With the rapid growth in technology, getting a cheap laptop today might actually mean that it comes with very decent performance, battery life as well as portability.
- 2025’s Best Budget Laptop
- 1. Acer Aspire Go 15 – Cheapest in the list
- 2. Asus Zenbook 14 OLED – Most stylish in the list
- 3. HP Chromebook Plus x360 – Best for cloud users
- 4. Lenovo Yoga 7 14 Gen 9 – For lite users
- 5. Dell Inspiron 14 2-in-1 – Everyday use only
- How To Select The Best Budget Laptop 2025
- Conclusion
While this is appealing for those who are budget conscious, like students or gig workers, it is also pretty attractive for those who do not want to spend unnecessarily for their laptops.
In this article, we will take a look at five of the best budget laptops that are not only pocket friendly but also have good performance and speed as well as other pros and cons.
2025’s Best Budget Laptop
| Model | Approximate Price | Battery Life | Weight | Screen | Processor |
| Acer Aspire GO 15 | From $299 onwards | Up to 8 hours | 1.70 kg/3.75 lbs and up | 15.6” FHD | Intel Core i3-N305 |
| Asus Zenbook 14 OLED | From $699 onwards | Up to 15 hours | 1.2 kg/2.65 lbs and up | 14” 2.8K OLED | AMD Ryzen 7 |
| HP Chromebook Plus x360 | From $429 onwards | Up to 10 hours | 1.37 kg/3.03 lbs and up | 14” FHD | Intel Core i3-N305 |
| Lenovo Yoga 7 14 Gen 9 | From $699 onwards | Up to 12 hours | 1.49 kg/3.28 lbs and up | 14” OLED / LCD | AMD Ryzen 7 |
| Dell Inspiron 14 2-in-1 | From $499 onwards | Up to 10 hours | 1.57 kg/3.46 lbs and up | 14” FHD | AMD Ryzen 5 |
1. Acer Aspire Go 15 – Cheapest in the list
If affordable is all you’re looking for, then the Acer Aspire Go 15 is definitely a steal. It’s the perfect choice for everyday tasks like sending emails, writing and so on. Plus, its 12 hours battery life is really handy if you’re on the go.
It’s built rather thoughtfully with 3 USB ports (Type-A and Type-C), a HDMI port and a headphone jack.
While this cheap laptop screams functionality, it definitely lacks the look. To keep it cheap, you will notice that many parts of the laptop are made of plastic. Plus the weight is also not the lightest, so it can deter those who want something light.
But if none of this matters to you, this best budget laptop surely does the trick.
2. Asus Zenbook 14 OLED – Most stylish in the list
The Asus Zenbook 14 OLED is perhaps one of the best budget laptops for students available today and we say this mainly because of the combination of an excellent battery as well as a slim and lightweight build of the laptop.
No more lugging around heavy laptops from one class to the other or worrying about batteries lasting throughout the night while working on your assignment. Not to mention, the OLED screen and its speedy Intel Core Ultra 7, makes it seem like it’s every user’s dream!
While it’s pretty perfect to us, maybe the only con worth highlighting is the lack of connecting ports. But that’s definitely an easy fix with inexpensive USB hubs.
3. HP Chromebook Plus x360 – Best for cloud users
If flexibility is key to you then the HP Chromebook Plus 360 is definitely a good cheap laptop to own. Well, technically, it is a chromebook which is built for those who need a reliable device for cloud based tasks.
Those in the creative line of work will truly appreciate its shape shifting feature, allowing you to use it as a tablet to draw or design, while those who use it for other daily tasks will also appreciate its speed!
That said, it is definitely not for someone who relies heavily on Windows apps or offline softwares like Adobe (only web-based!). But if you live on the ‘cloud’ then this is definitely worth it!
4. Lenovo Yoga 7 14 Gen 9 – For lite users
Whether you’re a student or a freelancer, the Lenovo Yoga 7 Gen 9 will easily tick all the necessary boxes. The look and feel of this one is rather premium plus the AMD Ryzen 7 chip keeps it rather speedy for everyday tasks.
It is also priced under $800 so it works great for those who are budget and style conscious. It comes with a decent number of ports and takes around 15 minutes of charging to be used for up to 3 hours.
All that said, perhaps the only thing to worry about is its weight which is around 1.49kg or 3.28 lbs which is slightly above average.
5. Dell Inspiron 14 2-in-1 – Everyday use only
The Dell Inspiron 14 2 in 1 is a cheap laptop that can handle almost all of your everyday tasks, and it’s easily transformable to a tablet for watching video or taking notes.
With a decent 14 inch screen, it’s fitting for those who use their laptops for office work, online meetings and multitasking, with enough ports to support the user.
However, it is definitely not built for any heavy creative projects or even gaming for that matter, so consider carefully what you want to use it for, although its price tag makes it such a steal as an everyday budget laptop.
How To Select The Best Budget Laptop 2025
Not all laptops are built the same, particularly cheap laptops! And just because they are cheap, doesn’t mean you should spend without thinking. Here’s some of the things to consider before getting yourself a budget laptop:
- Speed/Performance: An Intel core i3 or AMD Ryzen 5 should do the trick and keep things smooth and fast.
- Storage: If it’s not a Chromebook, then aim for at least 8GB RAM and 128GB SSD.
- Battery life: You don’t want to constantly have to look for power sources in order to keep your laptop running – anything above 8 hours should be a good benchmark.
- Weight: If you move around a lot, then consider a lightweight laptop as it can get pretty bulky and heavy when looking at some budget laptop options.
- Task and operating systems: Consider what you will use your laptop mostly for. If you need to run offline software or carry out creative work, make sure that the laptop comes with the right OS to support these tasks.
Conclusion
If you’re on a strict budget, you can still find a handful of cheap laptops that offer a premium experience.
Whether you’re a student who needs it for everyday tasks or a freelancer dabbling in creative projects, there’s something for everyone. Although we’ve listed five of the best budget laptops available on the market, our personal pick will always be the Asus ZenBook 14 OLED.
We love it for its balance of performance, price, and battery life. The OLED screen is a nice bonus you won’t usually find on other cheap laptops.
If your priority is graphics power or higher frame rates, consider a gaming laptop instead—explore our gaming laptop picks before you decide.
With an attractive laptop that doesn’t break the bank, what more could you ask for? That said, consider your own needs first before picking the best budget laptop for yourself!
