The best laptops under $1,000 are souped-up computers with AI-powered magic

It’s time to buy a new laptop, and you’re on a limited budget. But don’t panic, because there are a wide variety of options, whether you’re looking to score an Apple MacBook or Windows machine. In fact, for $1,000 or less, you can get your hands on a decently powered, current-model laptop that can handle everything you need it to. Even better, some of the models featured here include the latest artificial intelligence tools, baked right into its operating system. 

You don’t even have to buy new; there are plenty of renewed or refurbished models around that’ll fit the bill. But if you’re interested in purchasing a shiny new piece of tech, our carefully curated picks should prove there’s a little something for everyone. As you shop for the perfect laptop, be sure to also check out our coverage of the five best laptops for 2024, the six best gaming laptops for 2024, the five best laptops for college in 2024, the five best Chromebooks of 2024 and the five best budget laptops for 2024. Find plenty of affordable laptops below. 

The best laptops under $1,000

Best under $1,000 laptop overall: Dell Inspiron 16 Plus

With its starting price below $1,000, the Dell Inspiron 16 Plus offers the computing power you’d expect from a Windows laptop that runs using a 13th Gen Intel Core i7-12620H processor with a NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 GPU. The computer is also equipped with 16GB of RAM and a generously sized 2TB SSD for internal storage.

This laptop weighs under 5 pounds and has a battery life that’ll last all day and well into the evening. Ports include two USB Type-A ports, one HDMU 2.0 port and a Thunderbolt 4.0 port. There’s also a built in 3.5mm headphone jack and SD card reader. For wireless connectivity, the Inspiron 16 Plus supports Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth.

Anytime you’re using this laptop for anything that includes graphics, animations and video, you’ll experience ultra-smooth, lag-free performance thanks to the 2.5K resolution display that offers a 120Hz refresh rate and support for Dolby Vision. Plus, the computer’s quad-speaker system supports Dolby Atmos spatial audio. Overall, the Dell Inspiron 16 Plus offers a lot of computing power at an extremely affordable price, which makes is a really good value for the average laptop user, student, or casual gamer.

Best Windows laptop under $1,000 with Copilot+ PC: Microsoft Surface Laptop

This year, artificial intelligence technology and tools are being integrated into many of the latest computers and mobile devices — and this includes some Windows laptops. Microsoft refers to its AI toolset as CoPilot+ PC, and its being offered in many 2024 models of higher-end computers. You’ll also find it in the latest Microsoft Surface, which has a starting price of $1,000.

The all-new, 7th edition of the Microsoft Surface has a 13.8-inch display with a 120Hz refresh rate and maximum brightness of 600 nits. It runs using the Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus processor. The core configuration includes 16GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD for storage, but at the time of purchase, the processor, RAM and SSD capacity can be upgraded. We also like the laptop supports the latest Wi-Fi 7 protocol, so you can expect the fastest possible wireless connection to the internet.

And with support for Copilot+ PC, the Surface can transform your ideas from text prompts into AI-generated artwork. With Recall, you can search across time to find the content you need. The AI can also help you understand new languages instantly with Live Captions. Copilot+ PC can perform 45 trillion operations per second using its neural processor, so it’s geared to help you create, find and communicate with greater ease.

Best Chromebook laptop under $1,000: Asus Chromebook Plus Spin 714

In May, Google made some massive enhancements to its ChromeOS operating system for Chromebook Plus. The Acer Chromebook Spin 714 is an elegantly designed, two-in-one laptop that can also be used as a tablet. It also has the AI tools from Google Gemini embedded within the operating system and many of the Google apps and services people use with a Chromebook Plus.

This laptop offers a 14-inch WUXGA touchscreen display with a 1,920 x 1,200 pixel resolution and a maximum brightness of 340 nits. It’s powered using a 13th-gen Intel Core i5-1335U processor with integrated Intel Iris Xe graphics. And this Chromebook Plus comes equipped with 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD for internal storage.

Other features include Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.1 support, a backlit keyboard, up to a 10-hour battery life, a quick charge feature, MIL-STD-810H military-grade durability and a generous collection of ports.

For the average user, it’s ready to handle all of your everyday computing tasks with ease. It’s a great option for students and those who want an intuitive laptop with AI integrations that streamline common computing tasks. Within our recently published roundup of the five best Chromebook Plus laptops for 2024, this Acer Chromebook Plus Spin 714 was our top pick.

Best Windows laptop under $1,000: Lenovo 16″ ThinkPad T14S Gen 3

The ThinkPad T14S Gen 3 from Lenovo is an entry-level Windows laptop that’s also priced just below $1,000. 

It’s an excellent option for anyone to use as a daily drive, especially business professionals. Powered by an AMD Ryzen 5 Pro processor with integrated AMD Radeon 660M GPU, it’s a heavy-hitter that can tackle most of what you throw at it. It’s all backed up by 16GB of RAM and 512GB of SSD storage as well, so there’s plenty of room to keep all of your essentials.

There are plenty of upgrades available that you can purchase from Lenovo, but even with the basic configuration, the ThinkPad T1S Gen 3 is more than capable of handling all common computing tasks (while running Windows) efficiently. 

If you need a no-nonsense, no-frills laptop and don’t want to reach the $1,000 threshold, this is a great choice. 

Best MacBook Air under $1,000: 13″ MacBook Air with M2 processor

The very latest MacBook Air laptops run on the Apple’s M3 processor and allow you to choose between a 13-inch or 15-inch display. However, the entry-level model, the MacBook Air with M2 processor, is the one with a starting price of $999 (which has been discounted on Amazon to $829).

This version of the MacBook Air is configured with the M2 processor (with an 8-core CPU, 8-core GPU and 16-core Neural Engine), a 13.6 inch Liquid Retina display, 8GB of unified memory and a 256GB SSD for storage. Like all current MacBook models, this one runs the latest version of MacOS Senoma and comes with a generous collection of preinstalled apps, as well as Apple iCloud integration. These apps include Contacts, Calendar, Apple Maps, Safari, Photos, FaceTime and Mail — so right out of the box, the computer can handle your everyday computing.

This MacBook Air also works seamlessly with all of Apple’s services, including Apple Music, Apple Arcade, Apple News, Apple TV+ and Apple Fitness+. The computer offers an impressive battery life — up to 18 hours — and comes in your choice of four casing colors — midnight, starlight, space gray or silver. If you’re looking for an entry-level MacBook with a starting price that’s under $1,000, this is the model you want. 

Best gaming laptop under $1,000: Acer Nitro 16 AMD 

For novice or moderate gamers looking for a decently equipped, affordable Windows gaming laptop — that can also handle a wide range of other tasks — the Acer Nitro 16 offers good value and impressive power for the money. It runs using a 6-core AMD Ryzen 7535HS processor with an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4050 GPU.

The 16-inch LCD display provides a quick 165Hz refresh rate, which means action sequences will be fluid and quick. While this is certainly not a cutting-edge computer, it does come with an impressive collection of ports, including five USB Type-A and Type-C ports and an HDMI port. You also get a built in microSD memory-card slot.

At the time of purchase, more powerful hardware configurations are available, but this is the one with a starting price of $900. Keep in mind, when performing everyday computing tasks, you might get the advertised up to 10 hours of battery life per charge, but when gaming, this requires more processing power which depletes the battery significantly faster. 

How to shop for a laptop

Our computer experts have compiled this list of the top things to consider.

• Design: There are traditional laptop computers, 2-in-1 computers (that serve as a laptop computer and tablet), laptops with a touchscreen, laptops that are extra thin and lightweight, and those are are designed to be extra rugged. So ask yourself: What will you be using the laptop for?
• Operating system: Focus on the OS of the equipment you’re already using. Also, make sure your laptop runs the very latest version that operating system. At the moment, this means either Windows 11 Home, Windows 11 Pro, or MacOS Sonoma or ChromeOS 125.0.6422.1404.
• Display size, type, resolution, brightness and refresh rate: Screens vary in size, display type, resolution, brightness and refresh rate. Think about the level of detail, vibrance and color accuracy you want to see. In general, larger displays that offer high resolution, a higher than average brightness level and a faster refresh rate will increase the computer’s price, as will choosing a higher-end display type, such as an OLED.
• CPU and GPU: A computer’s CPU (or central processing unit) affects processing power, while its GPU (graphics processing unit) determines how efficiently the computer generates graphics. The faster and more powerful a computer’s CPU and GPU, the more expensive it will be.
• RAM: Consider this the computer’s short-term memory. Depending on the apps being used, having more RAM (or unified memory in the case of MacBooks) will determine how smoothly and efficiently a computer runs.
• Internal storage: A computer’s internal storage determines how much content can be stored locally. If you rely heavily on cloud applications and file storage, internal storage capacity is less important. We recommend a laptop with at least 256GB or 512GB of internal storage, although you may find need 1TB.
• Battery life: If you’ll often use your laptop on the go, a more powerful battery will keep the computer running longer. Longer battery life is less critical if you’ll primarily be using the computer while sitting at a desk at home.
• Wired and wireless connectivity: All laptops have built-in ports, such as USB Type-A, USB Type-C, HDMI, Ethernet, a 3.5mm headphone jack or a memory card slot. The port array you need depends on what equipment you’ll be connecting. You also want to pay attention to the computer’s wireless connectivity. All offer Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, but determine if the versions offered are the most recent. At the moment, this means either Wi-Fi 6 or Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3. If a laptop offers cellular connectivity, make sure it supports 5G, which is significantly faster than 4G LTE.
• Speakers: If you plan to use the speakers built into your laptop, make sure your machine offers at least two. Some of the latest laptops offer at least four speakers and an integrated subwoofer to generate robust, room-filling audio. 
• Keyboard layout: A computer’s keyboard design and layout, along with the size and location of the touchpad, dictates how comfortable it is to type. Some laptop keyboards include a numeric keypad on the right side, a separate line of function keys along the top, or other specialty keys. Some laptop computers offer backlit keys (which makes it easier to type in the dark) or support customizable RGB lighting.
• Dimensions and weight: The size of the computer’s display is a key factor in determining its overall dimensions and weight. Dimensions and weight impact how easy it is to carry and the size of the case you’ll need.
• AI integration: Microsoft and Google have gone all-in when it comes to integrating the latest AI-based tools into their newest laptops. How the AI is being utilized varies greatly and continues to evolve quickly. Having this technology at your disposal can streamline the tasks you perform using your laptop and enhance your overall personal computing experience. When shopping for a Windows laptop, look for Microsoft’s CoPilot+ PC technology. When it comes to Chromebooks, you want a Chromebook Plus device that taps the power of Google Gemini. Starting this fall, we may start seeing AI functionality being integrated into Apple MacBooks, too.

Is a laptop under $1,000 worth it?

If you’re just looking for a computer to handle everyday tasks, and you don’t need to see the most high-resolution and detailed graphics, then a laptop priced below $1,000 will serve you well. 

A budget laptop can easily handle everyday computing and, for the most part, be as reliable as more expensive computers. To get the most out of a budget laptop, we recommend a model that’s been released within the last year or so, since an older model will become outdated faster (even if it is cheaper).

Whether you need to know about the very best laptop computers or any other types of tech, we’re constantly expanding and updating our coverage to offer the most informative, timely and accurate information.