in my view, performance should still be smooth and responsive, keeping you in the zone.

I've been writing professionally for nearly 20 years now, and I've tried and tested a raft of different laptops suitable (and unsuitable) for writing. For my money, you can't go wrong with almost any of the best ThinkPad laptops, which feature the best keyboards on any modern laptop. My personal pick here is the Lenovo ThinkPad T14s, a slim and powerful machine that hasn't slowed me down once.

Check out my top recommendations below, where every featured laptop has been extensively tested and will complement your unique writing process.

For more machines, I've rounded up the best laptops for working from home.

Quick list

Best laptop for writers overall

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In my experience, the Lenovo ThinkPad T14s is the best laptop for writers - I use it almost constantly for this purpose, and it hasn’t let me down. My main reason for ranking this as the best overall is the backlit keyboard. It’s easily one of the most comfortable I’ve ever used in my 18+ years writing professionally. Keys are slightly concave, giving them an ergonomic feel, with a 1.5mm key travel that helps you feel each press. That may not be as deep as the 1.8mm of much older ThinkPads, but compared to modern competition, it’s perfect.

The 14-inch display is bright, vivid, with words appearing clean, clear, and crisp on-screen whatever word processor or screenplay software you’re using. The laptop also boasts a 16:10 aspect ratio, which is fast becoming the popular choice for creatives, offering a little more screen real estate for content creation tasks beyond writing. In addition to this, it also keeps the overall size of the laptop down if you’re planning on writing at home, at work, or anywhere else.Build quality here is also excellent, feeling sturdy and robust in hand.

When it comes to performance, I can state it’s been flawless for me (although I strongly recommend choosing one with an AMD chip over Intel, as the latter has cooling issues). I’ve run a host of word processing apps and online tools, and the ThinkPad has never missed a beat. But then, at its heart, this is a business laptop designed for reliability.

I’ve linked to my T14s Gen 4 review below, as that’s the model I’m currently using (and it’s slightly cheaper than newer versions), but we’ve also reviewed later generations and came away similarly impressed. Physically, they’re all almost identical anyway.

Read our full Lenovo ThinkPad T14s review

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Best laptop for writers on a budget

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The Acer Aspire 5 has been a top pick of ours for anyone who needs a cheap laptop for writing, business, or just general use around the home or office. It's surprisingly powerful, considering the cost and though it's not the thinnest and lightest around, it's still fairly portably at 1.7kg, and nicely robust in construction.

As far as writing goes, we were pleased with the keyboard, which felt firm and comfortable for long sessions of typing - and that's helped by the 1.3mm key travel. Not the deepest we've ever tried, but on par with the Dell and deeper than the MacBook line-up. For word processing, screenwriting, jotting notes, it's more than acceptable.

However, there are clear areas where corners have been cut to keep costs down. Notably, our battery life tests hit 6.5 hours under general usage, and the 720p webcam is borderline unacceptable these days. But these are minor issues, certainly when it comes to writing, where performance remained smooth. Essentially, the Acer Aspire 5 gets the basics right considering the low cost.

Read our full Acer Aspire 5 review

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Best MacBook for writers

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There’s no denying the MacBook Pro dominates the creative scene - and with good reason. Not only is the laptop absolutely stylish and stunning, it’s incredibly powerful too, making it a good choice whether you’re writing or editing images and videos.

The latest version comes equipped with an M4 processor that just shreds anything you put in front of it - and that includes games and 4K video editing. So, it’ll have no trouble running Microsoft Word, Google Docs, Final Draft, or your writing software of choice. In our battery tests, the laptop also ran for over 18 hours on a single charge, which is impressive - and essential for all-day writing.

What stands out to me is the screen - with their Liquid Retina XDR display, these laptops boast the best screens you can find, and picture quality is staggeringly bright and vivid. If you’re spending a lot of hours writing, this is going to make the world of difference. Again, I’ve opted for the 14in model here, as it’s a good size for writing on the go, but the 16-inch model is a great alternative if you need a larger display.

I’m not a huge fan of MacBook keyboards, but I’m in the minority here. To me, they feel slightly spongy, and the 1mm key travel on the newest model is shallower than I’d like. If that’s not a deal-breaker for you (or you’re hooking up a full-sized keyboard), this writing laptop should get the creative juices flowing.

Read our full Apple MacBook Pro 14-inch (M4) review

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Best big-screen laptop for writers

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Some writers like a large screen, which helps get a better overview of the words on the page. If that’s the case, I like what’s on offer from the Dell XPS 17. That 17in display isn’t just big, but beautiful too. This is a glorious 4K screen in 16:10 ratio, and even proved to have great color accuracy and coverage (we recorded it as 188.8% sRGB and 133.7% DCI-P3). That’s going to be important for anyone keen to use this laptop for more than writing, particularly photo and video editing.

Performance-wise, we experienced absolutely no issues here. Everything we ran during our test and review process was outstanding, without lag and slowdown. But, as with others in this round-up, this is first and foremost a business laptop, designed to power through a range of productivity tasks. In fact, the only real problem with this laptop is the feeble 720p webcam, which is a let-down considering the cost. But that’s a minor gripe, really, when stacked against the many positives.

When it comes to the keyboard, I find Dell a good middle-ground between a ThinkPad and a MacBook. Key travel is around 1.3mm, with good tactile feedback when pressing each one. While you could choose the ThinkPad T16 or MacBook Pro 16-inch, for a big screen to complement your writing, the XPS 17 stands above both.

Read our full Dell XPS 17 review

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Best writing laptop for travelers

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For writing on the go, with maximum portability, there’s really only one option worth its salt: the Apple MacBook Air. Like most Apple devices, it’s a popular pick for creatives, boasting impressive performance for a range of tasks, from editing media to running office apps and writing tools. It’s available in 13in and 15in screen (read our review here), both remaining slim, light, and travel-friendly.

In our own tests, the MacBook Air performed extremely well (did you doubt it? This is Apple, after all). Used for everyday purposes like running office and productivity apps, the system felt smooth, fast, responsive. Tests with Photoshop and GarageBand also showed this is a laptop that won’t buckle under the pressure of heavier workloads. The battery also performed well in our tests, where it lasted over 14 hours. If you’re writing at your local cafe or quiet space, this will keep you powered up for most of the day. However, the base unit only comes with 8GB RAM and a 256GB SSD - and while that’s going to be enough to run a word processor, I’d strongly recommend choosing a model with more memory and storage for future-proofed performance

Again, the keyboard isn’t the absolute best for writing, and depending on the model, it ranges somewhere between 0.5 - 1mm . But that’s the trade-off for maintaining the ultra-slim, portable profile here. For best results, connect a full-sized keyboard, as it’ll be a lot more comfortable. It’s also worth noting that while we’re seeing the M4 feature in the MacBook Pro. In terms of performance, that shouldn’t make a massive difference - especially when running writing software - but you may want to hold off until the M4 version is released, when the M3 model receives its inevitable discount.

Read our full Apple MacBook Air (M3) review

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Best laptop for writing and editing

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If you want more versatility from your writing laptop, the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 2-in-1 is a superb two-in-one device that pulls double duty as a laptop and tablet. During our review, we found this form-factor especially good for editing, tucking away the keyboard, spinning the display into portrait orientation, then using the Lenovo stylus to mark-up documents on the touchscreen.

As with most ThinkPad laptops, the keyboard here is fantastic for long sessions writing with a 1.5mm key depth travel that provides good feedback. And, similarly, this business-focused laptop performs fantastically too. We experienced no performance issues during use across a range of tasks, including writing, editing, uploading to a content management system, alongside the standard business tasks, like handling video calls. Beyond the 2-in-1 nature of this device, I’m particularly impressed with the overall robustness of this laptop - it might not be rugged in the truest form, but thanks to its MIL-SPEC 810H certification, the laptop does feel durable, for those working away from the home or office.

If there’s a downside here, it’s the price. This is undoubtedly an expensive machine - and whether this dual-form design is right for you will largely depend on your workflow. As an alternative, an iPad with a detachable keyboard isn’t a bad option, and neither is the older Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga Gen 8 (check out our review here).

Read our full Lenovo ThinkPad X1 2-in-1 Gen 9 review

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Best laptop for writing and gaming

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All gaming laptops will be able to handle word processing or screenplay apps without breaking a sweat. After all, if a machine can run the latest games, the likes of Word, Celtx, or Fade In will be nothing. I’ve opted for the HP Omen Transcend 14, however, because during our review, we found the backlit keyboard to be very impressive. Typing is comfortable, even for longer periods of time, with keys feeling springy and responsive, and I like the key travel of 1.38mm.

Gaming performance is good for modern titles at 1080p, although we did note the laptop beginning the struggle once higher resolutions kick in. But then, this is a 14in laptop, where higher resolutions aren’t necessarily required (and in some cases, just a waste). On the plus side, on medium settings, the OLED screen makes games look very nice indeed and the 16:10 aspect ratio is great for those using this laptop for writing and playing immersive single-player games - although not ideal for competitive gaming. Battery life is also so-so, where we clocked it at almost six hours on one charge while running Chrome. Not great for writing while out and about, but acceptable if you’re not straying too far from a mains outlet.

Still, for a laptop that’s suitable for writing and gaming, the keyboard offers a great overall experience compared to other, similar devices with limited key depth.

Read our full HP Omen Transcend 14 review

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How to choose the best laptop for writers for you

Keyboard

When choosing which laptop is good for writing, your first priority will likely be be the keyboard - after all, that's where the real work is done. ThinkPad, MacBook, and Dell XPS laptops all boast comfortable keyboards. However, I generally champion ThinkPad due to the deeper key travel, which delivers more feedback during the writing process.

RAM

Writing software doesn't usually require the biggest and best specs around, so you can generally get lower-spec machines to run the likes of Word and Final Draft. However, I'd recommend getting as much RAM as you can. With more memory, a writing laptop will power through tasks without interrupting your flow.

Storage

Word files are small, and with cloud storage and flash drive options, you may not need a huge amount of storage space. But having said that, I'd suggest opting for a device with at least 512 to 1TB SSD as a minimum - especially as machines like the MacBook Pro can add a fair amount of system files, chipping away at your available space.

Design

In this round-up, most options are 14in. In my experience, this offers a good balance - big enough to see everything on-screen, small enough to travel without weighing you down. If you're more likely to use your writing laptop for editing, then I suggest a two-in-one design, where you can use a stylus and tablet-form and more easily make notes and comments by hand.

How we test the best laptops for writers

My team and I have tested a broad range of laptops suitable for writers, including the best MacBook Pro and ThinkPad laptops and the best business laptops.

With a wealth of options for writers and editors, in this round-up, we've provided a thorough rundown of the top options on the market. We've done this by pitting each laptop's key features against each other, analyzing speed, power, storage, graphics, and screen size.

Given the particular requirements of writers and journalists, however, we've also made a point to note other factors that could prove key in your decision-making. As many writers spend a lot of time in front of their screens, we've looked at what each laptop's display offers, including whether additional considerations like blue light filers are included.

For the same reason, we've also considered ease of use and comfort, trackpad performance, port and storage options, and - for those regularly on the move - we've also tested each laptop's battery life and portability.

For more details, check out our guide on how we test laptops and desktops at TechRadar.