A good laptop for both gaming and schoolwork strikes a balance that goes beyond raw power. It should handle essays and research during the day, then jump into your favorite games when you are ready to take a break. That mix is easier to find now, with more laptops offering capable GPUs, solid battery life and designs that do not look out of place in a classroom.
Whether you want a budget gaming laptop for lighter titles or a more powerful system that can run demanding games, there is something that fits just about every schedule and workload. We rounded up the best laptops for gaming and schoolwork so you can find a machine that does both without compromise.
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Best laptops for gaming and school in 2026
Devindra Hardawar for Engadget Best high-end laptop for gaming and school Razer Blade 16 Display size: 16-inch OLED | Display resolution: 2560 x 1600 (QHD+) | CPU: AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 or AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 | GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 5060 to 5090 | RAM: 16GB to 64GB LPDDR5X | Storage: 1TB to 4TB SSD | Weight: 4.7 pounds | Max battery life: 9 hours Read our full Razer Blade 16 review If you’re looking for something a bit more premium, the Razer Blade 16 is an excellent choice. Razer has honed its build quality to near perfection over the years, delivering the closest thing you’ll find to Apple’s MacBook Pro in the PC world. The Blade 16 is Razer’s thinnest laptop so far, and it can be configured with AMD’s powerful Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 chip and NVIDIA’s absurdly powerful RTX 5090 GPU. There’s also a 16-inch QHD+ 240Hz OLED display, which on paper sounds a lot more useful than the hybrid 1080p/4K screen Razer used to equip. With its slim form factor and optional USB-C ports for accessories and fast charging, it’s built for students and gamers alike. Just be careful as you spec up, because it’s easy to soar past $5,000 if you want all of Razer’s bells and whistles. $2,400 at Razer
acer Best budget laptop for gaming and school Acer Nitro V Display size: 15.6-inch LCD | Display resolution: 1080p | CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 7535HS | GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 4050 | RAM: 16GB | Storage: 512GB SSD | Weight: 4.6 pounds | Max battery life: 9 hours Acer excels at making affordable-yet-powerful gaming notebooks, and the Nitro V 15 is a great example of that. For around $750, you can snag it with AMD’s six-core Ryzen 5 7535HS chip, 16GB of RAM and an RTX 4050 GPU. That’s certainly more than enough power to play most games on its 1080p 144Hz screen. It’s the ideal system if you won’t be playing very demanding games, but may need a bit of GPU power to get some video rendering done for class or run heavier apps. This is one of the best budget gaming laptop picks right now, though you shouldn’t expect the premium build quality you’d find on notebooks over $1,000. $935 at Amazon
Dell Best affordable 16-inch laptop for gaming and schoolwork Alienware 16 Aurora Display size: 16-inch LCD | Display resolution: 2,560 x 1,600 | CPU: Intel Core 7 240H | GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 4050 | RAM: 16GB | Storage: 1TB SSD | Weight: 5.6 pounds | Max battery life: N/A If you want a large 16-inch gaming notebook, but aren’t willing to shell out big bucks for the Razer Blade 16, consider the new Alienware 16 Aurora. It starts at just $1,150 with an Intel Core 7 240H chip, NVIDIA RTX 4050, 1TB SSD and 16GB of RAM — more than enough power to make that 16-inch screen shine. In general, I like Alienware’s build quality and reliability, and it’s also nice to see the company aiming for the budget-conscious crowd. Personally, I’d spend a bit more for the $1,300 configuration with a more powerful RTX 5060, 32GB of RAM and a faster 120Hz display. And if you like Alienware’s sci-fi-ish aesthetic, the Aurora 16X is even more powerful (and more expensive). $1,500 at Best Buy
Dell Best no-limit gaming laptop for schoolwork Alienware 18 Area 51 Display size: 18-inch LCD | Display resolution: 2,560 x 1,600 | CPU: Intel Core 9 275HX | GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 Ti | RAM: 32GB | Storage: 2TB SSD | Weight: 9.5 pounds | Max battery life: N/A For the student who knows they need as much raw power and screen space as possible, the Alienware 18 Area 51 is hard to beat. It starts with a massive 18-inch display, Intel’s 24-core Ultra 9 275HX chip, NVIDIA’s RTX 5070 Ti and 32GB of RAM. But you can also configure it all the way up to an RTX 5090 if you want. The Alienware 18 Area 51 is a beast of a machine, clocking in at nearly 10 pounds, but that’s to be expected given its screen real estate. Still, if you need a new gaming laptop that’s as much a desktop replacement as it is a portable system, this one fits the bill. There’s always the 16-inch variant if you want a similar amount of power, but with a slightly less back-breaking 7.5-pound frame. $4,000 at Best Buy
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