Best laptop 2022: What laptop should I buy?

Pound for pound, the MateBook 14s is the best laptop you can buy right now. A great blend of performance, design and affordability means it’s easy to recommend, especially with the webcam back above the screen rather than hidden in the keyboard. The latter is only 720p, but a separate IR sensor means there’s still support for Windows Hello face unlock as an alternative to the fingerprint sensor.

Almost everywhere else, the 14s is mightily impressive almost everywhere else. 11th-gen Intel CPUs and up to 16GB of RAM means performance is excellent, provided you don’t need a device for gaming or 4K video editing.

Other highlights include a 2.5K touchscreen display, complete with 90Hz refresh rate for smooth visuals. You also get a decent port selection, solid battery life and one of the best keyboards you’ll find in any laptop. There’s even a 90W fast charger included in the box.

It’s worth noting that there is now a 2022 version of the MateBook 14s, but aside from new Intel CPUs it’s essentially the same device.

The MacBook Air may not look any different to its predecessor, but it’s what’s on this inside that counts.

Offering a significant boost compared to the 10nm Intel CPU that powered earlier MacBook Air models, the 5nm M1 chipset is blisteringly fast in operation, handling light video editing and gaming via Apple Arcade without breaking a sweat.

It’s faster than many Intel-based Windows alternatives, offering great bang for your buck from Apple’s entry-level ultralight laptop. There’s also a big jump in battery life and the display is top-notch, as are the keyboard and trackpad.

It’s fanless, which brings the benefit of silent running, but it also means that the laptop will throttle performance to keep things cool. But that’s not an issue unless you plan on gaming or video editing for hours.

The MacBook Air has now had a 2022 refresh, but it’s $200/£200 more expensive than the original and introduces a notch. With frequent discounts, this original model is where you’ll find the best value for money.

We didn’t think LG could make the Gram 17 much better, but the 2021 model has really nailed it.

It remains an incredibly lightweight marvel of engineering, but LG has now improved our main problems with the 2020 model – namely the speakers and trackpad. Design refinements mean the Gram 17 looks better than ever, while performance from 11th-gen Intel chips is impressive.

But on a 17in laptop that weighs just 1.35kg, getting such great battery life is a pleasant surprise. There are plenty of ports here for most people (including Thunderbolt 4), plus above-average speakers and an excellent display, although the latter isn’t touchscreen.

If you can look beyond a spongy keyboard and the relatively high price, the Gram 17 is the large laptop to beat. There is a 2022 version, but new CPUs and the option for a discrete GPU are the only real upgrades.

If you’re specifically looking for a 16in laptop, there’s more choice than ever in 2022. But the new MateBook 16s takes the crown, performing well in almost all the key areas. Performance from 12th-gen Intel CPUs is solid, especially when used in tandem with the gorgeous, large, touchscreen display.

Other highlights include a generous 84Wh battery with impressive fast charging, alongside a diverse range of ports and Huawei’s trademark premium design.

It’s big, bulky and there’s no discrete GPU, but if you can look beyond these things the MateBook 16s could be for you.

The Dell XPS 15 remains one of the best-looking business laptops on the market, thanks to its aluminium and carbon fibre finish.

It excels in many other areas, too: its Core i7-11800H processor is very fast, while the laptop also boasts plenty of storage and a great keyboard.

A 15in display is vibrant and a joy to use, especially when combined with excellent speakers. It’s also got the battery power to handle a day of work in most scenarios.

XPS machines are never cheap, though, and the 9510 is not perfect. You’ll want to look elsewhere if colour accuracy is a top priority, and you’ll be able to find better battery life and a broader selection of ports elsewhere.

The MateBook X Pro has been around for a few years, but this latest model is Huawei’s best effort yet.

A slick, premium design has been made even better thanks to a lighter magnesium alloy, which means a 14.2in laptop now weighs as little as 1.26kg. There’s still room for an excellent full-size keyboard and trackpad, though, which help the MateBook X Pro stand out from the competition.

Other highlights include that 90Hz display, a much more logical webcam position and solid performance from Intel’s 12th-gen CPUs, although there’s no option for a discrete GPU. Huawei has also gone all-in on USB-C, meaning there’s no room for any USB-A ports.

Fast charging is a nice touch, but sub-par battery life means you’ll be reaching for the 90W adapter more often than you might like.

Despite these drawbacks, the MateBook X Pro remains an excellent laptop that’s definitely worth considering.

Putting OLED in the name of the laptop shows you Asus was confident in the Zenbook S 13’s display, and it’s easy to see why. The 13.3in, 2800×1800 panel is a joy to use, with incredibly detail and colours that really pop. It also supports input via touch and the stylus that’s included in the box.

Combined with a full-size keyboard with decent travel, the Zenbook S 13 is easy to use as an everyday laptop. That’s helped by AMD’s 2022 Ryzen 7 chip and a bumper 16GB of RAM under the hood, which means performance is great despite the lack of a discrete GPU.

Despite having such a thin and light design, the device also boasts great battery life. Charging is via USB-C, but there are no USB-A ports or Thunderbolt support. You’ll also need to rely on the fingerprint scanner to unlock it, with no depth sensor beside the solid 1080p webcam for face unlock.

Still, this is a laptop which ticks all of the most important boxes for many people. But that display is the main reason to buy it over rivals.

The HP Envy 13 looks decent, it’s got a superb screen, and it has rock-solid everyday computing power in its Core i5 guise. It’s also got a solid keyboard and good battery life. In many respects, it’s an impressive everyday ultraportable.

HP’s core laptop has been a favourite of ours for years but the 2021 model has taken a dip and the 2020 model is now hard to find.

It’s still a good laptop and comes at an affordable price unless you’re looking at the i7 SKU, and you might not enjoy the lack of HDMI and Thunderbolt either. You can find sturdier designs elsewhere and better trackpads, too.

Samsung is getting serious about laptops again, and the Galaxy Book 2 360 is one of its best devices yet. It nails the basics within a thin and light design, yet still looks and feels like a premium laptop.

The 13.3in OLED display is a real highlight, especially as it supports input from both touch and an S Pen – you’ll have to buy the latter separately, though. A battery capacity just over 60Wh doesn’t sound like anything special, but it can comfortably last a full working day and have charge to spare. When you do run low, the 65W charger in the box will get you back up and running in no time.

Other highlights include a decent port selection, solid keyboard and that all-important 360° hinge. The trackpad isn’t great and you’ll probably want to connect a separate webcam, but if you can look beyond these inconveniences the Book 2 360 is definitely worth considering.

However, if you don’t need convertible functionality, it’s also worth considering the Galaxy Book 2 Pro.

The Gram 16 being so low on this list reflects the strength of laptops in 2022, but also that it’s not quite as impressive as it once was.

It uses 12th-gen Intel CPUs, but not from the most powerful H-Series and still with an integrated GPU. Many premium laptops are shifting to a high refresh rate display, but the Gram 16 is still stuck at 60Hz. At this price, it’s harder to accept these compromises.

But we’d still recommend considering it due to the way it excels in other areas. The Gram 16 is still incredibly thin and light, while a matt coating on the screen contributes to an excellent viewing experience. Battery life is among the best you’ll find in any laptop, and it’s impressively durable for a device that’s so portable.

It’s more of the same from Microsoft here and while the design could maybe do with a refresh, the Surface Laptop 4 is another great all-rounder notebook that will suit many different users. 

The fans can be a bit loud, but performance is solid from either AMD or Intel chips and battery life is strong, too. A high-end display and a nice keyboard make for a comfortable experience. 

However, top-end models are overly expensive, and we’d like to see some options like an OLED panel and optional LTE connectivity. But you might want to go for the newer Surface Laptop 5 instead.

If you’re looking for a 2-in-1 laptop, well how about a 3-in-1 which Microsoft has achieved with the Surface Laptop Studio.

The screen might not detach like the Surface Book but a slick hinge design means you can quickly alter the Studio between three useful modes, although we’d like to adjust the angles on some.

The laptop also has a gorgeous 120Hz display, which can automatically adjust depending on what you’re doing. This should boost already-solid battery life, while a dedicated RTX 3050 Ti GPU at the higher end helps deliver impressive performance.

Combined, these features make it a well-rounded and versatile laptop. It is at the premium end in terms of price and we’d like more ports but the Surface Laptop Studio could make an excellent choice for some users.

The innovative ZenBook Duo hinges, quite literally, around its second screen and makes for an interesting setup if you like the idea of having two screens without having to plug one in.

It makes for impressive multi-tasking for certain situations once you get used to it and performance is good for a wide range of tasks as well as decent battery life. It’s also surprisingly light and portable for a machine with two displays.

That second screen does have downsides though, mainly the knock-on effect to the keyboard and trackpad, making them small and awkward.

Want a regular laptop but need a smaller screen? The Surface Laptop Go 2 is typically associated with students, but it’s a great option for everyone.

The key selling point here is a 12.4in display, making it much more compact than your average laptop. At 1.16kg and 15.7mm, it’s a thin and light device which doesn’t make big sacrifices to get there.

Performance from 11th-gen Intel CPUs is impressive, while the keyboard offers a surprisingly great typing experience given its size. Even battery life – something often sacrificed for designs like this – is above average. Hopefully Microsoft will work on improving charging speeds and thermals next time around, but the Laptop Go 2 is still easy to recommend.

The TUF Gaming A15 isn’t a laptop most people should consider, but it’s an excellent option for people who want a portable gaming machine.

A heavy, bulky will put many people off, but it means the device has some incredible specs. A powerful AMD Ryzen 7 processor is paired with Nvidia’s RTX 3060 discrete GPU to help the A15 handle very demanding workloads. It’s supplemented with 16GB of RAM and a generous 1TB SSD.

The 15.6in 1440p display is a joy to use, especially with its 165Hz refresh rate. Battery life is better than many gaming laptops and there are plenty of ports, although the USB ports could be faster. You also miss out on a fingerprint scanner, while the webcam and trackpad aren’t great.

But for gamers, this remains one of the best ways to play anywhere without making big sacrifices to the quality of your experience. As a result, it’s easy to recommend, but only to specific people.