The 6 Best Lightweight Laptops of 2023

Best for Travel

Microsoft Surface Pro X

4.3

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If you’re keen on the flexibility a convertible laptop offers, the Microsoft Surface Pro X is an attractive option. While the keyboard and accompanying pen are sold separately, and you’ll have just two USB-C ports to work with, the main body of the Surface Pro X can rest flat on a surface or be propped up at your preferred angle with the help of the kickstand positioned on the back of the device. This versatile, super-compact 1.7-pound and 0.28-inch thick build and excellent 15-hour battery life make it an ideal traveling laptop.

While this convertible is relatively small, it still manages to offer an edge-to-edge 13-inch touch display with a high 2880x1920 resolution plus an assortment of other desirable assets such as an accelerometer, gyroscope, ambient light sensor, LTE support, and 1080p front- and rear-facing cameras with 4K quality supported on the latter. The custom Microsoft SQ1 processor with the standard 8GB RAM and 128GB SSD should be speedy and versatile enough for a variety of multitasking, but if you want more memory and storage, up to 16GB RAM and 512GB SSD configurations are available.

Best for Students

Google Pixelbook Go

4.2

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Chromebooks are portable and student-friendly devices, and the Google Pixelbook Go is no exception. While an upgraded processor, 4K display, and more storage and memory could start to add up, the standard Intel Core M3 processor and 8GB RAM, and a 64GB SSD are relatively budget-friendly. This standard configuration delivers speedy boot times of mere seconds, and there’s plenty of cloud storage to meet most students’ file storing needs. As with most Chromebooks, port selection is limited, but the trade-off comes with desirable portability at around 0.5 inches thick and a little over 2 pounds. 

While it’s not the most advanced display in the category, the 13.3-inch HD screen will do just fine for most tasks, including video streaming. A bonus is that the 1080p webcam is a step up from most Chromebooks and ultrabooks, which could be great for virtual learning. Another asset is the long 12-hour battery life and the ability to eke out 2 hours of use with a quick 20-minute charge. 

Best for Gaming

Razer Blade Stealth 13

4.2

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If you’ve always dreamed of a lightweight gaming laptop, Razer has combined the appeal of slim ultrabooks with the graphics and processing power of gaming-ready machines in the Razer Blade Stealth 13. It sports a sleek, durable aluminum and anodized build that isn’t too unwieldy at approximately 0.6 inches thick and 3.2 pounds. The 13-inch FHD display is matte, supports up to a 120Hz refresh rate, is surrounded by razor-thin top and side bezels, and is sRGB-tuned for color accuracy and vibrancy. Oddly, the bottom bezel is significantly larger, which our product tester found to be an unfortunate loss of valuable real estate. He also experienced the battery life to be less impressive but quick to recharge.  

The Stealth 13 is billed as a gaming laptop, and that it is. Performance-wise, it’s a powerhouse with a tenth-generation Intel Core i7 processor, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Max-Q graphics, 16GB of RAM, and 512GB SSD, which is upgradeable. For general ease of use and productivity, this compact laptop offers other valuable features such as biometrics for instant facial recognition access and numerous ports for connecting to gaming or other peripherals.

Best Battery Life

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Nano

4.2

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The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Nano is built with travelers and frequent fliers in mind. It’s incredibly light, starting under two pounds, and lasts eight to nine hours on a charge. Yet it also packs excellent performance, especially in graphics workloads, where it’s shockingly capable for a 13-inch laptop.

This is an excellent laptop for productivity. ThinkPads are known for class-leading keyboards, and the X1 Nano does not disappoint. It also has a TrackPointer and an IR camera that supports Windows Hello for quick login via facial recognition. Our reviewer found the display a bit disappointing, though, as it can’t keep up with Apple’s MacBook Air or the new OLED display in Dell’s XPS 13.

This laptop starts just north of $1,450 and goes up from there. Whatever specifications you choose, the X1 Nano will be a few hundred dollars more expensive than a similar MacBook Air or Dell XPS 13. That’s hard to justify unless portability is your top priority. 

Best for Video Editing

Apple MacBook Pro (16-Inch)

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The Apple MacBook Pro 16-Inch isn’t a featherweight ultrabook or the most affordable option in the lightweight laptop class. Still, considering all the power at your fingertips, this is quite a manageable 4.3-pound workhorse. You can choose between an Intel Core i7 or i9 processor with 16GB of RAM (expandable to 64GB RAM) and a standard 512GB or 1TB SSD that can be upgraded to an astonishing 8GB of SSD storage. This processing power and storage are generous enough to support everyday multitasking and the most demanding creative projects, such as 3D rendering, professional video editing, and gaming development. 

Of course, visual tasks require a high-quality display, and the vibrant 16-inch 3072x1920 Retina display is the largest from the brand in laptop form. It uses the P3 wide color gamut to render true-to-life video and photo quality. You can also expect up to 11 hours of battery life, the convenience of a touch bar with secure touch ID access, and a Thunderbolt 3 port that supports up to two 6K external displays.