11 Best Laptops for College Students (2025), Including Tablets and 2-in-1s

You'll need a competent machine for when you want to play games and take your mind off coursework. But certain students will also need a powerful PC for graphics-intensive work, like video editing. A gaming laptop is the way to go, and the Acer Nitro 17 (8/10, WIRED Recommends) is a great place to start. It's frequently sold for just $900 at Micro Center, which is a killer price considering the performance it delivers. The RTX 4060 graphics card will handle most games at low to medium settings, and you get to enjoy all of it on a spacious 17-inch display and a 165-Hz refresh rate.

The downside is it's very heavy at 6 pounds, an important factor to consider if you have to lug it to class. It also doesn't have great battery life, so you'll want to keep a charger handy. If those are deal-breakers, then consider the older Acer Nitro 5 ($1,098), which has lesser specs but is slightly smaller and lighter, and its battery life is a bit better.

Framework's 13-inch laptop is a good choice for budding programmers and sysadmins. The Laptop 13 (8/10, WIRED Recommends) is available with either Windows or Linux, but I much prefer it with Linux—a DIY laptop needs a DIY OS. The hallmark of this laptop is how you can repair and replace components down the road, making it more environmentally friendly and cost-effective.

Right now, you can get a Ryzen AI series system with 32 GB of RAM, a 2-TB SSD, and whichever mix of ports suits your needs for around $1,400. That will ship with no operating system. When it arrives you can install Linux (or opt to ship it with Windows if you need to dual boot). See our Best Linux Laptops guide for more options. If you like the idea of the Laptop 13, you should also consider the newer Laptop 12, though it's a little smaller.