The 5 Best Budget And Cheap Laptops For Students of 2025

The best budget laptop for students we've tested is the ASUS Vivobook 16 M1605 (2023). This model feels quite sturdy despite sporting a full-plastic chassis, and while it might not fit into smaller bags, it's still relatively portable for a 16-inch device, thanks to its thin and lightweight design. The battery lasts around eight hours of light use, so you might need to plug it in to get through the day, depending on your workload, but thankfully, you can charge the laptop via USB-C. The overall user experience is good; it has a comfortable keyboard, a large, responsive touchpad, and a decent 720p webcam. Its FHD+ display looks reasonably sharp but dim, a common drawback of budget-friendly devices. You get Wi-Fi 6E wireless connectivity, a fingerprint sensor for quick logins, and a decent port selection comprising three USB-As, a USB-C, and an HDMI. Unfortunately, the USB-C doesn't support video output.

Configuration-wise, this laptop has AMD Ryzen 5 or Ryzen 7 CPUs, which are more than adequate for handling most student workloads, like text processing, web browsing, and video playback. You can perform some moderately CPU-intensive tasks like programming. Still, anything that requires lots of GPU processing power is out of the question, as the integrated graphics processor is pretty weak. You can get this laptop with 8GB or 16GB of RAM. If you have trouble finding a 16GB model, you can get an 8GB model and upgrade it via the empty SO-DIMM slot, which might be cheaper. Storage options max out at 1TB—the SSD is also user-replaceable.

If you want to spend even less, our pick for the best cheap laptop for students is the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i Chromebook 14 (2023), a 14-inch Chrome OS model. Size and price aside, the most important factors compared to the ASUS Vivobook 16 M1605 (2023) above is that it has much less processing power and runs Chrome OS, so it's more limited in what it can do. This means it's best suited for students—particularly younger grade school students—who only need a simple device to browse the web and write papers. It has a compact design that makes it easy to carry around, 13 hours of battery life in light uses, Wi-Fi 6E, and a surprisingly good 1080p webcam. The keyboard feels a bit mushy, though, and the touchpad is small and not always responsive to inputs.

Regarding the configuration, you can get this laptop with an Intel N100, N200, or Core i3 CPU paired with 4GB or 8GB of RAM. We highly recommend getting the Core i3 configuration paired with an FHD display, 8GB of RAM, and 128GB of storage, which you can regularly find on Lenovo's website for around $400 to $500 USD. Not only will you get a smoother experience (especially when multitasking), but you'll also get a much nicer display. The cheaper configurations are fine if you have a very limited budget; just know that the overall user experience won't be as good.

Apple doesn't really make budget laptops, but since the release of the M3 Apple MacBook Air 13 (2024) and the discontinuation of the base 8GB (when they released the M4 MacBook Pro), the price of this M2 Apple MacBook Air 13 (2022) has come down significantly, with many retailers selling the 8GB RAM model for $750 USD. You can even find 16GB models for around $800. Admittedly, that's still more expensive than our top pick, the ASUS Vivobook 16 M1605 (2023), and some would argue that it encroaches on the mid-range tier price-wise. That said, you're getting a lot for the money, including an exceptionally sturdy build, a sleek design, tons of processing power, a gorgeous screen, and Apple's industry-leading haptic touchpad.

At 11 hours of light use, the battery life isn't as impressive as what we've seen in the last year (competition is getting stiff) but is still great. Our biggest gripe with this laptop is its limited port selection, comprising only two USB-C/Thunderbolt 3s and a MagSafe proprietary charging port. You can charge the laptop via USB-C, but that would leave you with a single USB port for anything else. Plus, the M2 chip can only support a single external monitor, which might be an inconvenience for fans of multi-monitor setups. Another minor complaint is the Wi-Fi 6 wireless adapter. Again, it isn't a huge issue, but it would have been nice to get Wi-Fi 6E, especially on such a premium laptop.

If you're shopping for a younger student who only needs a device for simple homework assignments and media consumption, consider the Lenovo Chromebook Duet 5 (2021), a 2-in-1 Chrome OS tablet. Like Microsoft's popular Surface Pro tablets, this form factor lets you detach the keyboard when you're just consuming media, and you can pop it back on when you need to type something out. It fits easily into small bags, and you won't have to worry about bringing a charger, as the battery lasts around 10 hours of light use. If you need to charge it, you can do so over USB-C, so you don't have to deal with a proprietary charger.

This tablet's standout feature is its OLED display. It gets bright enough to combat glare in most indoor settings, and unlike the display on most budget devices, it doesn't look washed out, thanks to its full sRGB and DCI P3 coverage. This OLED panel uses PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation) dimming, meaning it flickers, but it's unlikely to be an issue since the flicker frequency is very high. The other thing to know about the OLED display is that it's susceptible to permanent burn-in. Unfortunately, the keyboard feels rather uncomfortable to type on due to its cramped layout and high operating force, and the touchpad is small and sometimes unresponsive. The upside is that the type cover keyboard comes with the device, so you don't have to spend extra for it.

For students on a limited budget but still want a device that can deliver a good gaming experience, check out the MSI Katana A15 AI (2024). Available with up to an AMD Ryzen 9 8945HS CPU and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Laptop GPU, this 15-inch model performs well, delivering smooth gameplay with high, consistent frame rates in most modern AAA titles. You can choose between a 144Hz FHD and a 165Hz QHD panel; we recommend the latter, as its faster response time will result in a cleaner image with less ghosting, and its wider color gamut will make colors look more vibrant.

Naturally, there are a few compromises, and in this case, it's the build quality and user experience. The laptop's all-plastic chassis flexes in certain areas, which isn't necessarily a dealbreaker but can be concerning if you bring it with you often for on-the-go use. The hinges also feel loose; this is more of an issue since most people will open and close the laptop regularly. Another complaint is that the laptop generates significant heat and noise under load. For online gaming, while there isn't an Ethernet port, there's Wi-Fi 6E; just make sure your router also supports Wi-Fi 6E or 7 to benefit from the increased speeds and lower latency.