If you’re looking for the Best Windows Laptops you can buy in (Summer) 2022, which is affordable, high quality and better performance, then you’re in the right place. In this guide, I have listed down the Best Windows Laptops in 2022.
We made this list based on our own opinion, research, and customer reviews. We’ve considered their quality, features, and values when narrowing down the best choices possible.
The Best Windows Laptops you can buy today.
So, here are the Best Windows Laptops of 2022. If you want more information and updated pricing on the products mentioned, be sure to check the links in each product we mentioned.
1. Dell XPS 13 (2021)
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The best Windows laptop we’ve tested is the Dell XPS 13 (2021), an ultraportable designed for general productivity like web browsing, text formatting, and video playback. It’s sleek, sturdy, and easy to carry around, with enough battery life to get you through a typical eight-hour day of light productivity. You get a sharp and bright display, a keyboard that feels comfortable to type on all day, and a large, responsive touchpad. It has a fingerprint sensor built into the power button and a Windows Hello compatible IR camera for facial recognition, allowing you to log in quickly and get to work. You can spec it up to an Intel 11th Gen Core i7 CPU, 32GB of memory, and 2TB of storage. The main downside is that it only has two USB-C port/Thunderbolt 4 ports, so you’ll likely need dongles or a dock for your wired peripherals or external displays.
If you need more screen space for multitasking, the LG gram 17 (2021) might be a better option. Its 17-inch screen gives you more screen real estate for split-screen multitasking, and due to its larger size, there’s enough room on the keyboard deck for a Numpad, which is great for those working with lots of numbers. Yes, you’ll need a bigger bag to carry it, but it weighs only 3.1 lbs, and you probably won’t need the charger because the battery life is outstanding. Plus, it has plenty of ports, so you can leave the dongle life behind.
Pros
- Very portable thanks to compact design.
- Metal chassis feels very well built.
- Battery lasts a little over 10 hours of light productivity.
- Sharp and bright display.
- Keyboard feels great to type on.
Cons
- CPU and integrated GPU aren’t powerful enough for demanding workloads.
- No USB-A or HDMI port.
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2. Lenovo Yoga 9i 14 (2021)
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If you want something a little more affordable, get the Lenovo Yoga 9i 14 (2021). It’s a 2-in-1 convertible with a 360-degree hinge, so you can use it in tent mode for presentations or media consumption or flip the screen around and use it as a tablet. The display supports pen input and comes with a stylus tucked away in its charging slot at the back of the device. It isn’t the most comfortable pen, though, and it doesn’t support tilt, so it’s more for note-taking and quick scribbles than actual drawing. The keyboard feels great to type on, the touchpad tracks well, and the speakers sound natural and well-balanced.
Configuration-wise, you can choose between a 1080p or 4k display, an Intel 11th Gen Core i5 or i7, and up to 16GB of memory. Its 9-hour battery life is enough to get through a typical workday, but you might need to plug it in for a quick charge if you run more intensive applications or perform heavy multitasking. There are some differences in features between the Mica and Shadow Black models; you can see our full review for more details.
Pros
- Thin and light design makes it very portable.
- Battery lasts 9 hours of light productivity.
- Keyboard feels comfortable to type on for extended periods.
- Can use in tent or tablet mode.
- Pen included for taking notes.
Cons
- Low-power CPU and integrated GPU can’t handle demanding workloads.
- CPU and GPU throttle under load.
- Screen doesn’t handle bright reflections well.
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3. Lenovo IdeaPad 5 15 (2021)
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If you don’t need a premium laptop and would rather save some money, there are plenty of choices in the more modest mid-range price segment. Our recommendation is the Lenovo IdeaPad 5 15 (2021), a 15-inch ultraportable with a comfortable keyboard, plenty of ports, and decent battery life. Its 1080p display looks reasonably sharp and gets bright enough for use in most indoor settings; just make sure you get the IPS option because TN panels tend to have worse viewing angles and color reproduction. You can configure it up to an Intel Core i7 (11th Gen), 16GB of memory, and over 1TB of storage. The memory isn’t user-upgradeable, but the storage is, so you can just get a lower configuration and upgrade it yourself later on, which might be cheaper.
Pros
- Easy to carry around.
- Sturdy aluminum chassis.
- Battery lasts nearly 9 hours of light productivity.
- Display gets bright enough for use in most indoor settings.
- Keyboard feels great to type on.
- USB-C supports charging and video output.
Cons
- Webcam image looks noisy and underexposed.
- Integrated and entry-level dedicated GPUs can’t handle demanding workloads.
- HDMI port limited to 4k @ 30Hz output.
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4. Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15 (2021)
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For you budget-minded folks, we recommend the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15 (2021). It’s very similar to the Lenovo IdeaPad 5 15 (2021) above, but as we go down in price, we’re also taking a small step down in the overall quality. The keyboard doesn’t feel as good to type on and can be fatiguing over time, and the touchpad’s tracking isn’t as responsive. It’s available with AMD Ryzen 5000-series CPUs, which are more than powerful enough to handle most productivity tasks.
The battery life is good at around nine hours of light use and eight hours of video playback; the downside is that the USB-C port doesn’t support charging, meaning you’ll have to carry the proprietary charger. The fingerprint sensor is an optional feature, so just make sure to check the specs first if it’s something you care about.
Pros
- Easy to carry around due to thin and light design.
- Battery lasts over 9 hours of light productivity.
- Feels well-built.
- Decent webcam video quality for video calls.
- CPU can handle most light productivity tasks.
Cons
- CPU and Integrated graphics can’t handle demanding workloads like video editing or gaming.
- Can’t charge laptop via USB-C.
- Keyboard can cause fatigue over an extended period.
- Small touchpad makes dragging and dropping hard.
5. HP Stream 11 (2021)
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Finally, we get to the cheap category, and our recommendation is the HP Stream 11 (2021). You really can’t expect too much of a laptop in this price range. It has a dim and washed-out TN panel, an uncomfortable keyboard, and a small touchpad with so-so tracking. The overall build is pretty decent, though, and its battery life is passable at around 7 hours of light productivity. You can configure it with an Intel Celeron N4000 or N4020 CPU, 4GB of memory, and up to 64GB of storage. Generally speaking, if you’re looking for a device in this price range, you’re probably better off with a Chromebook because Chrome OS tends to run more smoothly on low-end hardware.
As for this laptop, it’s only a good option for extremely light use. We’re talking emails, web browsing, video playback, and text formatting. Any more than that, then you should be looking at the budget or mid-range picks. If you’re considering buying this laptop, do yourself a favor and get a model with 64GB of storage; otherwise, you might run into issues with Windows updates.
Pros
- Sturdy, attractive design
- Easy to tote
- HDMI output
- Impressive 11-hour battery life
- SD card slot for storage expansion
Cons
- Only 32GB of internal storage inhibits app installs
- 1,366-by-768-pixel screen makes text fuzzy
- Poor camera quality
- Sluggish performance
6. Microsoft Surface Pro 8 (2021)
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If you don’t like convertibles with a 360-degree hinge and prefer a tablet with a detachable keyboard, the Microsoft Surface Pro 8 (2021) is the one to get. It has a sharp and bright 3:2 display with a 120Hz refresh rate to provide better responsiveness and smoother motion. It’s compatible with any Microsoft Pen Protocol styluses, and unlike the Lenovo Yoga 9i 14 (2021), it supports tilt, making it suitable for digital artists and creators. You have to buy the stylus separately, and the same goes for the type cover keyboard. The upside is that the keyboard is surprisingly comfortable to type on, especially for a type cover, and it even has backlighting.
The 1080p webcam is among the best on the market, producing a detailed and natural-looking image for video calls. You also get a Windows Hello compatible IR camera so you can log in quickly.
Pros
- Thin and light chassis that’s easy to carry around.
- Sturdy, excellent-quality build.
- Keyboard feels great and doesn’t cause fatigue over extended periods.
- Webcam captures a clear, detailed image, and microphone is loud and clear.
Cons
- Need to use dongles if you’re using multiple wired peripherals.
- Battery doesn’t last a full workday.
- Extremely difficult to open up and service.
7. Lenovo ThinkPad P1 Gen 4 (2021)
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Our pick for the best Windows workstation is the Lenovo ThinkPad P1 Gen 4 (2021). This 16-inch laptop has tons of CPU, GPU, and display options to suit your needs and budget. You can get it with a 1440p or 4k display, up to an Intel Core i9 or Xeon processor, and up to an NVIDIA RTX A5000 or RTX 3080 discrete graphics. It has plenty of ports, including USB-As, USB-Cs/Thunderbolt 4, and an HDMI port. The memory and storage drive are user-upgradeable and easily accessible, so you can just get a cheaper configuration and upgrade it yourself.
The 4k touchscreen display supports pen input, but you need to buy the stylus separately. Biometrics include a fingerprint sensor built into the power button and an IR camera for facial recognition. The drawbacks are that it doesn’t have the best webcam, and the keyboard gets a little hot under load.
Pros
- Trim, light design
- Ample CPU and GPU power
- Extra-bright, high-res touch screen
- Snappy keyboard
- Full complement of ports
Cons
- Expensive
- No OLED screen option