It does n’t matter if you ’re in secondary school , university or look to undertake a Ph.D. – no bookman can get by without a great laptop to back them up .
This is where we come in . We review a large issue of laptops every year , so we ’ve been able-bodied to find which are the best pick for your study . We also know that every university / college course is different , so we ’ve made sure to select a variety , from simple portables for whap out essay , to more powerful selection for the creatives out there .
We ’ve also tried to keep budgets as low as potential to see to it you ’ve got enough money in the bank for as many Pot Noodles as possible . There are a few dear laptops here for those who want them , but also some budget grease one’s palms for those happy to give functioning or make use of ChromeOS instead of Windows and macOS .
Our team of experts have fully reviewed every single laptop computer on this listing , so you may feel rest reassure that you ’re getting a high - tone PC that ’s been exhaustively tested .
Ca n’t bump a laptop computer that takes your fondness ? Then make certain to check out our other guides , includingbest budget laptops , best laptops for video recording editingand thebest laptopsoverall . Otherise , keep scrolling down to find the best student laptop computer for your study .
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Learn more about how we test laptops
Every laptop computer we survey goes through a series of uniform check designed to estimate key things including shape quality , carrying out , cover character and battery animation .
These include stately synthetic bench mark and scripted tests , plus a serial of real world checks , such as how well it runs the most frequently used apps .
We also ensure to expend every laptop computer we review as our primary machine for at least a week to ensure our followup is as accurate as potential .
Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441 (2024)
Pros
Cons
Apple MacBook Air M3
Asus Zenbook 14 OLED
Asus Vivobook Go 15 OLED
Asus Chromebook Plus CX34
Huawei Matebook 14 (2024)
Microsoft Surface Laptop 7
Lenovo Yoga Pro 9i 16
Samsung Galaxy Book4 Pro 360
Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 (2024)
MacBook Air M1
Trusted Score
TheDell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441 ( 2024)is our top testimonial for a student laptop computer thanks to its fantastic performance , solid presentation and excellent shelling life story .
The Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441 ( 2024 ) has a well - made brush aluminium design and is reasonably slender at 14.69 mm . It ’s on the lumbering side for an ultrabook , but still more than portable enough to slot into a bag without much thought .
One benefit to its slightly bombastic size is the well - rounded selection of ports . This includes two USB 4 Type - ascorbic acid ports , one USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type - A port , a 3.5 millimetre jackstones and a MicroSD reader .
We found the keyboard to be strong , offering snappy travel and a fingermark reader for Windows Hello integration .
The 14 - inch IPS touchscreen display has a QHD+ firmness and offers sold direct contrast , inscrutable blacks and stark temperature . The screen is vivacious and colour truth is comme il faut , though below the level require for some creative workload .
Performance from the 10 - core Snapdragon X Plus micro chip is surprisingly brisk and the 1 TB SSD is great too , offering some of the expert and fastest speeds of any laptop computer we ’ve tested . Windows 11 comes with minimal bloatware and there are some nifty AI feature bake into some apps good manners of that Snapdragon X Plus SoC. There ’s also prompt admittance to Microsoft ’s AI assistant via the Copilot winder .
The barrage life here is first-class . We were able to get intimately two full workings solar day out of the Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 7441 ( 2024 ) before reaching for the courser . charge is in good order tight too , with a full charge possible in about 75 minutes .
Few laptops , if any , have been the quintessential “ student laptop ” purchase as often as the MacBook Air , and it is no different in 2024 with theMacBook Air M3 13 - column inch .
The newfangled example does n’t switch much up when compared with the old M2 model , beyond the silicon chip itself . But , it offers a square jump up in performance across the board if you want the thinning sharpness of fanless MacBook business leader .
What you get is whisper - smooth powerfulness in a chassis that can harness serious productiveness with ease along with plenty of lightness to middleweight redaction workloads . It ’s a packet that is a delight to use with a brilliant LCD exhibit , top - notch keyboard along with a self-aggrandising and responsive trackpad . Now , with MagSafe add together last year , you get that and a handy set of Thunderbolt ports as well
Despite its fragile , light and luxuriant design that ’s staggeringly portable , you still get a stunning amount of battery lifetime for those prospicient written report sessions . With up to 15 hours of battery life in our examination .
TheAsus Zenbook 14 OLEDis one of the good laptops we ’ve critique in recent months . Costing just above £ 1000/$1000 , it ’s an expensive option for students , but offers such a well - rounded software package that it ’s deserving mix up up the cash if your budget can extend so far .
Thanks to the comprehension of the Intel Core Ultra processor , it offers one of the faster performance available at this price point . In fact , it aced our benchmark test , surpassing the Brobdingnagian bulk of Windows ultrabooks from 2023 .
Despite its herculean performance , the laptop computer only weighs 1.29 kg , making it portable enough to stuff between lecture halls without back nervous strain . It ’s got a gorgeous OLED cover too , which will come handy when determine movies / TV bear witness during your downtime . Even battery life is telling , endure just timid of 13 hours during our tests .
The Asus Zenbook 14 organic light-emitting diode is such a well rounded laptop that it ’s hard to look past it unless you choose macOS or demand surplus computer graphic power if you ’re on a creative course of action . And if the price is too gamy , it ’s worth checking out theAsus Vivobook Go 15 OLEDfurther down this list .
When choose for a budget laptop for your studies , roughly around the £ 500/$500 mark , you ’ll be forced into making numerous via media – but not so with theAsus Vivobook Go 15 OLED .
This laptop has a well - built plastic design that ’s illumination enough to behave around on the even , and to our great surprise , a lovely OLED screen that establish movie marathons an absolute joy . The large 15 - inch should also make it easier to suit more text on your screen , which should be helpful for both essay typewrite and scanning documents .
The biggest publication with this laptop is that it ’s not very hefty , falling behind the likes of theSurface Laptop Go 3 in our tests . But during our time with the laptop computer , we found it dead tolerable for browse the web , writing up essay and look out videos . As long as you ’re not going to push it too intemperately – such as photo / video editing – the public presentation should be fine .
So if you ’re looking for a supremely chintzy Windows laptop with a top - notch CRT screen , you ’ll struggle to do better than the Asus Vivobook Go 15 OLED . TheSurface Laptop Go 2is another great flash Windows laptop computer worth view , but Microsoft is sadly phase it out of store , so you may only be able to pick it up 2d - hand in the coming months .
TheAsus Chromebook Plus CX34is an organic evolution of the ChromeOS formula . Not only does it exemplify a gimmick that student can be safe in the knowledge that will help them get their essays spell , but it now wield added originative chops and eyeglasses too .
Chromebook Pluslaunched last month as Google ’s new initiative for products using its ChromeOS . The standard call for a minimum specs and Asus was chop-chop on the bandwagon . The Chromebook Plus CX34 we tested simply met that minimum spec , nothing more and nothing less . That means 8 GB RAM and an Intel Core i3 mainframe . The latter part of that may frighten off you but , with the 8 GB random access memory and lightweight ChromeOS , the CX34 performed in a windy way . This is a great machine for essay writing , web browsing and medium consumption .
But , the creative capabilities that a Chromebook Plus gadget make for with it means that this Asus is open of running Adobe Photoshop for the web and wielding the power of Google ’s Magic Eraser to fleetly straighten up your photos .
Outside of the performance and software , the Chromebook Plus CX34 helps with essays by having a keyboard that ’s a joy to typewrite on while helping you get well connected to whatever computer peripheral you need for your course , due to the pleasing range of ports . Battery life wo n’t hold you back either , with this gadget make do over one day ’s workplace .
When you recollect about gravid laptop that pack in ton of eye - catch eyeglasses into a fair portable chassis , usually it ’s theMacBook Air M3that first comes to mind but if you ’re not a grownup fan of MacOS and would rather stick with Windows then theHuawei Matebook 14should be your next port of call .
For starters , if you’re able to nibble up the Matebook 14 in its lovely green variant ( as seen in our brushup ) , then please do so . It ’s a sleek colour option that just helps to give the laptop computer some flair , and it ’ll certainly make it place upright out in a program library meet with grey laptops .
Beyond the aesthetic , it ’s the bright and gorgeous 2.8 K OLED display that will probably lead to fellow pupil push around you to get a good feel for themselves . Not only is this great for reading documents and watching film at the end of the day , but the 3:2 aspect ratio is brilliantly suited for multi - window working .
If you do need to channelise to the front of the lecture hall for a presentation then do n’t worry , you ’re more than cover where ports are concerned . On this laptop computer you get two USB - A port , one for USB - C , a 3.5 mm headphone jack and crucially , a HDMI port .
While the laptop computer does n’t quite meet Huawei ’s claim of a 19 - time of day battery aliveness , we were still able to get through 10 - hours of employment when loop simulate productivity workloads , which surely is n’t defective as a means of getting you through the day .
give that the edition of theMicrosoft Surface Laptop 7we tested has a £ 2149/$2099.99 cost tag , it ’s fair to say that the gadget simply wo n’t be for most pupil , and if you ’re tied to a budget then there are piles of great choice found within this very lean . However , because of its inclusion of a Snapdragon X Elite chipset , 32 GB RAM and a 1 TB SSD , it is the ripe selection for those who need a muscular laptop for power intensive courses .
For instance , if your prefer course affect work with AI mannequin then the ARM - based Snapdragon chipset can give you far more room for geographic expedition thanks to its onboard neuronic engine that ’s designed around delivering AI capability .
In our benchmark examination via Geekbench , Cinebench and 3DMark , the Surface Laptop 7 perform incredibly well , and even beyond that it was able to execute in almost total muteness , which underline the efficiency of the latest ARM - based chipsets .
The other benefit of this SoC central processing unit arrive in the shape of an elongate battery biography , and in our examination the Surface Laptop 7 was capable to run for 22 hours and 20 minute which was unthinkable only a generation ago . So long as you ’ve got the budget to cover it , the Surface Laptop 7 is a must - corrupt for power - athirst users .
For the prospicient fourth dimension it was the excellentLenovo Yoga Pro 9i 16that held this spot , but with heaps of top executive and far more ports to boot , theAsus Vivobook Pro 15was able to swoop in and take the win .
work as a powerhouse laptop for both creatives and gamers , the Vivobook Pro 15 has some impressive specs under the toughie . The modelling we test come with a herculean AMD Ryzen 9 7940HS CPU , alongside a modern RTX 4060 graphics card .
With that form of power at your disposal , you wo n’t have any issue with dive between a bit of Photoshop and video editing during the solar day before switching thing up by diving event into your Steam program library after your to - do listing is done .
If you fancy hooking up an external admonisher or bring your favourite telegraph gambling mouse into the equation then you wo n’t have to prioritise one accessory over another here . On the embrasure selection you ’re absolutely spoiled for choice with three USB - A embrasure , a solitary USB - C and an ever appreciated HDMI out .
Knowing that all of this would amount to some heavy taxation on battery life-time , Asus has made certain to plant this matter with a whopping 70Whr cell . Under our battery tests , we were able to make the Pro 15 run for a total of eight hr and 30 minutes which is some impressive longevity and more than enough to get you through a day ’s Charles Frederick Worth of lectures .
It ’s not a everlasting laptop by any means – the trackpad could well do with being a bit large and the display a shade vivid , plus at over £ 1000 ( depending on where you snitch ) the Vivobook Pro 15 will be too out of budget for plenty , but creatives who love to plot on the side , it ’s a fantastic pick .
If you ’re a student that needs a laptop with a big showing that will go all day and beyond , theSamsung Galaxy Book4 Pro 360is the answer .
We try out the 16 - inch model and it superintend to wad in a stunning stamen of around 15 hours of maximum battery life history . Even under intensive productivity , it arrest comfortably beyond a working daytime .
But , one of the central highlights is the well - sized exhibit , which offers up a high-pitched 3 K resolution , 120Hz refresh rate and uses AMOLED technology . The size mean it ’s great for multitasking with multiple window , while offering a large screen experience when it come to learn movie and the like . The strong color accuracy think of this big screen is great for originative work too , and you get the excellent S Pen for all your drawing oeuvre .
For power , it ’s get Intel ’s late Core Ultra chips . These offer solid productiveness performance along with enabling the unexpended dabble in creative body of work .
Being both a gamer and a student can be a pricey affair , as you ’ll likely need a console , laptop and television receiver to survive the semester . So how about combining all of those machine together to save on money ? TheAsus ROG Zephyrus G14 ( 2023)is the perfect remedy , open of doubling up as both your gaming rig and workstation with very few compromise .
Firstly , the G14 is shockingly lightweight for a gaming laptop computer , hitting the scales at just 1.7 kg . Most gaming laptop computer are significantly heavier , work them unideal for port around university . The optional Mini light-emitting diode screen insure wild photo quality too , which is important for watching movies and playing games .
Performance is enough powerful enough to dally all of the recent games . The intense artwork power here also open up up the opportunity for more creative pursuits such as editing video / exposure and art plan . The large topic here is battery lifetime , with our test see a result of just 3 hours and 20 bit for productiveness employment . That could be a grownup issue if you ’re work on the go away from a power mains .
Nevertheless , if you fancy the thought of own a laptop computer that can fulfil the duties of both gaming and student work , then we powerfully recommend the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 ( 2023 ) . Or if you want something brassy , verify to check out ourAsus TUF Gaming A15 ( 2023)review as an alternate selection .
If you ’re wanting a MacBook on a budget , theMacBook Air M1is a fantastic choice . Though no longer available through Apple , the laptop remains usable through a range of retailer for just £ 799 , making it the perfect MacBook for any student .
The standout feature of the MacBook Air M1 is itsApple M1chipset . The M1 took over the Intel Core i3 / i5 in this laptop , enable fast execution beyond what you might expect from Apple ’s cheapest laptop . We found the laptop to be snappier even than unexampled laptop such as theMicrosoft Surface Laptop 5and theDell XPS 13 Plus .
The four - twelvemonth - quondam laptop has since been outpaced by theMacBook Air M2andAir M3 , but you wo n’t find either at quite as abject a price as the 2020 M1 modeling .
The design also feels a little outdated equate to the Air M2 , though the display is sharp and promising enough for most use case and the Magic Keyboard palpate terrific to typecast on .
App support is strong , with a grow number of native M1 apps uncommitted and Rosetta 2 ready to render any straggler from the x86 platform . We find that mainstream apps ran with no number and you may even install apps from the iOS App Store .
Finally , the MacBook Air M1 has an impressive nine to 11 - hour barrage fire living with looped 1080p video lasting up to 12 hours on a single charge . This is another major upgrade granted by the custom M1 chipset and the laptop ’s standby time is excellent , too .
If you ’re searching for the perfect laptop computer to take to university lectures or thoroughgoing school assignment at household , the MacBook Air M1 delivers fantastic public presentation , battery sprightliness and app support without breaking the savings bank .
FAQs
A in force keyboard , long battery life and merry performance are all key things to consider when purchase a student laptop . You ’ll also desire to check that it is n’t too ponderous , with 1.3 kilogram and under being an ideal heft . Screen quality is worth thinking about if you plan on using the laptop computer for Netflix and YouTube .
A consecrated GPU is only worth considering if you ’re a creative / invention student who will be doing scads of video editing , 3D modelling or animation . Gamers will also benefit from a powerful GPU . But be warn , a GPU will zigzag up the price , make the laptop heavier and castrate the battery aliveness , so only get a laptop with one if it ’s essential .
Honestly , most people will be hunky-dory with 8 GB tup , but it may be deserving vest in 16 GB of RAM or beyond for weighed down workloads such as contentedness creative activity and gambling .
Test Data
Full Specs
