Even the best gaming laptops can't deliver the same level of performance as a good gaming PC—but they give you a lot of power in a device small enough to slip in a backpack.
And if you're lucky, they look good and run well to boot. I know because my team and I have been using and reviewing laptops for decades, and we love gaming laptops.
I've been a fan of these beastly gaming machines since I was a kid, but you no longer need to strain your back to carry one to school: the best gaming laptops are relatively light yet powerful, with good enough battery life to get you through some chores at the coffee shop before you plug in to game all night.
For most folks we recommend the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 because its elegant and relatively easy to carry, yet delivers great gaming power and enough battery life to get you through at least a few hours of work at the coffee shop.
But if you just need something cheap and nice you can plug in and leave on your desk, the MSI Cyborg 15 is a great choice. And if you'd prefer something a little less flashy that can last you through a workday in a pinch, the Samsung Galaxy Book 4 Ultra is a workhorse of a laptop with enough muscle to play games at a decent clip.
Whatever you're looking for, we've got a great recommendation for you. My team and I have tested and reviewed dozens of gaming laptops from the top manufacturers, and we use that expertise to build this regularly-updated list of the best gaming laptops on the market.
The quick list
The Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 (2024) is the gaming laptop we recommend for most because it delivers a potent blend of performance, portability and power efficiency in a svelte 14-inch chassis.
You'd be hard-pressed to find a better gaming laptop for under $1k than this cyberpunk-inspired gaming machine, which comes with a capable Nvidia RTX 4050 GPU, a fast 13th Gen Intel CPU and a solid 144Hz 15.6-inch display that won't let you down.
Samsung's Galaxy Book 4 Ultra is a remarkably long-lasting laptop with a luscious 16-inch OLED display that runs games surprisingly well thanks to its powerful Nvidia GeForce RTX 40-series GPU and speedy Intel CPU.
The HP Omen Transcend 14 isn't the beefiest or cheapest gaming laptop on this list, but at 0.7 inches thick it is the thinnest. This svelte machine looks good on a desk and has the chops to run most modern games well on its 14-inch 1080p screen, but expect less than 6 hours of battery life.
The Alienware m18 R2 is as big and powerful as its predecessor, the m18 R1. It's too heavy, hot and loud to be much fun to use on the go, but at home, the great keyboard and large, lovely screen make it a great desktop replacement for gaming or getting work done.
Macs don't have a reputation for being great gaming machines, but the latest 16-inch MacBook Pro has more than enough power to play the latest games well. The fact that it looks great, offers great battery life and a gorgeous mini-LED display is just icing on the cake.
Alex Wawro is a lifelong journalist who's spent over a decade covering tech, games and entertainment. He oversees the computing department at Tom's Guide, which includes managing laptop coverage and reviewing many himself every year.
The best gaming laptops you can buy today
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The best gaming laptop overall
The Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 (2024) is a great gaming laptop, delivering a potent blend of performance, portability and power efficiency.
We've long been fans of the Zephyrus G14 because it has the chops to run most games at solid framerates, the efficiency to be used as a work laptop in a pinch, and a slim, compact chassis that's more portable than most gaming laptops.
The 2024 model has a stunning OLED display and looks great to boot. Factor in the good speakers and an AMD CPU/GPU combo that delivers solid gaming performance and you've got a potent gaming ultraportable.
While it can't match the outlandish 11-hour battery life of its predecessors, the OLED screen is worth it. For what it delivers in terms of performance and productivity, the Zephryrus G14 is an outstanding gaming laptop.
Read our full Asus ROG Zephryus G14 (2024) review.
The best budget gaming laptop
The MSI Cyborg 15 ($999) is a cyberpunk-inspired gaming laptop that won’t destroy your wallet. Packing a 13th Gen Intel Core CPU and an Nvidia RTX 4050 GPU, this laptop delivers solid gaming performance for $1,000. Toss in a 144Hz 15.6-inch display and you have a machine that’s a great entry into the world of PC gaming.
The laptop has a cool design, great performance and costs less than $1,000. The display could be brighter and a bit more colorful, but the 144Hz refresh rate is welcome. And while its battery life isn’t great, the Cyborg 15 also doubles as a good productivity device, so long as you keep it plugged in.
Read our full MSI Cyborg 15 review.
The best battery life
The Samsung Galaxy Book 4 Ultra is a powerful, long-lived machine that outlasts every other laptop on this list in our battery tests. While it lacks RBG lighting and some of the other over-the-top accoutrements that typically adorn gaming laptops, make no mistake, the Book Ultra can game thanks to its discrete Nvidia GPU and speedy Intel CPU.
In addition to its impressive performance, this laptop packs a gorgeous OLED display that makes viewing content and playing games a pure joy. On its own, it’s a fantastic Windows 11 laptop.
But like other Samsung laptops, it comes with a lot of bloatware from Samsung that's pretty useless if you don't own other Galaxy devices. But if you are already embedded in Samsung's Galaxy ecosystem, this is a great gaming laptop that plays well with your other devices.
Overall, the Book 4 Ultra is a great laptop that may not run games as well as every other machine on this list, but will outlast them in a pinch.
Read our full Samsung Galaxy Book 4 Ultra review.
The best thin-and-light gaming laptop
The HP Omen Transcend 14 might be a gaming laptop but it certainly doesn't look the part. Though it sports RGB lighting on its keyboard, you could easily mistake this notebook for a business ultraportable. HP is marketing it as “the world’s lightest 14-inch gaming laptop,” and it's by far the thinnest laptop on this list.
The other noteworthy aspect of the HP Omen Transcend 14 is that it packs an Intel Core Ultra “Meteor Lake” chip. With “AI laptops” being all the rage nowadays, this laptop could take advantage of all the fancy AI features we’ve heard so much about. Thanks to its Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 laptop GPU, you can play many games in medium settings. The bright and colorful 14-inch 2.8K 120Hz OLED display also ensures those games look and run phenomenally.
Battery life isn’t so great, which is expected for a gaming laptop. However, since this can also double as your everyday notebook, the limited battery life could be a problem. Other than battery life, the HP Omen Transcend 14 is a phenomenal (and thin) gaming laptop.
Read our full HP Omen Transcend 14 review.
The best desktop replacement
The Alienware m18 R2 is every bit as powerful and gargantuan as its predecessor. Though it's a laptop, it's much too heavy, loud and hot to comfortably use when you're on the go. But if you're using it at home (while plugged in) it makes an excellent desktop/gaming PC replacement. This beast is all the computer you could ever need!
Performance-wise, this 18-inch behemoth outperformed just about every laptop on this list. The low-profile CherryMX mechanical keys are also a delight to type on, and the speakers and screen are good enough for gaming.
The port placement is a little odd (why put a single USB-C port on the right-hand side, right up near the front?) and the heat this thing kicks off is truly scorching when it gets going, but if power is all you care about (and price is no object) this is the biggest, best gaming laptop to buy.
Read our full Alienware m18 R2 review.
Best MacBook for gaming
If you want a MacBook for gaming, you want the latest 16-inch MacBook Pro with the most powerful chip you can afford. If possible, you want the 16-inch MacBook Pro M3 Max, because Apple's top-tier M3 chip has enough power to make games like Death Stranding and Resident Evil Village look great while running at silky-smooth framerates.
MacBooks typically aren't a popular choice for gaming laptops because many great PC games either don't run at all on macOS or tend to run better on Windows, but that doesn't mean Macs can't game. To the contrary, Apple has been trying to showcase games running on its most powerful MacBooks for years, and the advent of Apple silicon has made them surprisingly good at it.
On top of all the great performance you'll wring out of the 16-inch MacBook Pros M3 Pro or M3 Max chip, you get a beautiful mini-LED display (don't worry about the notch, you'll stop noticing it after awhile) and plenty of ports. Plus, you get the added comfort of a MagSafe 3 charging port, support for up to an 8K external display and some amazing battery life, as well as a great six-speaker sound system.
Read our full MacBook Pro (16-inch) 2023 review.
Also tested
Performance test results compared
When you're buying a gaming laptop, you want to know how well it can run the best PC games.
That's why we run every gaming laptop we review through a series of performance tests in a number of games, including Assassin's Creed, Cyberpunk 2077 and Grand Theft Auto V.
To help you better understand how the laptops on this list compare, I've listed all their performance scores in the one gaming performance test we can run on all of them: Borderlands 3.
While it's not the newest or most demanding game, it doesn't have to be. The important thing is that it runs on every one of these machines, so you can peruse the list below and see how they compare when running a game.
| Laptop | Borderlands 3 |
| Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 (2024) | 67.3 |
| MSI Cyborg 15 | 52.8 |
| Samsung Galaxy Book 4 Ultra | 58.42 |
| HP Omen Transcend 14 | 63.33 |
| Alienware m18 R2 | 158.85 |
| Razer Blade 16 (2024) | 164.77 |
Battery benchmarks: comparison
Battery life is a key concern for folks using laptops on the go, and gaming laptops are notoriously weak in this area because of their high-powered components.
That's why we run every laptop we review through battery tests which measure how long it can last on a full charge, both while gaming and while doing less demanding work like browsing the web.
Below you'll find a chart of how long these laptops last while gaming, which is typically far less time than they would while just browsing the web. So while these battery times are the most conservative, when doing less demanding work you can generally expect between 8-12 hours of battery life from these laptops on a full charge.
Ultimately, what you do on your laptop, how bright you set the screen, and what power settings you use will all affect how long your laptop lasts before running out of juice—but this chart will help you compare to find the best gaming laptop for your needs.
| Laptop | Battery life (hours:mins) |
| Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 (2024) | 1:03 |
| MSI Cyborg 15 | 1:47 |
| Samsung Galaxy Book 4 Ultra | 2:27 |
| HP Omen Transcend 14 | 0:59 |
| Alienware m18 R2 | 1:12 |
| Razer Blade 16 (2024) | 1:37 |
| Lenovo Legion Pro 7i Gen 8 | 1:07 |
Frequently asked questions
How do I find the best gaming laptop deals?
For gaming laptops, there is an ocean of deals. We've already scoured the internet for the best savings on all our top recommendations up above, but if you want to shop for yourself, here are our top tips.
Set a budget — figure out what you're looking for: "What are you looking to do?" This is always the vague question customer service reps ask when you walk in the store. But let's get to the bottom of it. Are you a newcomer to PC gaming on the go? Then something cheap and cheerful is for you. If you have more enthusiast-pro level goals, then it's worth investing more into the configuration of your system.
Double check if that deal is actually a good deal: Download the Camelizer and thank us later. This is a Chrome extension that runs an extensive historical price check on any Amazon product, which stops any sneaky retailer tricks to raise prices just before big sales events to make that smaller discount sound better on paper.
What are your most important key features? Is it a good keyboard for working by day and playing by night? Maybe it's a super crisp display or a sleek design to throw in your backpack? Make a note of what the key priorities are for you in a gaming laptop outside of how much horsepower is under the hood.
How do I choose the best gaming laptop for me?
Power or portability? You’ll need to consider what type of gaming and where you’ll be doing it before you decide what’s the best gaming laptop for you. Do you plan to mostly play triple-A demanding games at home and on a desk, but have the scope to occasionally move your machine, then a chunkier and more powerful gaming laptop, like the Alienware m18 might be best. But if you plan to carry your gaming laptop around a fair bit, say for LAN parties, then a thinner and lighter laptop like the Alienware x14 could be for you.
Display: These days there’s a wide range of display choice for gaming laptops. You can get a standard 60Hz 1080p panel that might come with built-in anti-screen-tearing features like Nvidia’s G-Sync. But if you’re willing to pay more, you can get gaming laptops with high refresh-rate displays, often sitting at 144Hz. But the latest machines can hit 240Hz, with those on the cutting-edge sporting 300Hz displays. HIgh refresh-rate displays are great for people who play fast-paced games such as Overwatch or Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. But if you mostly plan to plug in an external monitor, then you might be better off saving money by going for a 60Hz Full HD screen.
Budget or high-end? If you don’t want to break the bank by paying for a gaming laptop, then a budget machine like the MSI Bravo 15 could be for you. It won’t run the very latest games at the best frame rates, but will be more than capable for decent 1080p gaming. For example, if you're pondering which is the best Age of Empires III civilization to start with, you won't need a massively powerful machine for the game. But if you want a real monster of a gaming laptop that’ll easily chew through the most demanding games, then a laptop like the MSI GT75VR Titan is worth checking out, but do be prepared to pay quite a bit for a high-end laptop.
Gaming only, or work as well? The good thing about gaming laptops is they have plenty of power for professional tasks as well, such as video rendering or CAD work. As they can be an expensive purchase, it might be worth looking at getting a machine that can pull double duty as a gaming and work laptop. Machines like the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 or the Alienware x14 are good examples of this, offering a design that’s slim enough to easily take them to work, yet also have a powerful enough specification for triple-A gaming.
How we test gaming laptops
To find the best gaming laptop, we run every machine through a rigorous suite of benchmarks and real-world tests to gauge how it will perform during everyday use.
We measure the average brightness and color quality of each laptop's display using our in-house light meter and colorimeter. For general performance, we run our machines through tests that include Geekbench 5 (CPU performance), as well as various 3DMark tests to measure graphics capabilities. We also run a file transfer test to measure how fast a machine's hard drive is, and a custom battery test that has the machine browse the internet over Wi-Fi until it runs out of juice.
We also run benchmarks for popular games such as Assassin's Creed Valhalla, Far Cry 6 and Red Dead Redemption 2 on every gaming laptop we test. For more information on our testing process, check out our guide to how we test.
