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Who says buying a new laptop to handle even demanding tasks has to cost a fortune? While an $800 laptop wouldn’t cut it for some professionals who work with extremely resource-intensive software, for most users, it could very well be the sweet spot.
However, since there are countless options within the price range, finding a solid all-round machine could be challenging.
So, if you’re looking for a reliable and well-packed machine with a limited budget, this article is exactly for you. We’ll cover the best laptops for under $800, combining the best possible configurations.
Not only that, we’ll also go over some key points to keep in mind before choosing a laptop that fits your requirements and preferences.
Intrigued? Then dive right in.
Table of Contents
Top 7 Laptops under $800
Without further ado, let’s unveil the best laptops priced under $800:
1. Sleek Powerhouse: Acer Aspire 5
- CPU: 1.7GHz Intel Core i5-1240P
- RAM: 8GB DDR4
- Storage: 512GB SSD
- Display: 15.6-inch FHD (1920 x 1080)
- GPU: 4GB NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2050
- Battery: Up to 7 hours
If you’re looking for a sleek, powerful, and portable laptop under $800, then Acer Aspire 5 might just be the thing you need.
Aspire 5 has a 12th Gen. i5 processor and a dedicated RTX 2050. For the price, this is a pretty good and versatile combo. It will fly through everyday tasks, most of the professional software, light games — and even run the demanding titles at lower settings.
Moreover, it’s an excellent productivity laptop. I like how Acer blended relatively low weight (3.97 lbs) with a solid battery life of 7-8 hours, depending on the tasks. These numbers mean you can easily pull all day of work — and not dislocate your shoulder while carrying the machine.
And the laptop just looks good. It has an elegant, not-in-your-face design, which is fantastic for formal settings.
You also get a 15.6” IPS display with good contrast. To be fair, I would have liked it if the panel was brighter, but if you mainly work indoors, you’ll be fine.
The RAM is another story, and it will limit the performance. 8GB RAM is solid for most general tasks, but if you want to draw out the maximum from Aspire, I’d upgrade to at least 16GB.
Overall, for the asking price, Acer Aspire 5 sure gives a lot. It’s a popular, proven and versatile laptop under $800 that brings a ton of value.
- What We Like
- Strong performance
- 15.6” panel
- Lightweight
- Strong battery
- Full-size keyboard
- Elegant design
- What We Don’t Like
- 8GB RAM
- Lackluster display
2. 17″ Option with Touchscreen: HP 17
- CPU: 1.7GHz Intel Core i7-1255U
- RAM: 16GB DDR4
- Storage: 512GB SSD
- Display: 17.3-inch HD+ (1600 x 900)
- GPU: Integrated Intel Iris Xe
- Battery: Up to 7 hours
Who said you can’t have a great touchscreen laptop for under $800? HP 17 comes with a large display, compact design, and solid specs.
Of course, the first thing anyone will notice is the 17” touchscreen display. A sharp, colorful panel is very responsive, so it’s great for multi-window productivity — and just making your workflow more interactive. I wish it was a bit brighter, though.
The display pairs quite well with a 12th Gen. i7 and Intel Iris GPU. I thought it’s quite a clever combo since it fits multiple niches, especially office duties and multitasking.
And 16GB RAM sure adds to the overall performance.
HP revamped the initial HP 17’s design, and thank God for that. The original HP 17 had these designer specks on the chassis, which looked more like dust. The new model comes with a sleek, compact design and a much more elegant texture — which I quite dig.
As for portability, I thought the 5.4 lbs are still reasonable for a 17” laptop. However, I got around 6-7 hours of work; the touchscreen is known to reduce battery life. So make sure to bring a charger.
For this price, HP 17 is a great budget and productivity laptop under $800 and easily one of the better touchscreens you can get. This is not a gaming machine — except for casual, browser-based games — but it will excel in office and general tasks.
- What We Like
- Solid performance
- Large touchscreen display
- Ample RAM
- Compact design
- Full-size keyboard
- Good speakers
- What We Don’t Like
- Low brightness
- Mediocre battery life
3. Best Business Laptop under $800: Lenovo V15 G3
- CPU: 1.3GHz Intel Core i5-1235U
- RAM: 40GB DDR4
- Storage: 2TB SSD
- Display: 15.6-inch FHD (1920 x 1080)
- GPU: Integrated Intel Iris Xe
- Battery: Up to 8 hours
Well-rounded business machines can be tough to find, but Lenovo V15 G3 is one business laptop under $800 that drew my attention. Portable, fast, with massive storage — it’s all an aspiring entrepreneur needs.
This machine can handle every office and business task you throw at it. With a 12th Gen. Intel Core i5 and Intel Iris GPU — and a whopping 40GB of RAM — this is a legit multitasking, data-processing beast. Sure, you won’t be playing any AAA titles with the integrated GPU — but you have work to do anyway. For gaming, check out the HP Victus or Acer Nitro 5 instead.
With 2TB of storage, you’re unlikely to fill up the storage anytime soon. It’s the biggest storage on this list — and it’s all SSD, baby.
I also like the numbers in terms of portability. At 3.71 lbs, this 15.6” laptop is quite easy to carry around and lasts throughout the day. I got around 8 hours of juice, which is enough for a full workday.
Lenovo always manages to make their budget laptops look good. Whether it’s a regular IdeaPad or a Gaming series, the chassis is always interesting and elegant. The V15 G3 is no exception, although there is some flex to the base, so avoid harsh treatment.
If you want a reliable, lightning-fast, portable laptop for business and under $800, the Lenovo V15 G3 just might be a top pick.
- What We Like
- Strong performance
- Gigantic RAM
- 2TB of storage
- Elegant design
- Lightweight
- Good battery life
- What We Don’t Like
- Flimsy base
- Integrated GPU
4. Excellent Gaming Value: HP Victus
- CPU: 2.5GHz Intel Core i5-12450H
- RAM: 16GB DDR4
- Storage: 1TB SDD
- Display: 15.6-inch FHD (1920 x 1080)
- GPU: 4GB NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650
- Battery: Up to 5 hours
If you want an affordable yet capable and elegant gaming laptop, HP Victus is one of the more popular choices. This budget gaming laptop under $800 is great-looking, with an appealing display, and good overall portability.
The first time I saw Victus, I honestly thought it’d cost more. With a polished chassis and compact design, the whole machine looks and feels premium.
I also like how the HP engineers solved the display — because it is slightly elevated, so it’s super easy to get drawn into games on this 15.6” FHD panel with a high refresh rate.
Victus sports a 12th-gen. i5 H-processor and a GTX 1650, which make together a pretty solid combo for gaming. These specs will zap through gameplay if you’re mainly playing Minecraft, LoL, or Roblox.
However, if you’re more into AAA titles like Witcher, Cyberpunk 2077, and Hogwarts’ Legacy, I’d check out the Acer Nitro 5 below because of the stronger GPU.
As for the weight, I’d say that 5 lbs is ok-ish for a gaming laptop, especially if you’re mostly using it at home or in a dorm room.
I got around 5 hours of juice, which is far from the worst for gaming laptops. It’s not the best either — if you want a gamer with high battery life, check ROG Zephyrus, but it will cost you more.
Overall, though, the HP Victus is a popular, affordable gaming laptop whose specs, portability and design far outweigh the potential cons.
- What We Like
- Great overall performance
- Sleek, modern design
- Solid portability
- Fast 15.6” display
- Ample RAM and storage
- Good value for money
- What We Don’t Like
- Low-end GPU
- Some screen wobble
5. Beautiful Display: ASUS Zenbook
- CPU: 1.7GHz Intel Core i5-1240P
- RAM: 8GB DDR4
- Storage: 1TB SSD
- Display: 14-inch 2.8K (2880x 1800)
- GPU: Integrated Intel Iris Xe
- Battery: Up to 11 hours
ASUS Zenbook is a laptop under $800 that comes with an amazing display, great performance, and pretty good portability.
Zenbook’s display is one of my favorites, period. A gorgeous 14” OLED display with high resolution, great brightness and color accuracy makes it a wonderful companion in photo editing, document work, and light gaming. It’s simply beautiful to look at.
The visuals are run by a 12th Gen. i5, integrated GPU, and 8GB RAM. Based on performance tests, this combo is awesome for office work, general tasks, and lighter photo editing. However, if you want to boost the metrics, I’d upgrade the RAM to 16GB asap.
I’m a sucker for ASUS’ design. Zenbook looks sleek, elegant, and premium — way more than other laptops in this price range.
The keyboard is tactile and comfy, and — get this — the trackpad comes with an integrated numpad. Perfect for number-crunchers and data warriors.
At 3 lbs of weight and close to 11 hours of juice, this is one of the most portable laptops on this list.
Add to that generous 1TB of storage, and you’ll see why the ASUS Zenbook is one of the top picks for laptops under $800. If you upgrade the RAM, it’s a machine that will serve you great for years to come.
- What We Like
- Stunning OLED display
- Modern, sleek design
- Great performance
- Awesome build
- Very portable
- Integrated trackpad
- What We Don’t Like
- Integrated GPU
- 8GB RAM
6. Reliable Gaming Choice: Acer Nitro 5
- CPU: 2.5 GHz Intel Core i5-12500H
- RAM: 8GB DDR4
- Storage: 512GB SSD
- Display: 15.6-inch FHD (1920 x 1080)
- GPU: 4GB NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050
- Battery: Up to 6 Hours
This list wouldn’t be complete without one of the most popular budget gaming laptops. Acer Nitro 5 is below the 800-dollar mark, but the value it brings is awesome.
Acer is known for not skimping on the most important specs in their budget laptops. Nitro 5 is a perfect example: with a 12th-gen. i5 H-processor and a capable, dedicated RTX 3050, the machine will run even the more demanding AAA titles at high settings. Power-wise, this is one of the strongest laptops on this list.
You’ll be looking at a 15.6” display with a high refresh rate. The panel works great for fast maneuvers, first-person shooters, and eSports.
And I like the design: I’d recognize Nitro’s signature-red, comfy and tactile keyboard anywhere, nested in a sturdy and sleek, polished chassis.
Nitro offers pretty good portability for a beefed-up gaming laptop. At 5 lbs of weight and around 6 hours of battery life, you can still carry the machine around and manage without a charger.
The main concern is the RAM since it does limit the speed to a degree. 8GB RAM is a good starting point, but I’d upgrade to at least 16GB — pronto.
Still, Nitro 5 has been one of the most popular gaming laptops under $800 for a reason. It’s a reliable gamer with loads of things done right.
Watch our Acer Nitro 5 Review
This YouTube review was created by the Not Just Laptops team. The specs may slightly differ from the laptop in the article.
- What We Like
- Awesome performance
- Fast 15.6” display
- Good battery life
- Comfy, backlit keyboard
- Sleek gamer design
- Affordable
- What We Don’t Like
- 8GB RAM
- Bloatware
7. Stylish 2-in-1 Convertible Laptop: Dell Inspiron 7425
- CPU: 2.3GHz AMD Ryzen 5 5625U
- RAM: 16GB DDR4
- Storage: 512GB SSD
- Display: 14-inch FHD Touch (1920 x 1080)
- GPU: Integrated AMD Radeon Vega 7 Graphics
- Battery: Up to 7 hours
Rounding up this list is another convertible, this time from Dell. Inspiron 7425 is a 2-in-1 laptop under $800 with great media capabilities, a lightweight design, and a sturdy build.
Inspiron houses a Ryzen 5 processor and Vega 7 GPU, which are quite capable of handling doc processing, multitasking, and everyday tasks — especially if you factor in the 16GB of RAM.
The thing with Inspiron is that the convertible display really makes the work more fun. I love to flip it into tent mode when I’m bored, and the responsive 14” touchscreen display does make the difference. Its crisp, vivid, thin-bezel panel is gorgeous to look at.
Plus, the whole device feels very lightweight at 3.7 lbs, even though the chassis is quite sturdy.
True, the battery life could have been a little better. In my tests, Inspiron lasted around 7 hours on a single charge, probably because of the touchscreen features. It’s not even close to abysmal, but you’ll probably need a charger for a full workday.
Another selling point for Inspiron is the webcam. While some expensive laptops still hold onto the 720p webcams, Dell put a 1080p FHD webcam into Inspiron — and it’s great for web conferences and video calls.
So, if you’re looking for an interactive, media-rich, portable laptop under $800, the Dell Inspiron sure fits the bill.
- What We Like
- Good overall performance
- 14” touchscreen display
- Lightweight
- Ample RAM
- Sturdy build
- 1080p FHD webcam
- What We Don’t Like
- Middling battery life
- Integrated GPU
Buying Guide for Laptops under $800
Before we head to the laptop reviews, let’s go over a few key points that will help you narrow down your choices.
1. Figure Out the Main Purpose for Purchasing a New Laptop
Your ultimate choice depends on your specific reason for purchasing a new laptop. So, you need to ask yourself what you are primarily going to do with it.
Let’s list a few examples:
- If you’re looking for a good laptop for college or a reliable business machine, you should probably look for something portable with good processing power.
- If you need something for photo and video editing, your focus should be on the GPU and display quality.
- Besides a good GPU and a responsive screen, gamers will need something with an efficient cooling system as well.
- Writers, bloggers, journalists, and other similar professions will require an ergonomic keyboard before anything else.
2. Think About Performance
A good laptop for under $800 should come with at least a 12th Gen Intel Core i5 or a Ryzen 5 equivalent from AMD. These CPUs could easily slice through everyday tasks and moderate multitasking activities.
So it’s a good choice for smooth performance with browsers, word processors, spreadsheets, and other similarly demanding software.
For the price range, you shouldn’t expect anything spectacular regarding graphics performance, as most models come with an integrated GPU. While modern integrated graphics cards are decent for light gaming and even basic photo editing, having a dedicated GPU will deliver much smoother performance with graphically intensive tasks.
That’s why our list includes a couple of models with a dedicated GPU, but as you would expect, there will be compromises in other areas.
That being said, if you’re looking for a device with a more capable CPU/GPU configuration, you might want to increase your budget a bit and check out our top picks for photo editing under $1000.
3. Consider the RAM and Storage
Nowadays, even the cheapest models come with at least 8GB RAM, which is enough for minimally demanding tasks like browsing, e-mailing, and word processing.
But we’d advise you to aim for 16GB RAM to ensure your laptop’s smooth operation with multitasking and RAM-hungry applications. Moreover, it’s a good starting point if you want to ensure your computer works smoothly for many years.
When selecting storage, you should prioritize SSDs (solid-state-drive) over traditional HDDs (hard-disk-drive). SSDs bring fast loading times and increase a laptop’s performance significantly compared to HDDs. Not to mention, they are much smaller in physical size, so they improve the laptop’s portability.
The good news is that even the cheapest modern laptops usually have an SSD. However, it’s a point worth considering if you’re getting an older refurbished model or a device from a less-known brand.
4. Choose the Right Display for You
Most laptops in this price range come with decent quality 15.6” FHD displays, which are great for most users. But if you need something more compact and portable, there are solid 14-inch options. On the flip side, if you need more workspace and don’t mind compromising portability, a 17-inch display may be the right option.
While higher resolution and higher quality OLED displays tend to be expensive, there are some rare gems you could find within the price range. So, if you are looking for exquisite visual quality for an affordable price, we’d recommend checking out the new ASUS Zenbook 14 from our list.
5. Consider Portability and Battery Life
Portability should always be considered when purchasing a new laptop. Otherwise, we’d be talking about desktops, wouldn’t we?
So, if you are often out and about, getting a thin and lightweight laptop with good battery life is vital. As a general rule of thumb, a good portable laptop should weigh around 3 lbs, with a battery life of between 8-10 hours.
However, you should keep in mind that thin and light laptops usually have slower performance compared to larger models.
6. Choose Your Brand
Last but not least, choosing a device from a reputable brand with good warranty service and reliability is advisable.
While you could hardly go wrong with any of the tech giants like Lenovo, HP, Dell, Acer, or ASUS, each of them has its strengths and weaknesses. So, it is a good idea to do in-depth research to see which brand has the biggest presence and best offers in your area.
As you’ll soon find out, all our favorite picks come from some of these brands, and with a good reason.
FAQs about Laptops Under $800
Are i7 processors better than i5 in terms of performance?
Just like Intel Core i9 processors are more advanced than the i7 series, the Core i7s are better in terms of performance than the lower-tier i5 and i3 series. That’s mainly because higher-tier processor series have more cores and thread counts, making them more capable of multitasking and handling demanding applications.
However, that may not always be the case. For example, a recent generation i5 can outperform an older i7.
On that note, we are currently at the 13th generation of Intel Core processors. But laptops priced below $800 will mostly come with a previous 12th-gen i5 processor, which is still pretty solid.
How do I choose the right laptop under $800?
It all comes down to why you’re buying the laptop in the first place. Once that is clear, you should think about the performance requirements for the things you plan to do. Those include CPU power as well as getting enough RAM and storage. If you plan to work on graphically intensive tasks, picking something with a dedicated graphics card will also be important.
Besides performance, think about size and portability, as those could be vital features if you’re often out and about.
For more detailed information, check out our buying guide a bit above in this article
How much RAM should a laptop have?
How much RAM a laptop should have depends on how you use it. For example, CAD tools, video editing, and audio production software require plenty of RAM (32GB or higher), especially for professional-level usage.
However, for most users, anything between 8 and 16GB should be enough.
The good news is that even the cheapest laptops these days come with 8GB RAM, which is pretty good for handling the OS and minimally demanding activities like browsing, video conferencing, and basic office work.
But to ensure a smooth performance of your laptop for a few years to come, we’d recommend picking something with at least 16GB.
Can an SSD enhance the gaming experience?
Yes, indeed it can. As compared to HDD drives, SSDs are known to increase the bootup speed significantly and even help launch the games faster. They even increase the processing speed in the best manner, no matter what size of the storage capacity you have in your system.
Verdict
So these are our favorite all-around laptops for under $800. As you probably realize by now, there are several major factors to consider before choosing a specific model.
It is necessary to understand that buying a laptop on a limited budget means making a few compromises here and there. So you need to decide what is important and what’s not.
If you need a bit more information about laptops before finally making your pick, going over our comprehensive buying guide might help.
Still having trouble leaning toward any of our recommendations? Here is a quick recap:
- If you need a reliable business machine with solid specs and massive RAM and storage capacity, the Lenovo V15 G3 is probably your ideal choice.
- As a more portable option with a gorgeous display and long battery life, we recommend the ASUS Zenbook.
- For those looking for a solid gaming machine with great value for money, the Acer Nitro 5 is our favorite pick.
Note that we made this list of general-purpose laptops having different types of users in mind. If you’re looking for $800 machines specifically for gaming, we got you covered. And if you’re not
