The 4 Best Laptops for College Students, Hand-Picked by a Mom of an Incoming Freshman
I've done my research — these are the MacBooks and PCs worth the investment.
Reviewed by Nikolas Greenwald and Alec Scherma
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My daughter will be a college freshman in August, and I'm determined to send her out into the world with a quality laptop that can handle anything she throws at it. Ideally, I'd like this laptop to last four whole years, because I only want to make this big purchase once — so I've done the research to find the best of the best. If you're in the same boat, I've narrowed it down to the four best laptops for college students.
To help curate my search, I looked at the features of a MacBook, two PCs and a tablet to understand how they'd help my daughter. In the long run, certain specs like storage capacity and battery life are more important than others. I also took some insights from our Good Housekeeping Institute experts to help guide my research.
Why we like it: When the Good Housekeeping Institute Media & Tech Lab tested a previous model of the MacBook Air, they named it the best overall laptop. I'm recommending this year's 13-inch MacBook Air because it's the most affordable MacBook available and it has the powerful M4 chip, which boasts performance and graphics capabilities that rival high end gaming computers.
I like that the starting point for the memory and storage is a generous 16 GB RAM with a 256 GB SSD respectively — ideal for busy students who may have many tabs open at once. Apple says that the battery will last up to 18 hours on a single charge and that it can charge to 50% in just 30 minutes, too.
Students can sync Apple products to this laptop, including iPhones, which is helpful when using the Find My feature. And Siri can be used for troubleshooting issues with the MacBook.
At only 2.8 pounds, it won't add much weight to their backpack. Four colors are available.
What to consider: There's no touchscreen, if that's what your child is used to. There is a trackpad on the keyboard, or they can connect a mouse — wired or wireless.
| Storage | 16 GB Unified Memory (the same as RAM), 256 SSD |
| Connectivity | WiFi 6e, Bluetooth 5.3 |
| Battery | Up to 18 hours on a single charge, per the brand |
| Warranty | Up to 90 days of free tech support to start. With Apple Care+ you can get unlimited repairs starting at $99 each, 24/7 access to Apple experts, and a replacement if they determine that the laptop can’t be fixed. |
Why we like it: For a fast, full-sized laptop for your on-the-go freshman, this Samsung laptop is a versatile pick. It folds completely inside out, so the laptop can be used as a tablet. It has a touchscreen that's also compatible with the S Pen (sold separately) — but if they'd rather go old-school, the keyboard has a trackpad and a mouse that can be connected. The laptop only weighs 3.2 pounds, which is ideal for college students who are still carrying textbooks.
Your student will get a bright, high-definition display and webcam, plus two Dolby Atmos speakers. Other notable features include Windows 11 Pro and AI tech that can help with everything from web searches to photo retouching. It even has real-time language translation in video calls.
This machine also makes working online easy with extra-fast WiFi 7. The brand says it has a battery life of up to 31 hours, which will certainly come in handy for busy students.
What to consider: Although this is the most expensive option on the list, it comes with a lot of storage and the fastest WiFi. Note that it only comes in one color: silver.
| Storage | 16 GB RAM, 512 GB HDD |
| Connectivity | WiFi 7, Bluetooth 5.4 |
| Battery | Up to 31 hours, per the brand |
| Warranty | Samsung Care+ starts at $59 and you can file an unlimited number of claims for $29 or $99, depending on the issue. It covers mechanical breakdowns and general damage. Replacements are available, if needed. |
Why we like it: A laptop with 1TB of storage for under $500 is a score. This HP should have all the processing basics your college student will need for doing homework, video chats and streaming movies — and more than enough space for all of their videos, photos and apps.
The PC runs on Windows 11 Pro, which has more security features than the Home version. This allows this computer be connected to a domain network.
What to consider: Because there's no touchscreen, they'll need a mouse — unless they want to use the trackpad. Additionally, this laptop only comes in silver and is the heaviest of my picks (3.5 pounds).
| Storage | 16 GB RAM, 1 TB SSD |
| Connectivity | WiFi 6, Bluetooth 5 |
| Battery | Up to 10 hours, per the brand |
| Warranty | A one-year warranty covers hardware and some software failure. You can also buy HP CarePack, which extends the warranty and tech support, offers repairs and provides protection against theft. |
Why we like it: I included this one because it's a lightweight option that your student may prefer if they used a tablet exclusively in high school. It has a 12-inch touchscreen and only weighs 1.5 pounds. Plus, it's easy to add an external keyboard and a Bluetooth mouse for all the conveniences of a laptop. This one operates with Windows 11 Home.
With a tablet, they get both a front- and rear-facing camera, and this one even has facial recognition for signing in. Best of all, it has the latest WiFi 7. In other words, it's built for speed.
What to consider: The keyboard will cost an extra $150. It snaps in easily and comes in three colors, but it doesn’t have a number pad on the side like many laptop keyboards.
| Storage | 16 GB RAM, 256 GB SSD |
| Connectivity | WiFi 7, Bluetooth 5.4 |
| Battery | Up to 16 hours, per the brand |
| Warranty | A one-year limited hardware warranty plus 90 days of tech support is standard. You can purchase Microsoft Complete to cover damage repairs. Out of warranty, Microsoft does a good job of walking you through how to do basic repairs yourself. |
What to look for in a laptop for college students
Storage: RAM is the computer's short-term memory, storing data on apps and files that are open so that the computer can grab this information quickly. The higher the RAM, the faster it will feel like the machine is running — but most college students probably won't need more than 16GB. This is plenty of power for general use, plus gaming and editing video.
The main storage drive will either be a HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or an SSD (Solid-State Drive), holding all of their photos, videos, documents and apps.
If you want a faster computer, the SSD will be better, but it will be more expensive in comparison. "For college students, I’d personally recommend anything SSD over HDD, it will be incomparably faster," says GH Test Engineer Alec Sherma.
Connectivity: Standard connectivity includes WiFi and Bluetooth for connecting devices like earbuds. Most laptops and tablets run WiFi 5 or 6, with 6 being the faster of the two. Two machines on my list have WiFi 7, the latest version, which is four times as fast as WiFi 6.
Battery Life: Between morning classes, study groups and whatever else lands on their busy schedule, a long battery life is a must-have for college students.
Something to note: battery life heavily depends on what the computer is being used for. For example, taking notes it will last a lot longer than if you are gaming, which could range in differences up to hours. "Typically, when a company provides the battery life, it’s under its minimum use conditions, so the battery life is heavily inflated. So something that says it has a battery life of 10 hours, could really only be a few," Sherma explains.
Warranty: Each machine on my list comes with a manufacturer's warranty, plus an option to purchase additional coverage. While the details of each service vary, they all allow for repairs (or even replacements) and can be canceled.
What to consider when buying a laptop for college students
Refresh rate: Gamers care a lot about the RAM and disk size for speed, but also the refresh rate for picture clarity and lag. Most laptops have a 60Hz refresh rate, but faster ones are available.
Size and usage: Laptops range from 13 to 17 inches, so ask your student what they'd prefer to carry around. Additionally, some laptops, not all, have touchscreens, which they may prefer to a mouse or trackpad.
Color: Full disclosure – some of the laptops on my list don't offer many color choices. It's honestly the least of the considerations on this mom's list, but it's something to keep in mind if it's important to your student.
The best time to buy a laptop for college
Ideally, you'll buy a laptop for your college kid over the summer, before classes begin in the fall. Keep an eye out for back-to-school sales at major online retailers like Best Buy, Walmart and Amazon, which can start as early as mid-July.
Speaking of Amazon, if past years are any indication, Prime Day will be full of impressive deals on all tech, not just laptops. When the time comes, if you see the laptop your child wants, I suggest grabbing it. I have seen lowest-price-ever deals during Prime Day (yes, even on Apple products), and they tend to sell quickly.
If you don't have the laptop you need by the first day of school — or, worse, you already need to replace one by then — Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales are also excellent times to save money on a big-ticket purchase like this.
Nik (he/him) works across GH Institute Labs to develop testing protocols, analyze data, and build tools that support product evaluation. He also contributes editorial coverage on men’s beauty and audio, drawing on his background in chemical engineering and experience as a music producer and DJ. Before joining Good Housekeeping in 2022, Nik worked in the labs of MIT and Regeneron on projects ranging from chemical inventory and reporting to bioassay development.
Alec Scherma (he/him) is the Good Housekeeping Institute’s test engineer, where he helps to create and implement new product testing methodology across home, cooking and cleaning appliances, wellness, tech products and more. He graduated from Drexel University’s College of Engineering with a B.A. in mechanical engineering.
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