The 6 Best Windows Laptops - Fall 2024

The best Windows laptop we've tested overall is the HP Spectre x360 14 (2024), a premium 2-in-1 laptop. This laptop is a great choice for most people as it's lightweight, remarkably well-built, and offers good performance for light productivity tasks like text processing, spreadsheets, web browsing, and video playback. It's configured with Intel's new Core Ultra CPUs and features a sharp 2.8k OLED display, a spacious keyboard, and an easy-to-use haptic touchpad. The display supports pen input using Microsoft Pen Protocol technology, although not every model includes a stylus. You get a decent port selection with one USB-A Port and two USB-Cs that support Thunderbolt 4, power delivery, and more. The battery lasts around eleven hours for light use, so you can make it through the day on a single charge. Unfortunately, this laptop uses soldered RAM, so get enough for your needs upfront.

Another option to consider is the Framework Laptop 13 (2023), a modular laptop designed to be easily repairable and upgradeable. You can buy every component in this 13-inch ultraportable from Framework, and they even provide manuals to guide you through the replacement process. It has a bright 3:2 display, a good 1080p webcam, and a modular port system that lets you swap out the ports to adapt to any situation. The keyboard feels tactile but requires a fair amount of force to actuate the keys, causing fatigue, and the touchpad isn't as responsive as the HP's. Also, depending on where you live, it may be hard to get this laptop because it's only available to buy on Framework's website.

If you're looking for something a bit more affordable, check out the HP Pavilion Aero 13 (2024), our best mid-range pick. Like the HP above, this is an ultraportable designed for light to moderately demanding productivity tasks, like text processing, web browsing, programming, and photo editing. However, it isn't a 2-in-1, so you can't use it as a tablet, and there's no pen input support either. It's available with Zen 4-based AMD Ryzen CPUs, up to a Ryzen 7 8840HS, 16GB of RAM (even on the base model), and up to 1TB of storage. Unfortunately, you can't get more than 16GB of memory or add more later since it isn't user-replaceable. The storage drive is upgradeable, though, as the laptop uses a standard M.2 2280 NVMe SSD.

As for the build quality and overall user experience, it's a bit of a mixed bag. Though compact and lightweight, this laptop has a cheap, hollow feel to it. Its aluminum and plastic chassis flexes noticeably, and the finish is prone to scratches. The keyboard feels spacious, albeit a tad fatiguing over an extended period, and the touchpad is responsive but doesn't always work properly when performing actions like dragging and dropping over a long distance. Thankfully, the available displays are good, as both the FHD+ and QHD+ look sharp and get bright enough for use in well-lit settings. You get a great port selection with four USBs and an HDMI 2.1, as well as a 1440p webcam with facial recognition support for quick logins. All in all, it's a good device if you don't mind a couple of compromises.

The best budget Windows laptop we've tested is the ASUS Vivobook 16 M1605 (2023). This 16-inch model is a reliable everyday laptop that's portable despite its larger screen and relatively sturdy, easy to service. Its AMD Ryzen CPUs are adequate for general productivity tasks like text processing, spreadsheets, presentations, and web browsing. It also has a decent port selection that supports power delivery and fast charging over USB-C, but not video output or Thunderbolt 4. Its battery life is good enough to get through an eight-hour day with light use, but anything more intensive (including video playback) will require you to plug it in to charge.

Although its display is large, the IPS panel looks slightly washed out and isn't bright enough to combat glare in well-lit settings. Also, the speakers sound boxy and unnatural, so this laptop doesn't provide you with the best multimedia experience.

Our best cheap pick is the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i 15 (2023), a 15-inch Windows ultraportable. It's available with various Intel 13th Gen CPUs, from a Core i3 to i7, and up to 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage. The Intel CPUs can easily handle light productivity tasks like text processing, web browsing, and video playback. The cheaper configurations come with a low-quality TN panel for the display, so you'll have to spend a bit more if you upgrade to an IPS display. The keyboard feels comfortable to type on, and the touchpad is small but responsive. The webcam is surprisingly good, allowing you to look and sound clear on video calls.

Its port selection is good; you get two USB-As, a USB-C, an HDMI, and an SD card reader. The USB-C supports video output and charging but not Thunderbolt 4, which is unfortunate but expected for a budget-friendly model. A fingerprint sensor is present for quick logins. The biggest downside is its battery life, which lasts less than seven hours of light use. Compared to the ASUS Vivobook 16 M1605 (2023) above, this model has a slightly brighter display, but its 16:9 aspect ratio isn't as well suited for productivity, as you get less vertical space, forcing you to scroll more often when reading a document or website. You can get this laptop on Lenovo's website.

The best Windows workstation laptop we've tested is the Dell XPS 16 (2024). This premium model has a sleek, modern design with edge-to-edge keys, an invisible touchpad, a capacitive function row, and impossibly thin bezels. It's available with Intel Meteor Lake CPUs paired with integrated graphics or an NVIDIA discrete GPU, up to an RTX 4070, giving you enough processing power to tackle intensive workloads like programming, video editing, and 3D modeling. RAM and storage max out at 64GB and 4TB, respectively. Unlike older XPS models, the RAM is no longer user-replaceable, so get enough for your needs upfront. As for the display, you can choose between a 120Hz FHD+ IPS or a 90Hz 4k+ OLED panel. We highly recommend the latter, as an FHD+ resolution is inadequate for a 16-inch screen, but know that it'll cost more.

As for the user experience, it depends on your taste and willingness to adapt. The keyboard's edge-to-edge keys can cause more typos (due to the lack of space between the keys), and because the touchpad is invisible, you can sometimes be right at the edge where the tracking is inconsistent. The capacitive function row is also controversial and might not be to everyone's liking (Apple got rid of the Touch Bar for a reason). Its battery life is good at around nine to 10 hours of light use on a model with a Core Ultra 9 processor and RTX 4060—you'll get even more on models with integrated graphics only. You get Wi-Fi 7 wireless connectivity, a fingerprint sensor, a facial recognition camera for quick logins, and an okay port selection with three USB-C Thunderbolt 4s and a MicroSD card reader.

If you like a tablet with a detachable keyboard form factor, the Microsoft Surface Pro 8 (2021) is the one to get. It has a nice 3:2 display with a 120Hz refresh rate to provide better responsiveness, especially for pen input. It's compatible with Microsoft's Surface Pen or any third-party Microsoft Pen Protocol styluses. However, you must buy the stylus separately; the same goes for the keyboard. To Microsoft's credit, it's a pretty good keyboard with tactile keys and backlighting. Its 1080p webcam is among the best on the market, and like most Surface devices, there's a facial recognition IR camera. The battery lasts around seven to eight hours of light use, which is pretty respectable for such a thin tablet PC.

Note: Microsoft has announced a new Surface Pro 11th Edition (in pre-order at the time of writing), so it might be worth waiting to make any purchasing decision. This device runs on Qualcomm's Snapdragon X ARM-based SoC, promising longer battery life and better performance than laptops with an Intel or AMD CPU. Microsoft has also announced a new Prism translation layer tool, similar to Apple's Rosetta 2, to improve compatibility and performance in x86 applications. However, it's hard to say how well it works at this time. Other new features include an OLED display option, Wi-Fi 7, and a type cover keyboard you can use even when detached from the device. We've purchased this Surface Pro and will test it soon, so stay tuned. In the meantime, you can see more details here.