The 3 Best Budget And Cheap Gaming Laptops - Fall 2024

The best budget 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. 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.

Our best cheap pick is the Lenovo LOQ 15 (2023). This 15.6-inch model is available with up to an AMD Ryzen 7 7840HS and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060. Every configuration can deliver a smooth gaming experience at 1080p, though you'll have to play with the settings a bit on the RTX 3050 models to get over 60 fps. The RTX 4050 and 4060 models can handle 1440p gaming; we recommend the latter, as the RTX 4050's 6GB VRAM is very limiting at the QHD resolution. Display options include two FHD (60Hz and 144Hz) panels and a 165Hz QHD panel. We recommend one of the high-refresh options for gaming, as they'll provide better responsiveness and support VRR to reduce screen tearing. The 144Hz panel's response time is rather slow, so you'll likely see some ghosting in fast-moving scenes.

As for the rest of the device, the laptop feels relatively sturdy despite being entirely plastic. The keys have a lot of travel and require little force to actuate; they just lack tactility, so it's sometimes hard to know if you've actuated a key. Port selection is great, as you get three USB-As, one USB-C (not Thunderbolt or USB4, unfortunately), an HDMI 2.1, and an Ethernet port. RAM and storage are also user-replaceable, so you can upgrade later on. There's no fingerprint sensor or facial recognition camera, though we don't expect such features at this price. FYI: this laptop is getting harder to find through marketplaces and major retailers since it's a 2023 model, but you can still find some variants directly on Lenovo's website.

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. What this device is designed for is cloud gaming. Services like NVIDIA GeForce NOW and Xbox Cloud Gaming do all the processing on their servers and then 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.

In regards to 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.