Shopping for a gaming laptop can be challenging, as gaming is a demanding task with many requirements. First and foremost, you need to look for a system with a powerful CPU, a dedicated GPU, and a good cooling system to reach high, consistent frame rates. You'll also want a laptop with a high-quality display to see a clear image in fast-paced games, a comfortable keyboard that won't cause fatigue on long gaming sessions, and a fast SSD to reduce loading times. These things add up, making gaming laptops far more expensive than your typical thin, light ultraportables. That said, good budget options are available, costing around $1,000 or less. Below is a list of a few we've tested to get you started. The list is short for now but will grow as we review more laptops.
We've tested over 145 laptops, and below, you'll find our recommendations for the best budget gaming laptops and the best cheap gaming laptops. You can also check out our recommendations for the best budget and cheap laptops, the best budget and cheap laptops for students, and the best gaming laptops.
The MSI Katana A15 AI (2024) is the best budget gaming laptop we've tested. This 15-inch model is a pretty run-of-the-mill laptop, as nothing really stands out. It performs quite well, delivering smooth gameplay in most modern AAA titles. You can configure it with up to an AMD Ryzen 9 8945HS CPU, an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Laptop GPU, 32GB of RAM, and 1TB of storage. The memory and SSD are user-replaceable, so don't worry if you can't afford the upgrades upfront. There are two display options: a 144Hz FHD and a 165Hz QHD panel. The latter offers a superior visual experience, as its faster response time results in a cleaner image with less ghosting, and its wider color gamut allows for more vibrant colors. Just make sure you pair it with the RTX 4070 GPU, though, as the lower-end options will struggle to push high frame rates at the QHD resolution.
The build quality and user experience are where the compromises are, which is fairly typical for budget-friendly models. The laptop's plastic chassis flexes in certain areas, especially the display, and the hinges feel a bit loose. Additionally, the laptop generates significant heat and noise under load, with a hot spot right in the middle of the keyboard. There's no Ethernet port, unfortunately. You do get Wi-Fi 6E—you'll need a router that also supports Wi-Fi 6E or 7 to benefit from the increased speeds and lower latency these Wi-Fi standards bring.
The best cheap gaming laptop we've tested is the ASUS TUF Gaming A16 Advantage Edition (2023). This 16-inch all-AMD system pushes high frame rates in demanding AAA games, giving you a smooth and immersive gaming experience. It's usually more expensive, but since it has been on the market for a little over a year now, prices have come down considerably. The base configuration costs around $1,000 USD; you get a Ryzen 7 7735HS CPU, a Radeon RX 7600S GPU, a 165Hz FHD display, 16GB of RAM, and 512GB of storage. Faster configurations are available if you're willing to pay more. Both the 165Hz FHD and the more costly 240Hz QHD panel support variable refresh rate to reduce screen tearing.
This laptop feels sturdy and provides easy access to the internals for repairs and upgrades. There are two storage drive slots—upping storage capacity will probably be necessary since 512GB (or even 1TB) isn't a lot these days. You can also replace the wireless adapter, as the existing module only supports Wi-Fi 6. Ports include four USBs (two As and two Cs), a true HDMI 2.1, a 3.5 mm headphone jack, and an Ethernet port. Thermal throttling isn't a problem, but the laptop gets hot and loud. Unfortunately, this is a rather bulky laptop, so it isn't the best for on-the-go use, and the battery lasts only a little over an hour when gaming.
The best gaming Chromebook we've tested is the Acer Chromebook Plus 516 GE (2024). Unlike our picks above, this device runs Chrome OS, an operating system designed mainly for web browsing, video playback, and light productivity tasks. Sure, you can play mobile games from the Google Play Store, but even those don't always run properly, as they're primarily mobile games made for smartphones and tablets, with many lacking keyboard, mouse, and controller support. This device is designed for cloud gaming. Services like NVIDIA GeForce NOW and Xbox Cloud Gaming do all the processing on their servers and stream the image to your device, somewhat like video streaming. The laptop comes with a three-month trial of GeForce NOW—you can continue to play for free after the trial period, but you'll have to pay if you want the best experience with higher frame rates and longer play sessions.
Regarding the build and features, this 2024 model is very similar to its predecessor, the Acer Chromebook 516 GE (2022). It feels pretty sturdy for the price, and it's relatively portable for a 16-inch device. Its 120Hz QHD+ display looks very sharp and gets bright enough to overcome glare in most indoor settings; the response time is a bit slow but still better than what you would get on most productivity laptops, so there isn't much ghosting in fast-moving scenes. Of course, you'll need a solid internet connection to get the best cloud gaming experience, and thankfully, this device has Wi-Fi 6E and an Ethernet port. A significant upgrade over the 2022 model is battery life; you can get almost 10 hours in light use and over five hours when gaming. There are no biometrics like a fingerprint sensor or facial recognition camera, though that's typical for Chromebooks.
The Acer Nitro V 16 (2024) is a good alternative to the ASUS TUF Gaming A16 Advantage Edition (2023) if you prefer a model with an NVIDIA GPU. It won't always push higher frame rates than the ASUS, as gaming performance depends on the configuration and the games you play. However, NVIDIA's upscaling (DLSS) and Frame Generation generally work better than AMD's implementation. Unfortunately, it has fewer ports and is harder to find.
See our reviewReplaced the ASUS TUF Gaming A16 Advantage Edition (2023) with the MSI Katana A15 AI (2024) because the MSI has better performance. Replaced the Lenovo LOQ 15 (2023) with the ASUS TUF Gaming A16 Advantage Edition (2023) because the Lenovo laptop is no longer available, and the ASUS has come down in price. Added the Acer Nitro V 16 (2024) as a Notable Mention.
Replaced the Acer Chromebook 516 GE (2022) with the Acer Chromebook Plus 516 GE (2024) because the 2022 model is discontinued.
Aug 06, 2024: Small text changes for clarity and conciseness. No change in recommendations.
Jun 12, 2024: We've verified that all picks are valid and available and made minor text changes to reflect availability and pricing.
May 14, 2024: Minor text changes to reflect availability and pricing.
Our recommendations above are what we think are currently the best budget gaming laptops and cheap gaming laptops you can get. In addition to the test results, we factor in the price (a cheaper laptop wins over a pricier one if the difference isn't worth it), feedback from our visitors, and availability (no laptops that are difficult to find or almost out of stock everywhere).
If you prefer to make your own decision, here's the list of all of our laptop reviews. Most laptops are available in various configurations, and the table only shows the results of the model we tested, so it's best to see the full review for information about other variants.