Windows laptops and MacBooks with at least 16 GB of memory and a mid-range or faster processor, under 4.2 lb (1.9 kg): enough for an editor, a browser full of docs, containers and builds.
We earn a commission from qualifying Amazon purchases made through our links, at no extra cost to you. This never affects our specs. How we make money.
59 models
Matching configuration: Snapdragon X2 Plus · Built-in · 16 GB · 256 GB · 13" 3K OLED
Specs and configurationsMatching configuration: Apple M5 · Built-in · 16 GB · 1 TB · 14.2" 3K 120Hz
Specs and configurationsMatching configuration: Intel Core Ultra 7 258V · Built-in · 32 GB · 1 TB · 16" 3K OLED 120Hz
Full specsMatching configuration: AMD Ryzen AI Max 390 · Built-in · 32 GB · 1 TB · 13.4" 2.5K IPS 180Hz
Specs and configurationsMatching configuration: Snapdragon X Plus · Built-in · 16 GB · 256 GB · 12" Full HD+
Full specsMatching configuration: Snapdragon X Plus · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 13" 3K 120Hz
Full specsMatching configuration: AMD Ryzen 7 8840HS · Built-in · 16 GB · 1 TB · 14" Full HD+
Full specsMatching configuration: Intel Core Ultra 5 226V · Built-in · 16 GB · 1 TB · 14" Full HD+ IPS
Specs and configurationsMatching configuration: Intel Core Ultra 7 165U · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 14" Full HD+
Full specsMatching configuration: Intel Core Ultra 7 256V · Built-in · 16 GB · 1 TB · 16" Full HD+ IPS
Full specsMatching configuration: Intel Core Ultra 5 226V · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 16" Full HD+ IPS 120Hz
Specs and configurationsMatching configuration: Intel Core i5-13420H · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 15.6" Full HD
Full specsMatching configuration: AMD Ryzen AI 5 340 · Built-in · 16 GB · 1 TB · 14" Full HD+ OLED
Full specsMatching configuration: Intel Core 5 120U · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 14" Full HD+ IPS
Full specsMatching configuration: Intel Core Ultra 7 155U · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 16" Full HD+ IPS
Full specsMatching configuration: AMD Ryzen 7 5825U · Built-in · 24 GB · 1 TB · 15.6" Full HD
Full specsMatching configuration: Intel Core Ultra 9 285H · Built-in · 32 GB · 1 TB · 14" 3K OLED 120Hz
Full specsMatching configuration: Apple M5 Pro · Built-in · 24 GB · 1 TB · 14.2" 3K OLED
Full specsMatching configuration: Intel Core i7-1360P · Built-in · 16 GB · 1 TB · 13.4" Full HD+ 120Hz
Full specsMatching configuration: Intel Core i5-1334U · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 15.6" Full HD IPS
Specs and configurationsMatching configuration: AMD Ryzen AI 5 430 · Built-in · 16 GB · 1 TB · 16" Full HD+ OLED
Full specsMatching configuration: Intel Core Ultra 5 322 · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 14" Full HD+ OLED
Full specsMatching configuration: AMD Ryzen 7 7730U · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 15.6" Full HD IPS
Full specsMatching configuration: Intel Core Ultra 5 226V · Built-in · 16 GB · 1 TB · 14" Full HD+ IPS 120Hz
Full specsMatching configuration: AMD Ryzen 5 230 · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 16" Full HD+
Full specsMatching configuration: AMD Ryzen AI 7 350 · Built-in · 32 GB · 1 TB · 16" 3K OLED 120Hz
Specs and configurationsMatching configuration: Intel Core i5-1145G7 · Built-in · 16 GB · 256 GB · 14" Full HD
Specs and configurationsMatching configuration: Intel Core i7-1265U · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 13.5" 2K
Full specsMatching configuration: Intel Core i7-1185G7 · Built-in · 32 GB · 512 GB · 13.3" Full HD+ IPS
Full specsMatching configuration: Intel Core i7-1265U · Built-in · 32 GB · 512 GB · 13.3" Full HD
Full specsMatching configuration: Intel Core i7-1165G7 · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 14" Full HD
Full specsMatching configuration: Snapdragon X · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 16" Full HD+ 120Hz
Full specsMatching configuration: Intel Core i7-13700H · NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Laptop · 16 GB · 1 TB · 14" 2.5K IPS
Full specsMatching configuration: Intel Core Ultra X7 358H · Built-in · 32 GB · 1 TB · 16" 3K OLED
Full specsMatching configuration: AMD Ryzen AI 7 445 · Built-in · 16 GB · 1 TB · 16" Full HD+ IPS
Full specsMatching configuration: Intel Core Ultra 5 322 · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 16" Full HD+ OLED
Specs and configurationsMatching configuration: Intel Core Ultra 7 255H · NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 · 16 GB · 1 TB · 14" 3K OLED
Full specsMatching configuration: Apple M5 · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 13.6" 2.5K IPS
Full specsMatching configuration: Apple M5 · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 15.3" 3K IPS
Full specsMatching configuration: Apple M5 Pro · Built-in · 24 GB · 1 TB · 14.2" 3K 120Hz
Full specsMatching configuration: Apple M6 · Built-in · 16 GB · 1 TB · 14.2" 3K 120Hz
Full specsMatching configuration: AMD Ryzen 9 270 · NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 · 16 GB · 1 TB · 14" 3K OLED 120Hz
Specs and configurationsMatching configuration: Snapdragon X · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 16" Full HD+ IPS
Full specsMatching configuration: Intel Core Ultra 9 386H · Built-in · 32 GB · 1 TB · 14" 3K OLED 120Hz
Full specsMatching configuration: Intel Core Ultra 7 255U · Built-in · 16 GB · 1 TB · 15.6" Full HD
Full specsMatching configuration: Intel Core Ultra 7 255H · Built-in · 16 GB · 256 GB · 14" Full HD+
Specs and configurationsMatching configuration: Intel Core 5 320 · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 13.4" 2.5K 120Hz
Specs and configurationsMatching configuration: Intel Core Ultra 5 325 · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 16" Full HD+ 120Hz
Specs and configurationsMatching configuration: Intel Core Ultra 9 185H · NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Laptop · 32 GB · 2 TB · 14" 3K OLED 120Hz
Full specsMatching configuration: Intel Core Ultra 7 255H · NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 · 16 GB · 1 TB · 14" 3K OLED 120Hz
Full specsMatching configuration: Snapdragon X · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 16" Full HD+ OLED
Full specsMatching configuration: Snapdragon X2 Elite · Built-in · 32 GB · 1 TB · 14" 3K OLED 120Hz
Specs and configurationsMatching configuration: Intel Core Ultra 7 356H · Built-in · 16 GB · 1 TB · 14" 3K OLED 120Hz
Full specsMatching configuration: AMD Ryzen 7 170 · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 15.6" Full HD
Full specsMatching configuration: Snapdragon X Plus · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 13.8" 2K
Specs and configurationsMatching configuration: Snapdragon X2 Plus · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 13.8" 2K
Specs and configurationsMatching configuration: Snapdragon X2 Plus · Built-in · 16 GB · 512 GB · 15" 2K
Specs and configurationsMatching configuration: Intel Core Ultra 7 356H · Built-in · 32 GB · 1 TB · 16" 3K OLED
Full specsMatching configuration: Intel Core Ultra X7 358H · Built-in · 32 GB · 1 TB · 16" 3K OLED
Specs and configurationsThe honest answer to “do I need a powerful laptop for programming?” is: it depends on what you build. Writing code is light work. Your editor, a terminal and a browser barely touch a modern processor. What slows a laptop down is everything around the code: compiling, running containers, emulating phones and crunching data.
Web development, scripting and learning to code need the least. Python, JavaScript, PHP and Ruby run happily on any mid-range chip. What you do need is 16 GB of memory, because VS Code, a dev server and twenty documentation tabs add up quickly, and a comfortable keyboard and screen for long sessions. That’s the floor for every laptop on this page: Windows or macOS, 16 GB or more, a processor from the mid-range up and a weight under 4.2 lb (1.9 kg), so it still goes to class, the office or a coffee shop.
Compiled languages and big codebases are where the processor earns its keep. Building a large C++, Rust, Java or Android project uses every core, so more performance cores mean shorter waits between edit and test. The same goes for Docker and virtual machines: each container or VM takes its own slice of memory, so plan on 32 GB if you run them all day, and at least 512 GB of storage for images, toolchains and node_modules folders.
Mobile development decides the operating system for you. Building iPhone, iPad or Mac apps needs Xcode, which only runs on macOS, so you need a MacBook. A MacBook Air handles most app work; a MacBook Pro keeps big builds and simulators fast without its fans getting loud. Android Studio runs on Windows, macOS and Linux, but its emulator wants 16 GB as a minimum.
Data science, machine learning and game development are the cases where a graphics card matters. Most ML frameworks are built on NVIDIA’s CUDA, so training models on your own laptop means a GeForce RTX card with as much video memory as you can afford. Unity and Unreal also lean on the GPU. If you only call cloud APIs or train in a notebook service, you don’t need one.
So, for most people learning or working in web and backend development: a modern mid-range chip, 16 GB of memory, 512 GB of storage, a good keyboard and a battery that lasts the day. Spend more only where your own work needs it. For students on a computer science course, the same advice applies on a tighter budget: see laptops for computer science students. If you’ll train models or build games, look at laptops with a dedicated card in laptops for engineering students.
For learning to code, web development and scripting, no: a modern mid-range processor and 16 GB of memory is plenty. Power starts to matter when you compile large projects, run several Docker containers or virtual machines, build mobile apps with emulators, or train machine learning models.
16 GB is the sensible minimum today. Your editor, a browser full of documentation and a local server can fill 8 GB on their own. Go for 32 GB if you run Docker, Android emulators or virtual machines every day.
A MacBook is the only option for iPhone and Mac apps, because Xcode runs on macOS only, and its Unix base suits web and backend work. Windows is the better fit for .NET and Windows desktop apps, games, and machine learning on an NVIDIA graphics card. With WSL, Windows also runs Linux tools well.
Only for game development, 3D work or training machine learning models on your own laptop. Most ML libraries are built around NVIDIA's CUDA, so pick a laptop with an NVIDIA GeForce RTX card for that. Everything else runs fine on built-in graphics.
Only for learning the basics or coding in the browser. Linux on a Chromebook works, but most models have too little memory and storage for real projects, so none of them make this list.