laptop computer come in all conformation and sizes , but over the retiring few age , the 14 - inch screen size has become the Goldilocks touchstone . The best 14 - column inch laptops let for enough size to jam in hatful of performance without sacrifice too much portability . You ’ll need to prefer wisely , however , as your alternative at this size range from ultra - portable laptops to those with some lawful great power inside , including model with discrete GPUs . That ’s something you ’ll rarely see in little laptop computer , including even thebest 13 - inch laptops .
We ’ve tested the absolute majority of the best 14 - inch laptops throughout 2024 , which involves putting these systems through rigorous execution , display , chassis , and battery examination . The result is the adopt passport , which represent some of thebest laptopsyou can bribe right now .
The best overall 14-inch laptop
Apple MacBook Pro (M4)
The 14 - in MacBook Pro has been an astounding laptop since its original launch in 2021 . Years later , the shape has n’t changed much , but Apple keeps upping the performance capabilities of this laptop computer .
The 14 - in MacBook Pro really is the consummate seraphic billet between the MacBook Air option and the larger 16 - column inch MacBook Pro . Despite the fact that you may configure it up to an mad M4 Max , it ’s still just 0.61 inches duncical . When configured that luxuriously , it ’s every bit as powerful as a gaming laptop with an RTX 4060 . We ’ve just never get word graphics that strong on a laptop computer of this type . We tested the M4 Pro manakin and find the performance relegate over the M3 improbably compelling , in addition to the improved 12 - megapixel webcam , bright display , and option for the nano - grain screen door .
There just is n’t another 14 - column inch laptop this bounty . It ’s surely not the most affordable laptop on this list , but in the pillowcase of the M4 MacBook Pro , you really get what you pay for .
The best budget 14-inch laptop
Asus Zenbook 14
Not everyone needs the latest tech . Nor is the latest technical school always deserving the excess cost . That ’s where the 2023 version of the Asus Zenbook 14 comes in . At $ 800 , it ’s absolutely the best 14 - inch laptop computer for the money .
Of course , if you’re able to find plenty of inexpensive 14 - column inch laptops when you begin peruse Amazon , some under $ 500 . Many , however , include a weak central processing unit , such as the Core i3 - 1215U , which only comes with two Performance meat . For most people , you ’re kick the bucket to finger the phlegm of that twist fair quickly .
It ’s deserving spending a bit more to get a laptop that you ’ll actually enjoy using for many years , and the Zenbook 14 is a howling compromise . It gets great battery life , has a gorgeous OLED display , and is surprisingly degraded with its Core Ultra 5 Series 1 processor . In fact , the start from Series 1 to the current Series 2 chip ( also known as Intel Lunar Lake ) , was n’t much of a performance betterment at all , or else only protract battery life . That ’s why this version of the Zenbook 14 remains such a strong buy at this price point .
The best 14-inch gaming laptop
Asus ROG Zephyrus G14
This year ’s version of the ROG Zephyrus G14 was a revealing . This heavyset fiddling play laptop computer has always been good , but this class it totally blew us away . The gimmick was redesigned to be even more thickset yet somehow make its price affordable . It ’s tough to believe that in this same year , it also gain ground a gorgeous OLED concealment .
The category of 14 - inch gaming laptops has been grow , including devices like the Razer Blade 14 , notably . but the ROG Zephyrus G14 win out as the absolute best . Not only is it price lower , it also has a sporting esthetical and treat its thermal with more finesse . A few geezerhood ago , it would have been heavy to imagine that a laptop computer of this size could be assort as a gambling laptop computer , but with up to a Ryzen 9 8945HS and an RTX 4070 on board , its performance in games ca n’t be interview .
Due to its size of it and comparatively blue - tonality design , it makes for a bully hybrid machine too . For personal computer gamers that also need to a laptop computer to work or do school assignment on , it does n’t get better than the G14 . There ’s a rationality our reviewer , Jacob Roach , shout out it " all-fired near perfect"after testing it himself .
The best 14-inch Lenovo laptop
Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x
The class ofCopilot+ PCswas born this class . And with it , the launch of Qualcomm ’s Snapdragon X chips , blowing the doors off what Intel and AMD could offer in terms of barrage life sentence at the time . While Intel ’s Core Ultra Series 2 Saratoga chip responded in a expectant mode , in our testing , the Yoga Slim 7x live for over 12 hours in web browsing . That ’s really hearty , particularly if you ’re coming from a much older Windows laptop computer .
But across the board , many of these Snapdragon X devices were fantastic , though when it comes to the good 14 - inch laptops of this type , the Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x is our favourite .
It has a gorgeous 3 grand firmness OLED display with a refresh rate of 90Hz . And thanks to the Snapdragon X chip , the battery really is howling . If you ’ve seen a Lenovo laptop before , though , the Yoga Slim 7x does n’t attend like anything too peculiar . It ’s quite slender , but is otherwise passably spare and non - unsavory .
Overall , when it comes to Snapdragon X laptops , I favour the purpose and 3:2 panorama ratio of theSurface Laptop 7th Edition , but it only comes in 13 - in and 15 - inch size . As a 14 - in choice , the Yoga Slim 7x comes recommend , especially give the deep deduction we ’ve seen on it recently .
Lenovo has a few other self-colored 14 - in laptops , such as theThinkPad X1 Carbon , though that has more of a niche audience in the commercial world .
The best budget 14-inch laptop for creators
Acer Swift X 14
Many of the best 14 - inch laptop computer follow with distinct GPU options , as you ’ve see from some of these choice so far . The Acer Swift X 14 manage to do just that , with options of the RTX 4050 , RTX 4060 , and RTX 4070 . That adds a lot of carrying out to the equation , make it a solid alternative for editing video or doing some PC play on the side or on the go — all at prices that are down than the other selection on this list .
That ’s precisely what our commentator , Mark Coppock , observe in his review . After take that it was n’t the pretty 14 - inch laptop computer , he notice that it ’s all right " because it ’s a really profligate laptop computer with a outstanding OLED presentation . It ’s one of the more portable laptop computer for doing material creative work . " As Coppock says , there are meretricious 14 - inch laptops out there , but not unity that can get this form of performance .
There ’s an RTX 4060 contour with 1 TB of storage and an OLED screen , for example , that sell for just under $ 1,500 . That ’s a lot of bang for your vaulting horse . Now , the pattern is n’t especially flashy , and it ’s a bit thick than some of its competitor at 0.70 inches . The battery life is n’t the good either . But the Acer Swift X 14 shit up for those downside in term of sheer performance - per - clam value .
The best 14-inch MacBook Pro alternative
Dell XPS 14
The XPS 14 is a controversial laptop . There ’s no getting around that . But when it come to offering a true choice to the 14 - column inch MacBook Pro on the Windows side , the Dell XPS 14 has the design chop to really take up the pallium . no matter of how you finger about the practicality of the design , it ’s undeniably one of the most beautiful laptop ever made , with its staring white chassis , zero - lattice keyboard , and invisible tactile feedback trackpad . The affair row capacitive button are a nice touch of interest too , if only they did n’t create hurdles in everyday use . I do n’t love the limited port either .
But in my own time with this laptop , I found myself able to get used to the unorthodox design elements overtime . I ’ll probably never love not cause real use key , but it was something I could at least familiarise myself with over a couple of week .
And if you may get past those negatives like I was , bringing the RTX 4050 to a design like the XPS 14 feels awful . That does n’t make it the most powerful laptop computer in the world , but it opens possibleness in term of what you could do with this laptop computer . And again , more than that , it ’s the most arresting 14 - inch laptop you’re able to buy — and it does n’t perform half bad either .
What to consider
14 - inch laptop computer are fabulously multi - faceted devices , so picking one out involves carefully considering your own need . operation , bod sizing , storage and RAM capacitance , ports , and display character are all thing to consider .
Who are 14-inch laptops good for?
As the most balanced screen sizing , there ’s a spacious change of demographics and use cases that 14 - inch laptop computer are safe for . If you stand for to sit down in front of your laptop computer all day , whether for body of work or shoal , it ’s a just CRT screen size that gives some extra genuine land over a 13 - inch laptop computer .
It ’s also a with child size for aspiring subject matter Lord . Lots of the laptop below include options with more powerful central processor and discrete GPUs , mean they ’ll be unanimous starting places for picture editing , photograph redaction , gaming , and more . Larger 16 - inch laptop computer with even more powerful element take this a whole tone further , but they are often quite expensive by comparison .
Why choose a 14-inch laptop instead of a 13-inch laptop?
An in difference in screen size does n’t sound like a sight . But remember , screen is measured diagonally , intend the difference of opinion in overall footmark can be more than you might retrieve . These days , 13 - inch laptops tend to be highly portable and seldom include high - performance function such as distinct GPUs . That includes laptops such as theMacBook Air 13 - inch , Surface Laptop seventh Edition13 - inch , orDell XPS 13 .
If you ’re primarily buying a laptop computer to travel with or use at coffee shops , those choice might be honorable . That ’s not to say 14 - inch laptops ca n’t be thin , but the modest footmark of 13 - column inch laptop computer ( and sometimes lower prices ) make them idealistic to take on the go .
Can 14-inch laptops play PC games?
utterly . In the past few twelvemonth , we ’ve seen a surge of young 14 - in gaming laptop computer that include everything you ’d expect from a high - end play laptop computer , including a high refresh rate screen , majuscule thermals , powerful GPUs inside , and all the gambling aesthetics you might expect . We ’ve included thebest 14 - inch gaming laptopdown below , but there are enough more to choose from , including the Razer Blade 14 and Alienware x14 .
How we tested
Every laptop computer we look back getsa full rooms of testing . That includes lots of hands - on meter with the gimmick to get an overall feel for how it fits into a workflow , as well as specific hardware testing that emphasise different component . Our performance examination includes the latest benchmarks such as Cinebench R24 , 3DMark , Geekbench 6 , and PCMark 10 . We also execute the system through some literal covering examination to see how the performance plays out , such as picture encoding in Handbrake , television editing in Adobe Premiere Pro , and specific personal computer game . We test systems in different execution profile , as well as on battery versus plug in .
We also run a few stamp battery tests on the machine to see how long it lasts , admit a canonical video closed circuit , a web web browser app macro , and the most acute , a summation on multi - core Cinebench R24 . That way , we have the entire range of how long a laptop computer can hold out depending on what software are running . finally , we always test the laptop computer ’s display with a Spyder colorimeter , which allow for psychometric test the functioning of the exhibit , providing data point on the contrast , vividness gamut , colour accuracy , and brightness of a screen .
Beyond those quantifiable tests , we also strain out the webcam , the speakers , keyboard , trackpad , and much more . All of these factors play into our picks for the best 14 - in laptop .
Why trust us?
Laptops follow-up are primarily impart and written by senior editor Luke Larsen , pencil lead newsman Jacob Roach , and longtime laptop review contributor Mark Coppock . Each of us has been testing hardware for many old age , some of us well over a decade . Because of that , we also have over a decade of ironware testing information to absorb from , admit us to approximate the latest releases in lightness of historical context . Together , we are the laptop computer review team at Digital Trends , and between the three of us , we ’ve test a lot of laptop computer .
Unlike some outlets , we do n’t just brush up the pick of the crop either . Our approach is to test as many laptops as we can each year , in a diverse variety of categories , sizes , and expend grammatical case . That direction , we can ply the most good and helpful recommendations , even for people who might have unlike needs and penchant than ours .
There will always be prejudice and subjectivity in product reviews , but we essay as best we can to provide honest and trusty buying advice that will actually help you determine the right laptop for you . We know that entail it is n’t always the tawdry , most high - end laptop computer either . That ’s why you ’ll obtain options among the best 14 - inch laptops below that include most affordable options , including those from previous generation .
