The best laptop 2019: our pick of the 12 best laptops you can buy this year

Ryan T. Collins - Editor 

Updated Aug 14, 2019

Regardless of whether you're looking for a  sub-$200 laptop, a lightweight laptop for work and play, a 2-in-1 laptop or a powerful gaming rig, the sheer number of decisions can be overwhelming. To help you to pick, we've picked the best laptops for 2019 in every significant category, based on our broad testing, research and comparisons. Here are the best laptops to buy right now.

Best Laptop Overall

1. Dell XPS 13 (2019)

The new Dell XPS 13 is a gorgeous thin and light laptop with great performance.

The best laptop just got even better. Not only did Dell outfit the 2019 XPS 13 with a new Intel Whiskey Lake processor, but it also fixed one of the most annoying flaws of its predecessor. No longer does its webcam point up your nose, as Dell's engineers found a way to fit its webcam in a still-small top bezel. While the 4K model we tested offered lower battery life than some may need, we expect longer endurance on the model with a 1080p display.

PROS

- Slim, lightweight design

- Strong performance
- Gorgeous 4K display
- InfinityEdge bezels with properly placed webcam

CONS
- Below-average battery life

Dell XPS 13 (2019) deals

Best Sub-$500 Laptop

2. Acer Aspire 5 (Core i3, 2019)

The Acer Aspire 5 features strong Core i3 performance, a bright, 1080 display and long battery life -- all for a cheap price.

The Aspire 5 is an excellent budget laptop. It features great performance for the price, a display that's brighter than most cheap laptops, and it'll survive longer than your average workday. Despite its sub-$500 price, the laptop still delivers a premium aluminum chassis, a comfortable keyboard and an entry-level discrete graphics chip for more intensive tasks. Despite the laptop's budget price, the Aspire 5 outperformed the category average in display brightness, performance, file transfer and battery average -- all in a slim, lightweight chassis.

PROS
- Strong performance
- Long battery life
-  Bright, 1080p display
-  Affordable

CONS
- Middling graphics
- Questionable build quality

Acer Aspire 5 deals

Best Chromebook

3. Asus Chromebook C434

If you want a Chromebook that's also convertible, the Asus Chromebook C434 is a fantastic option.

With a larger display, longer battery life and stronger performance, the new Asus Chromebook Flip C434 is one of the best Chromebooks we've ever tested. The 2-in-1 has a sleek, aluminum chassis and a panel that is both vivid and bright. Thanks to its Intel Core m3-8100Y processor, it's a reliable multitasker when combined with ChromeOS. And with over 9 hours and 58 minutes of battery life, this laptop can transition from work to play with ease.

PROS
- Sleek, premium design

- Thin display bezels

-  Vivid, 14-inch touch screen

-  Long battery life

CONS
- Finicky touchpad- A tad pricey

Asus Chromebook C434 deals

Best Value

4. Huawei Matebook D 14-inch (AMD)

Huawei's 14-inch MateBook D packs a solid AMD processor and touch-screen display into a sleek aluminum body for an affordable $629. This MacBook doppelganger also boasts long battery life, a comfortable keyboard and a pair of decent speakers. Its AMD processor and GPU performed well on our tests and also offers a solid keyboard. Its premium build and performance belies its affordable price.

PROS

- Aluminum chassis

- Very good graphics performance

- Punchy keyboard

- Long battery life

CONS

- MacBook-look-alike design

- Display could be brighter

- Grainy webcam

Huawei Matebook D 14-inch (AMD) deals

Best 2-in-1

5. HP Spectre x360 (13-inch, 2019)

With faceted edges and chamfered corners, the 2019 HP Spectre x360's elegant design is fit for a king. But this ultraportable 2-in-1's brilliance isn't just skin deep. With a vivid display, a comfortable keyboard and fast performance, there is very little we don't like about the 13-inch Spectre x360. But perhaps the best thing about this XPS 13-killer is its outstanding battery life of more than 12 hours.

PROS

- Luxurious design

- Long battery life

- Comfortable keyboard

- Vivid 1080p display

- Clear speakers

CONS

- Display could be brighter

- Bezels are a bit thick

- Bloatware

HP Spectre x360 (13-inch, 2019) deals

Best Gaming Laptop

6. Alienware Area-51m

Sporting a new look and the first-ever design that enables upgradeable graphics Alienware is ready to take its place as the king of semi-mobile gaming. The Area-51m doesn't look like anything we've ever seen from the brand. Armed with a desktop Intel Core i9 processor and one of Nvidia's superpowered RTX GPUs, it absolutely demolished every test we put in front of it with graceful aplomb. It's Alienware's first true desktop replacement and the most powerful and upgradeable laptop we've reviewed to date.

PROS

- Stunning space station aesthetic

- Excellent graphics and overall performance

-Lightning fast SSDs

- All major components upgradable

CONS

- Exorbitantly expensive

Alienware Area-51m deals

Best Business Laptop

7. Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon

The X1 Carbon's snappy, deep keyboard is its best feature. Combined with a soft-touch deck, the responsive keys will make you a faster and more efficient typist. The accurate TrackPoint and touchpad make navigation a pleasure. No matter which of its three screen options you choose, you'll get an extremely bright and colorful panel. However, the high-end, 2K HDR screen is one of the best we've seen on any laptop, providing nearly 500 nits of brightness and covering close to 200 percent of the sRGB color gamut. When you carry the ThinkPad X1 Carbon, you don't have to worry about battery life. In our tests, the laptop lasted over 11 hours on a charge.

PROS

- Eye-popping HDR display

- Long battery life

- Best-in-class keyboard

- Lightweight

- Attractive design

CONS

- Tinny audio

- Mediocre webcam

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon deals

Best Laptop for Kids

8. Asus Chromebook Flip C213SA

Because kids need more than just a device that won't break, the Chromebook Flip C213SA provides more than adequate performance and the ability to run Android apps. Its 11.6-inch screen flips back so they can run it in tablet mode. Young typists will appreciate the C213SA's snappy keyboard, which provides the kind of feedback we normally see on professional productivity laptops. Asus's convertible lasts over 11 hours on a charge which is more than enough for school and after-school activities.

PROS

- Flexible and durable design

- Long battery life

- Touch-screen display

- Good sound

CONS

- Average performance

- Poor cameras

Asus Chromebook Flip C213SA deals

Best Detachable

9. Microsoft Surface Pro 6

The king of 2-in-1 detachables just got even better. Not only does the Surface Pro 6 last 2 hours longer than its predecessor, but it also boasts faster performance thanks to its 8th-gen quad-core processor. All of those gains are tied together in an elegant matte black design with a bright and colorful 2736 x 1824 display with smooth Surface Pen functionality for drawing and taking notes.

PROS

- Fast quad-core performance

- Excellent battery life

- Bright and colorful display

- Comfortable keyboard

- Silky-smooth pen input

CONS

- Still no USB-C/Thunderbolt ports

- 256GB option is pricey and a bit sluggish

Microsoft Surface Pro 6 deals

Best Photo / Video Editing Laptop

10. Apple MacBook Pro (15-inch, 2019)

Apple updated its 15-inch MacBook Pro with faster 9th Gen Intel processors, making it the fastest MacBook ever. In addition you get all-day battery life, with loud, warm audio, and a bright, colorful and sharp display. Throw in some seriously fast SSDs and you’ve got a system just waiting to help you create your next masterpiece. It's blindingly fast and with its improved Butterfly-switches and over 10 hours of battery life, it's also a good system to get some work done.

PROS

- Superior speed, Sharp, colorful display, Powerful sound, Lots of battery life

CONS

- Price starts high and gets crazy expensive, Still uses 'Butterfly' keyboard, No USB Type-A ports

Apple MacBook Pro (15-inch, 2019) deals

Best 15-inch Laptop

11. Dell XPS 15

The laptop's optional 4K display can reproduce an awesome 188 percent of the sRGB color gamut while registering a solid 282 nits of brightness. Its 45-watt Intel H series processor provides much stronger performance than the U series CPU in its smaller sibling while its Nvidia GTX 1050 graphics make it a legitimate content creation machine.

PROS

- Beautiful display

- Clear audio

- Solid battery life

- Strong performance

CONS

- Webcam looks up your nose

Dell XPS 15 deals

Best Ultraportable

12. Apple MacBook Pro 13-inch

The new MacBook Pro 13-inch packs a much faster 8th Gen Intel Core CPU and both Touch ID and the Touch Bar. And while the keyboard still isn't great, Apple has introduced minor enhancements that will (hopefully) make it more reliable. Add in more than 10 hours of battery life and you have the best Apple laptop for most people -- at least those who want a future-proof system. For the price, you get a much faster processor, brighter display and considerably longer battery life for your money.

PROS

- Great battery life

- Very fast performance

- Bright and colorful display

- Powerful speakers

- Touch ID is convenient

CONS

- Keyboard has shallow travel

- Just two Thunderbolt 3 ports

- Thick bezels

Apple MacBook Pro 13-inch deals