The best laptops 2026: Favorites after 80+ hands-on tests

After testing more than 80 laptops over two years, the best laptops 2026 picks favor the 15-inch Apple MacBook Air (M5) for most Mac users and the Asus Zenbook A14 for Windows. Budget shoppers get the MacBook Neo, while the HP OmniBook 3 16 leads on battery life. Testers scored speed, stamina, build, and value as RAM and SSD shortages push prices higher.

Buying a notebook in 2026 feels different from a decade of mid-range Airs and plastic Windows boxes. Mashable’s roundup of more than 80 hands-on configs over two years is a useful then-and-now snapshot: MacBooks still set the all-rounder bar, but Snapdragon Windows machines now match or beat them on multi-core speed and battery—if your software supports ARM.

Key Takeaways

• The 15-inch MacBook Air (M5) is the best MacBook for most people; the Asus Zenbook A14 is the top Windows everyday pick.
• “RAMageddon” shortages drove steep hikes, with Apple raising MacBook prices by $100 to $300 in June.
• The HP OmniBook 3 16 lasted 40 hours and 14 minutes—the longest battery result in the database.
• Budget buyers get the Apple MacBook Neo; Chromebook shoppers get the Acer Chromebook Plus 516, often around $299.
• Creatives lean toward the 14-inch MacBook Pro (M5); big-screen shoppers get the Asus Zenbook A16.

What are the best laptops 2026 for most people?

For macOS users, Mashable crowns the 15-inch Apple MacBook Air with the M5 chip as the everyday standard. Testers call it the touchstone for other notebooks: strong performance for browsing and light editing, a bright 2.8K Liquid Retina panel, excellent webcam, speakers, and keyboard, plus a premium haptic trackpad rare at this price.

In Geekbench 6, the tested Air scored 4,025 single-core and 16,099 multi-core, with battery life of 17 hours and 40 minutes—well over two workdays. Specs included 16GB of RAM, a 512GB SSD, a 15.3-inch 2,880 x 1,864 display at 500 nits, and a 3.3-pound chassis. Best Buy pricing sat at $1,299 after a $200 June hike still called a solid deal. A 13-inch Air remains a cheaper, more portable option.

Windows fans should start with the Asus Zenbook A14 (UX3407NA) at $1,349.99. Its Snapdragon X2 Elite chip nearly matched MacBooks day to day and was almost 20 percent faster than the M5 Air in multi-core Geekbench (19,144 versus 16,099), while battery life reached 27 hours and 36 minutes—third-longest in testing. At 2.4 pounds with a “Ceraluminum” body, OLED display, and more ports than the Air, it is a strong Air alternative. Caveats include an average webcam and speakers plus some ARM software compatibility issues.

How did memory shortages change laptop prices this year?

AI data-center construction has strained global RAM and SSD supply—often called “RAMageddon.” Devices that use those parts, including many of the best laptops 2026 contenders, have seen steep price increases. The shortage may worsen into 2028, squeezing budget and mid-range values.

Apple’s mid-June MacBook increases of $100 to $300 are the latest high-profile example. Mashable re-checked older favorites after jumps. The Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14 rose from about $750 to $1,000 as tested and was replaced by the Acer Chromebook Plus 516.

That Acer, often on sale for $299, is the best Chromebook for most people. It is plastic, with no keyboard backlight and tinny speakers, but delivered just over 14 hours of battery, a large 16-inch 1200p screen, and the fastest sub-$500 lab results. At $750–$1,000 Chromebook prices, testers say consider a MacBook Air instead.

Under $1,000, the Apple MacBook Neo remains the best budget laptop after a $100 bump (listed at $699). It keeps an all-aluminum chassis, Liquid Retina display, and strong single-core speed from its A18 Pro—matching a last-gen M4 Air on simple tasks and feeling snappier than many Windows machines over $2,000. Battery life was 14 hours and 50 minutes, ahead of the 10.5-hour median for other sub-$1,000 Windows and Chromebook options.

Which laptop lasts the longest on a single charge?

The HP OmniBook 3 16-bz000 is the endurance king. With Qualcomm’s base Snapdragon X, it lasted 40 hours and 14 minutes in Mashable’s video rundown—ahead of the OmniBook 5 14 at 32.5 hours and nearly double the longest MacBook tested, the 14-inch M5 MacBook Pro at 21 hours and 17 minutes.

The OmniBook 3 16 is not the flashiest: plastic keyboard deck, a somewhat dim 300-nit panel, and performance that trails some rivals. Testers still praise its 0.58-inch profile for a 16-inch machine, colorful 1200p screen, comfortable keyboard, and above-average speakers. The guide lists 32GB of RAM, a 1TB SSD, and 3.65 pounds—ideal for charger-forgetters, especially on sale.

Creatives should look at the 14-inch Apple MacBook Pro (M5) at $1,599 after a $300 June hike. Fans curb thermal throttling, the mini-LED 120Hz display hits up to 1,600 nits for HDR, and ports include Thunderbolt, HDMI, MagSafe, and an SDXC slot. It is Mashable’s best laptop for creatives and the longest-lasting MacBook in its tests.

Business buyers with open budgets get the Asus ExpertBook Ultra (B9406): 2.18 pounds, as thin as 0.43 inches, Intel Core Ultra X7 385H power, an Arc B390 iGPU that ran Cyberpunk 2077 above 60 fps with AI upscaling, and a 2.8K OLED touchscreen called the nicest laptop display testers have seen. Battery life was 18 hours and 26 minutes. For a large screen without MacBook Pro money, the Asus Zenbook A16 ($1,699.99) pairs Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme multi-core scores (22,210) with a bright 2.8K OLED touchscreen, 48GB of RAM, and a 2.87-pound build versus 16-inch MacBook Pros from $2,799.

One caution: many Windows winners use Snapdragon ARM chips. Performance and battery life are excellent, but some specialty software and games still struggle. Mashable urges caution for college students and primary gamers until ARM support improves. The Alienware 16X Aurora gaming pick was temporarily removed when the tested config went out of stock.

Bottom line: the best laptops 2026 shortlist is still Mac versus Windows at the top, but category fit and post-hike value matter more than nostalgia for last year’s prices. Choose the Air or Zenbook A14 for daily work, Neo or Acer Plus for tight budgets, OmniBook 3 for extreme stamina, and Pro or ExpertBook Ultra when the workload demands more.