The 6 Best Laptops For Writers - Fall 2024

The best laptop for writers we've tested is the Microsoft Surface Laptop 7th Edition 15 (2024), a premium Windows ultraportable. It feels incredibly well built, sporting a full-aluminum chassis, and its compact design makes it easy to carry around. Its 15-inch display looks sharp and provides plenty of room for split-screen multitasking, so you can keep your reference material on one side while writing. Plus, the screen gets bright enough to combat intense glare, allowing you to work in various places, even outdoors in broad daylight. You get a spacious and tactile keyboard, an easy-to-use haptic touchpad, and a reasonable number of ports to connect peripherals and external displays. The laptop comes with a proprietary power adapter, but you don't have to use it if you don't want to, as the laptop can charge over USB-C.

As you may have heard, this 7th Edition of the Surface Laptop is on an ARM-based SoC, the Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite. This chip can easily handle general productivity tasks like text processing, web browsing, and video playback. It's also incredibly power-efficient, resulting in 17 hours of battery life in light uses. However, some programs don't run natively on an ARM processor. You'll likely be fine if you can access your work through a web browser, but it's best to check for compatibility first if you use a third-party writing app. Like all Surface devices, there's a facial recognition IR camera for added security and quick logins. If you want something even more compact, there's a 13-inch version of the Surface Laptop, which we haven't tested but expect to be very similar.

For Mac users, we recommend the Apple MacBook Air 15 (2024), which is also a 15-inch premium ultraportable. It has a sturdy but thin design, making it well-suited for on-the-go use, and its battery easily lasts through a full workday. The overall user experience is excellent, though the keyboard's short key travel might not be to everyone's liking, and while Apple's Retina display is very pretty, it doesn't get nearly as bright as the Surface Laptop's and is limited to a 60Hz refresh rate. The port selection is scant and comprises only two USB-Cs and a MagSafe charging port. Unlike the M2 MacBook Air, you can run two external displays, but this only works with the lid closed. Performance isn't a problem—Apple's M3 SoC easily handles most writers' workloads, like text processing, web browsing, and video playback.

If you want a smaller form factor, the Apple MacBook Air 13 (2024) is a good choice, too. It's the same device but with a 13-inch screen and worse speakers. Don't worry; the keyboard and touchpad still feel great despite the smaller chassis! If you want to save a bit more money, Apple still sells the M2-based Apple MacBook Air 13 (2022) as a budget-friendly alternative; the differences are minimal, with slightly less performance and battery life, with support for only one external display.

Our best mid-range pick is the Acer Swift Go 14 (2024). Though sturdily built, this model doesn't feel as premium as the picks above, as there's more plastic in the construction. It also has a smaller 14-inch display, a slightly mushier keyboard, and a non-haptic diving board touchpad. That said, the overall user experience is still good. You can choose between an FHD+ IPS or a 2.8k OLED display; both look sharp and get bright enough for use in most indoor settings. If you're sensitive to screen flickering, getting the FHD+ panel is best, as the OLED panel's flicker may cause eye strain. This laptop features Intel's Meteor Lake CPUs, which are plenty fast for general productivity tasks. You get Wi-Fi 6E wireless connectivity, a 1080p webcam, and a wide port selection that includes two Thunderbolt 4s and an HDMI. The battery lasts around 11 hours of light use and charges over USB-C.

If you want something a bit cheaper, get the Acer Chromebook Plus Spin 714 (2024), a 2-in-1 Chromebook. Chrome OS is more limited when it comes to software compatibility, so be sure to check if you use any specialized programs. OS limitations aside, this laptop feels great to work on. Its IPS display looks vibrant and features both touch input and stylus support (although a stylus isn't included). The display has poor reflection handling, though, so this isn't the best choice for working in well-lit coffee shops or outside in broad daylight. On the bright side (no pun intended), the performance is great. Its Intel Core Ultra CPUs can easily handle word processing and multitasking, so it won't be an issue if you like to keep many Chrome tabs open. Its keyboard and touchpad are comfortable to use, and its battery life is great at over 10 hours of light use.

The best budget laptop we've tested for writers is the ASUS Vivobook 16 M1605 (2023), a 16-inch Windows ultraportable. This model feels well-built and is easy to carry around despite its size. You can configure it with an AMD Ryzen 5 or Ryzen 7 CPU, which are more than adequate to handle writing tasks like text processing, web browsing, and video playback. Most models come with 8GB of RAM, which can be a bit limiting, depending on your workload; however, you can find models with 16GB through some retailers or upgrade it yourself. You may need to charge throughout the day as the battery lasts only a little over eight hours of light use.

The overall user experience is good. It has a comfortable keyboard, a large, responsive touchpad, and a decent 720p webcam. Its 1080p display looks reasonably sharp but isn't the brightest, so visibility may be an issue in well-lit rooms. You get Wi-Fi 6E wireless connectivity, a fingerprint sensor for quick logins, and a decent port selection with three USB-As, a USB-C, and an HDMI. Unfortunately, the USB-C doesn't support video output, so you'll have to use the HDMI port to connect an external display.

The best cheap laptop we've tested is the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i Chromebook 14 (2023). You can find this laptop for as little as $300 to $500 USD. Writing isn't particularly CPU-intensive, so any CPU and RAM configuration will do. However, we highly recommend getting the Core i3-N305 CPU with 8GB of RAM if you're a relatively heavy multitasker. If you have trouble finding it elsewhere, you can get this configuration (paired with a touch-sensitive FHD display) from Lenovo. The 1080p display looks sharp and gets bright for use in most indoor settings. Battery life is outstanding at around 13 hours of light use.

Naturally, there are some downsides to a budget-friendly laptop like this one. The keyboard feels spacious but mushy, and the touchpad is small and not always responsive. The webcam is surprisingly good, though, especially for a cheap Chromebook. Port selection is decent; you get two USB-As, a USB-C, and an HDMI port. The USB-C supports charging and video output. There's no fingerprint sensor or facial recognition camera, which is unfortunate but expected for such an inexpensive device.

The best 2-in-1 tablet for writers we've tested is the Microsoft Surface Pro 11th Edition (2024), a premium Windows tablet PC with a kickstand and detachable keyboard. This form factor makes the Surface Pro incredibly versatile. You can use it as a traditional laptop or as a tablet, and thanks to its pen input support, you can easily take handwritten notes or mark up passages in your text. It works with Microsoft's Surface Slim Pen 2, a stylus specifically designed for the new Surface Pro, and there's a slot on the type cover keyboard to store and charge the pen. The stylus and type cover keyboard are separate purchases, so you'll have to factor them into the overall cost of the device. It has an excellent 1440p webcam for video calls and a facial recognition IR camera to log in quickly.

As for the user experience, it's available with very sharp 3:2 OLED or IPS displays. They get bright enough to combat glare and have a 120Hz refresh rate to make pen input feel more responsive. Unfortunately, the OLED display exhibits a 'screen door effect' caused by its digitizer, which might bother some people. The keyboard feels spacious and tactile; however, typing with the device on your lap can be challenging because all the weight is in the display, and the type cover keyboard isn't super stable. Also, the kickstand can dig into your legs if you wear shorts. The battery lasts over 11 hours of light use, which is fantastic, especially for a tablet PC. Finally, like the Surface Laptop mentioned above, this device uses an ARM-based SoC, so everything said about software compatibility applies here, too.