Best laptop for working from home in 2024 – our top picks

We think that Apple’s 2023 Macbook Air Laptop is one of the best laptops for working from home. Apple’s Macbooks have been a steady companion for those who are used to their stable OS and friendly interface. And the 2023 Macbook Air Laptop features a powerful M2 chip, which makes it an impressive upgrade. 

For starters, the processing power of the M2 is second to none, and it is on par with some of the best laptops for video editing. Thanks to the chip’s architecture, the laptop handles graphic-hungry tasks with ease, which makes it a good fit for content creators.

In keeping with Apple’s signature screen, they equipped this model with a 15.3” retina display with 500 nits of brightness. Of course, that pales in comparison with the iPad’s 1,600 nits of brightness. Along with the performance, you also get great battery life. You should be able to get 18-hours worth of usage without a hitch. With that being said, Apple 2023 MacBook Air comes in two variants – you can go for the 8GB of RAM and 256GB SSD combination or get the 16 GB of RAM and 1TB SSD. 

Next on our list is Lenovo’s 2023 Thinkpad Carbon Gen 9, which is one of the best lightweight laptops. Building on the success of its predecessors, the 2023 version of the Thinkpad Carbon makes a strong case for itself. This model is powered by the Core i7-1185g7 processor, which has four cores and eight threads. While the processor is notably power-efficient, its performance isn’t anything to be scoffed at, seeing as it has a maximum clock speed of 4.8 GHz.

The base version of this laptop is equipped with 16 GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD. Users who need more RAM and SSD can consider the 32GB RAM and 2TB SSD combination.

Unlike its predecessors, the Gen 9 has a 16:10 aspect ratio, which makes for a slightly taller-looking screen. One implication of this change is that users will need less scrolling to access lengthy documents while being able to split the screen into segments for multitasking. In terms of physical appearance, not much has changed. Users will be pleased to see the carbon fiber palm rest, making typing a pleasant experience. As for the keyboard, Lenovo has stuck with its trusty Thinkpad keyboard.

Battery life is another factor remote workers will be keen to hear about. While it won’t be winning any awards yet, the 14-hour backup is pretty generous.

Next on our list is the Surface Pro 8. When Microsoft announced the Surface Pro 8 at its Surface event in September 2021, there were high expectations for the device. Just a month later, they were available and have remained a trusty companion for remote workers – and for all the good reasons.

First of all, the laptop also doubles as a tablet with adjustable angles thanks to its kickstand. The screen of the Pro 8 is also a step forward from the Pro 7. Thinner bezels and a bump from 60 to 120 Hz refresh rate account for a smoother screen experience.

The use of an EVO Core i5 processor (Core i5-1135G7) contributes to its fast boot time and ability to handle basic apps without heating up. One drawback of this device is the soldered 8 GB of RAM, which means there’s no room for an upgrade. So, if you need to run several applications while having several browser tabs open, there’s a chance you’ll run out of memory.

While the Surface Pro 8 is fitted with a 256GB SSD in the M.2 2230 30mm form factor, there’s room for an upgrade. The Iris Xe graphics chip means this laptop can handle basic games with low settings.

Coming to the battery life, Surface Pro 8 claims to have a battery life of 16 hours. However, in reality, several users have reported 4 to 8 hours of battery life, even on basic use. If you can spare a few more bucks, consider looking at Lenovo’s 2023 Yoga 7i. The laptop comes with a 16” screen, a 12th generation Core i5 processor, DDR5 RAM, and a 1TB SSD. The only downside would be the 4.18 pounds users would have to carry around.

Next, we have the XPS 15 9510, which is one of the best laptops for writers, journalists, and bloggers. There’s no point reinventing the wheel with laptops, and Dell seems to know all about that with the design of the XPS 15 9510. As with most XPS laptops in recent years, Dell stuck with its carbon-fiber palm rest on this model. Also, the aluminum finish for the top and bottom covers isn’t going anywhere. With this model being 18mm thick, there are bound to be questions asked about the 9510’s performance.

A peek under the hood reveals a Core i7-11800H processor, which has eight cores and sixteen threads. There’s also 16 GB of DDR4 RAM, which shouldn’t cause any bottlenecks even with heavy applications. For those who would err on the side of caution and upgrade the RAM, maintenance is fairly straightforward once they unscrew eight torx-head screws. The 16GB of RAM can be maxed out to 64GB, while the 512GB SSD can be swapped for a 1TB or 2TB SSD.

Dell also decided to hook this model up with a 4GB Nvidia RTX 3050 GPU. Thanks to the GPU, this laptop has the oomph to play several AAA titles, like Call of Duty: Warzone, at 1080p and 60 fps.

Dell didn’t go all out on this model’s screen, a 1920×1200 pixel, 15.6” screen without a touchscreen feature. But that choice may do users some good in the battery department. Thanks to its 86 Wh battery, users have reported getting around 3 hours when running power-hungry tasks. However, with the right power settings and modest use, people working from home can get up to 11 hours.

While the Nvidia RTX 3050 GPU and aluminum finish may justify the heavy price tag, competitors like Acer Nitro 5 offer almost similar configuration for less. However, Acer’s laptop has a plastic chassis and the 57 Wh battery, which does not exactly scream premium.

Lenovo makes the final cut on this list with its 2022 version of the Ideapad 3 laptop, which reigns supreme in the land of budget-friendly laptops. In fact, it is one of the best laptops for realtors. Not every person working from home can afford an expensive laptop, and that’s where the Ideapad 3 comes in. It is an affordable work-from-home laptop that can help you out with the basic stuff.

While the Core i3-1115G4 processor won’t win any laurels any time soon, it’s sufficient for basic tasks like web browsing and operating MS Office. Lenovo also equipped this laptop with the standard 8 GB of RAM and 256 GB of SSD. If you need more space, you can opt for the variant with 20GB of RAM and a 2TB SSD.

The screen on this laptop leaves much to be desired, as the HD resolution produces grainy images. The touchscreen feature and 15.6” size seem to make up for that shortfall. As far as battery life is concerned, you get a 45 Wh battery that should last for up to 7 hours, which is sufficient for most of us.

In terms of its chassis, this model is, unsurprisingly, plastic. What else were you expecting from a budget laptop? However, the platinum gray color gives the illusion of being somewhat premium. Interestingly, Ideapad 3 doesn’t have a backlit keyboard, which may be a deal breaker for some remote workers.

Within the same price range, you also have the ASUS Vivobook 14, which comes equipped with the same CPU, RAM, and storage. Plus, it features a 14” FHD screen and a backlit keyboard, which makes it a tough competitor to Ideapad 3. However, it should be noted that Lenovo’s 45 Wh battery, which performs better than ASUS’s 37 Wh battery.

In case you want to explore more affordable laptops for working from home, check out our top picks for the best budget laptops. If you’re tight on a budget, you’d want to consider going through some of the best laptops under $300 that can help you out with basic tasks.