
Selecting one of the best gaming laptop computer, particularly within the $1,500 value level, isn’t straightforward. It’s fairly the feat to type by means of all the choices within the mid-range market and discover a laptop computer with the options you want. Are you seeking to conquer the most recent AAA sport releases with excessive body charges and ray tracing? Or possibly you want an ultraportable that permits you to work and play?
Should you’re uncertain the place to begin, we’re right here to assist. We’ve curated an inventory of wonderful gaming machines that every one are available in beneath $1,500 to assist take the stress out of buying your subsequent laptop computer. We’ve got in depth expertise and hands-on testing with all of our suggestions. So with out additional ado, allow us to present you one of the best picks under.
To be taught extra about how we choose our greatest gaming laptops, scroll under our picks to learn all about our analysis course of. And for a fair larger array of choices try our roundup of one of the best gaming laptops at any value level; or if you wish to save much more, try our greatest gaming laptops beneath $1,000.
Up to date 05/12/2023: To incorporate the Asus TUF Gaming A16 Benefit Version as our selection for finest battery life. Learn our abstract under to be taught extra about this ultra-efficient choose.
Lenovo Legion 5i – Finest general

Professionals
- Good processor efficiency
- RTX 3060 delivers in gaming
- Glorious connectivity
- Sturdy bang-for-the-buck
Cons
- Uninspired design, mediocre construct high quality
- RGB keyboard backlight appears uninteresting
- Mediocre show decision and picture high quality
- Quick battery life
Worth When Reviewed:
$1,549.99
With its snug keyboard, numerous connectivity choices, and powerful graphics efficiency, the Lenovo Legion 5i is the overall bundle so far as funds gaming laptops go. This rig comes geared up with an Intel Core i7-12700H CPU, an Nvidia RTX 3060 GPU, 16GB of RAM, and 512GB of PCIe SSD storage. In our testing, the Legion 5i churned out a screaming quick 110 frames-per-second when working the Shadow of the Tomb Raider benchmark, which is a incredible outcome for an RTX 3060 laptop computer. The keyboard, which manages to squeeze in a quantity pad on the best hand facet of the tray, is spectacular as properly. Our tester discovered the spacious format each “snug and simple to make use of.”
Connectivity is necessary for gaming laptops as a result of many people like hooking as much as an exterior monitor, mouse, and so forth. Fortunately, the Legion 5i “affords a wholesome dose of future-proof connectivity.” It’s rocking three USB-A 3.2, two USB-C 3.2, one HDMI, Ethernet, and a 3.5mm audio combo. It additionally has Thunderbolt 4 and DisplayPort 1.4 help. The ports are principally rear-facing, which is ideal for cable administration when the laptop computer is sitting on a piece desk. You actually can’t get a lot better than that.
Should you’re on the hunt for a funds gaming laptop computer that may actually ship, the Legion 5i may be the one to select.
Learn our full
Lenovo Legion 5i assessment
HP Victus 15 – Finest funds

Professionals
- Glorious value
- Good keyboard and touchpad
- Respectable processor efficiency
- Can deal with most video games at 30 FPS
Cons
- Generic design
- Disappointing construct high quality
- Unattractive 144Hz show
- 60 FPS is usually out of attain
Worth When Reviewed:
$549.99
The HP Victus 15 is an exceptional worth for informal players. The value is greater than cheap and it’s able to working most video games at 30 frames-per-second. The keyboard options an “edge-to-edge design,” which actually “makes most use of the laptop computer’s inside.” As for really feel, key journey is lengthy due to the deep chassis. Longer journey means much less unintended keystrokes, which is what you need in a gaming laptop computer. A fast peek inside reveals an Intel Core i5-12450H CPU, an Nvidia GTX 1650 GPU, 8GB of RAM, and 512 of SSD storage. That’s sufficient oomph for light-weight gaming. That stated, given the specs, the Victus isn’t going to hit 60 FPS in most video games. Should you can stay with this limitation and are strapped for money, then the HP VIctus 15 is a incredible choose.
Learn our full
HP Victus 15 assessment
Asus Vivobook Professional 15 OLED – Finest show

Professionals
- Good productiveness efficiency
- Very good show
- Rugged design
- Nice battery life
Cons
- Boring aesthetics
- Unimpressive 720p webcam
- Unreliable fingerprint scanner
- Poor port choice
Worth When Reviewed:
$1099.99
For many who would like to purchase a laptop computer and have cash left over for superior peripherals, the Asus VivoBook Professional 15 OLED is a good choice. It is available in at a number of hundred {dollars} cheaper than different picks on this record and it nonetheless has good general efficiency. It has a Ryzen 7 5800H CPU and a GeForce RTX 3050, which is sufficient to obtain first rate body charges in your favourite video games whereas conducting your whole productiveness duties. However the true spotlight of this laptop computer is the beautiful 1080p OLED show with distinctive colour efficiency and accuracy. It won’t be probably the most thrilling laptop computer to have a look at, however to get this sort of efficiency and an OLED display as well makes the VivoBook Professional 15 an incredible worth.
Learn our full
ASUS VivoBook Professional 15 OLED Extremely Slim Laptop computer assessment
Dell G16 – Finest for work and play

Professionals
- Sturdy efficiency for the value
- Versatile and vivid 16-inch 16:10 QHD show
- Thunderbolt 4 on board
Cons
- Cumbersome, boring design
- Mushy keyboard, tiny touchpad
- Grainy 720p webcam
- A number of fan noise
Worth When Reviewed:
$1,499.99
The Dell G16 is an effective choice for each work and play. When it got here to processor efficiency, it smashed the competitors to smithereens. The Dell G16 nabbed the highest spot within the PCMark 10 benchmark, which measures efficiency primarily based on basic use duties like workplace productiveness and video chatting. It additionally turned in 131 FPS when working the Rise of the Tomb Raider benchmark. You possibly can thank the {hardware} for these numbers. It has an Intel Core i7-12700H CPU, an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 GPU, 16GB of RAM, and 512GB of PCIe NVMe SSD storage. The G16 isn’t the sexiest-looking laptop computer we’ve ever reviewed, however it will get the necessities proper and that’s what actually issues. In response to our tester, it’s “one of the highly effective RTX 3060-based laptops we’ve examined.”
Learn our full
Dell G16 assessment
Asus TUF Gaming A16 Benefit Version – Finest battery life

Professionals
- Excellent all day battery life
- Beautiful and easy FHD+ 16:10 show
- Strong chassis with US navy grade certification
Cons
- Left-side port orientation gained’t go well with left handers
- Keys really feel a bit comfortable and fatiguing
- The 720p HD digicam isn’t one of the best
Worth When Reviewed:
$1,099
Gaming laptops aren’t identified for having one of the best battery life as a consequence of their power-sucking parts. Nonetheless, that’s not the case with the Asus TUF Gaming A16 Benefit Version. This factor is packing a large 90 watt-hour battery, which lasted an unbelievable 11 hours throughout our testing. After all, intensive gaming will cut back this considerably, however you need to nonetheless count on to get round seven hours of steady 1080p gaming with out having to plug into an AC outlet. That’s manner higher than many of the rivals on this record. That’s an incredible outcome contemplating most gaming laptops will solely final between three and 6 hours. It additionally has a sturdy chassis and durable general design, that means you don’t have to fret concerning the occasional bump or knock whereas out and about.
The Asus TUF Gaming A16 Benefit Version is not any slouch on the subject of efficiency both. It comes with respectable {hardware} together with a Ryzen 7 processor, AMD Radeon RX 7600S graphics card, 16GB of RAM, and a 1TB SSD. It scored very properly in our Shadow of the Tomb Raider sport benchmark assessments, outpacing many dearer competitor laptops. All of this makes the A16 a wonderful choice for 1080p players—particularly those that wish to get pleasure from untethered gaming on the go.
Learn our full
Asus TUF Gaming A16 Benefit Version assessment
Lenovo IdeaPad 5 Gaming Chromebook – Finest Chromebook for gaming

Professionals
- Giant, vivid 2560×1600 show
- Best wi-fi and wired connectivity
- Good show, robust audio system
Cons
- Unimpressive design
- Mediocre keyboard and touchpad
- Lackluster webcam and microphone
Worth When Reviewed:
$569.99
If you consider gaming laptops, Chromebooks won’t be the very first thing that involves thoughts. However Lenovo has finished an incredible job at making gaming accessible to Chromebook customers with its IdeaPad 5 Gaming. It comes loaded with a Core i5 processor, 8GB of RAM, a 256GB SSD, and a vivid 16-inch 2560×1600 show. Additionally, in a rarity for any kind of laptop computer, the audio system are surprisingly robust.
If you wish to sport on a Chromebook, although, you’ll must do most, if not all, of your it by means of a cloud gaming service. It’s because ChromeOS doesn’t help most trendy video games. However for the month-to-month payment of a cloud gaming service, you’re in a position to stream the easiest trendy video games straight from the cloud to your Chromebook. In our assessments we even discovered that we might stream AAA video games at good resolutions and as much as 120Hz on the Lenovo IdeaPad 5 Gaming Chromebook—that’s not unhealthy for a laptop computer that prices much less then a 3rd of what you’d pay for a stronger Home windows gaming rig. See our roundup of one of the best cloud gaming providers to study choices.
Learn our full
Lenovo IdeaPad 5 Gaming Chromebook assessment
How we examined
The PCWorld workforce places every Home windows laptop computer by means of a sequence of benchmarks that take a look at GPU and CPU efficiency, battery life, and so forth. The thought is to push the laptop computer to its limits after which evaluate it towards others we’ve examined. Under, you’ll discover a breakdown of every take a look at and the explanation why we run them.
Home windows laptops
- PCMark 10: PCMark 10 is how we decide how properly the laptop computer handles lighter duties like net searching, phrase processing, spreadsheets, and so forth.
- HandBrake: HandBrake is extra intensive than PCMark 10. It mainly measures how lengthy a laptop computer’s CPU takes to encode a beefy 30GB file.
- Cinebench: Cinebench is a short stress take a look at of the CPU cores. It does this by rendering a 2D scene over a brief time period.
- 3DMark: 3DMark checks if 3D efficiency stays constant over time by working graphic-intensive clips.
- Video rundown take a look at: To gauge battery life, we loop a 4K video utilizing Home windows 10’s Films & TV app till the laptop computer dies.
What you need to search for in a funds gaming laptop computer
With regards to choosing the right gaming laptop computer, it actually is determined by what you wish to do with it. Do you propose on enjoying light-weight indie titles like Stardew Valley (no shade, I really like this sport) or one thing extra visually demanding like Cyberpunk 2077? Are you going to make use of the machine for work in addition to play? It’s attainable to get dependable efficiency out of a gaming laptop computer that prices beneath a grand, however you’ll must take a tough have a look at the person parts. You don’t want a strong GPU for one thing like Fortnite. The heart, my pals. That’s what issues.
- GPU: The factor concerning the GPU is that it may’t be swapped out and upgraded later, so you might want to be actual picky about which one you choose, as this element will decide how properly your machine runs video games. Fortunately, you don’t want one of the best of one of the best to get dependable gaming efficiency. The GTX 1650 is an entry-level GPU that’s inexpensive and ok for 1080p gaming with mid-to-high graphics settings. That stated, count on decrease body charges on newer titles. Should you’re on the lookout for a bit extra energy, we advocate choosing a GTX 1660 Ti or increased, or a extra present RTX 30-series GPU.
- CPU: Just like the GPU, the processor can’t be upgraded both, so that you’ll wish to be selective. For Intel, we advocate an Eleventh-gen Intel Core i5 or i7 or newer (Thirteenth-gen is now obtainable). For AMD, you’ll wish to spring for a Ryzen 4000 or 5000. A processor with no less than 4 cores is sweet, however six cores or extra is best.
- RAM: You’ll need no less than 8GB of RAM. Should you can afford 16GB of RAM, go for it. Reminiscence is generally upgradable, so you’ll be able to all the time swap it out and add extra afterward.
- Storage: Storage impacts what number of video games and purposes you’ll be able to set up in your laptop computer. Like RAM, storage is upgradable and might be swapped out later. Nonetheless, you need to goal for no less than 512GB of SSD storage plus a tough drive, as AAA titles are inclined to eat up a whole lot of house. SSDs load video games sooner, as knowledge is saved on chips reasonably than spinning disks.
- Show: 1080p is what you’ll be able to count on at this value vary. Funds gaming laptops don’t all the time have one of the best shows, as that’s the place producers have a tendency to chop corners to maintain the fee low. Should you’ve acquired a dim show, you’ll be able to all the time choose up an exterior monitor to plug into.
- Battery life: Typically talking, gaming laptops are identified for having poor battery life. That’s as a result of they use a ton of energy. Additionally they are typically heavier than different laptops as a result of they want more room for heatsinks and different cooling parts. Relying on the use, most will final wherever from 4 to 6 hours on a single cost. That stated, there are a number of exceptions. The HP Envy 14 (featured above), for instance, hit the 15-hour mark throughout our battery take a look at.
FAQ
Are Chromebooks good gaming laptops?
It actually is determined by the kind of gaming you propose to do, however most probably no. Chromebooks can deal with net video games and Android video games simply tremendous. However for those who’re seeking to play the most recent high-powered AAA video games, a Chromebook gained’t minimize it, as a result of a) it doesn’t run Home windows, and b) it in all probability doesn’t have ample graphics energy.
With that stated, Google is making an attempt to deliver cloud gaming to Chromebooks and it’ll probably be obtainable sooner or later. Cloud gaming providers use a distant PC or console to play video games streamed by means of the cloud onto the Chromebook. Till that service is up and working although, Chromebooks won’t be able to compete within the gaming area.
Are you able to sport with built-in graphics?
These days, the most recent processors with built-in graphics can run fairly a number of trendy PC video games at cheap settings. Intel’s new Iris Xe line of processors with built-in graphics, for instance, have been proven to run a number of the newest video games at 1080p and 30fps. Take be aware although, as not all built-in graphics are able to the identical issues.
Intel and AMD’s built-in graphics have made large leaps in recent times with regard to gaming efficiency. Should you’re on a funds or on the lookout for an extremely skinny laptop computer with built-in graphics you’ll be able to nonetheless get pleasure from some gaming as properly. Take a look at our article about Intel’s Core Twelfth-gen Iris Xe and AMD’s model new Ryzen 6000 RDNA 2 for extra.
What measurement laptop computer is finest?
This actually comes down to non-public desire and supposed use. Should you plan to journey so much along with your laptop computer, then a small ultraportable measurement within the neighborhood of 13 to 14 inches is finest. Nonetheless, if gaming is all you wish to do, then one thing within the 15- to 17-inch vary can be superb. Additionally, don’t overlook to examine the load of the laptop computer before you purchase it. Extremely skinny laptops can weigh a featherlight 2 kilos whereas beefy gaming computer systems prime the scales at three or 4 occasions that.