Our experts used the PerfectRec decision engine to comb through our laptop database and find the best business laptops available in 2024. Here are our top picks.
Our criteria for the best business laptops:
Usage: We focused on laptops for general use.
Portability: We placed some emphasis on portability because business people tend to move often with their laptops.
Battery: We placed some emphasis on battery because business people are often on the go with their laptops.
Budget: We set a budget of upto $2,000
To consider others factors, try the PerfectRec decision engine to get your personalized laptop recommendation
The ASUS Zenbook S 13 is a premium, lightweight laptop, making it highly portable and suitable for on-the-go use, especially with its long battery life. With a midrange price, you're getting solid build quality, a vivid OLED touchscreen, and excellent heat management. It has an Intel i7-1355U processor paired with 32GB RAM, which will handle general use very efficiently. Its Intel Iris Xe graphics are fine for casual gaming and moderate creative tasks, but might fall short for intensive 3D rendering or engineering software. The laptop offers a good selection of ports, including Thunderbolt 4, and a comfortable backlit keyboard, although it lacks an Ethernet port and an option for hardware upgrades due to having no available RAM or storage slots.
The LG Gram 17 is a midrange-priced laptop that is highly portable, weighing only 2.98 pounds despite its large 17-inch IPS screen with a resolution of 2560 x 1600. It has generous amounts of storage and RAM, ensuring smooth performance for general use. Equipped with an Intel i7-1260P processor and integrated Iris Xe graphics, it's capable of basic 3D tasks and engineering software but is not designed for intensive gaming or high-end machine learning tasks. It offers a long battery life, a full backlit keyboard with a number pad, and multiple USB-C ports, including two that support Thunderbolt 4. The build quality, heat management, and fan noise are rated good. Suitable for users seeking a large-screen laptop that is easy to carry and capable of handling everyday tasks efficiently.
The Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) model holds an upper midrange price and is equipped with a high-resolution IPS screen of 15.3 inches, which is not a touchscreen. It operates on the Apple M2 processor with integrated M2 GPU and has 16 GB of RAM and 1 TB of storage. With a battery capacity of 66.6, it's noted for its long-lasting battery life, offering around 15 hours of typical usage, which is great for on-the-go use. This MacBook is remarkably thin and weighs only 3.3 pounds, making it very portable. It has a backlit keyboard, fingerprint reader, and a silent, fanless operation which will be appealing for work environments.
In terms of connectivity, it has two USB-C ports with Thunderbolt support and also supports USB4. There are no options for expandable RAM or storage slots. If you're looking for a laptop for general use with high build and keyboard quality, good performance, and excellent portability at a premium price, this MacBook Air is a solid choice. However, for those needing a dedicated number pad, an HDMI port, or the best performance in 3D and engineering tasks, you might want to look at other options, as those are not the strongest points of this model.
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2022) is positioned at an upper midrange price and excels in general use with its high-quality keyboard, silent operation, and solid build quality. It offers ample storage and is equipped with the Apple M2 chip for efficient performance. Its fanless design ensures silent operation, while the 20-hour battery life makes it suitable for extended use without needing to recharge. However, it may not be ideal for intensive gaming or high-end 3D tasks and machine learning applications due to its less powerful GPU compared to gaming-focused laptops. The lack of a touchscreen and the average performance in 3D/rendering tasks may also be considered if these features are important for your workload. It's very portable, making it a good choice for those who need to work on the go.
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) has a premium build quality and is priced in the upper midrange. It features 1TB storage, 16GB RAM, and utilizes the Apple M2 processor, providing very good general-use performance and silent operation due to its fanless design. The integrated M2 GPU accommodates some engineering tasks but might not be ideal for intensive 3D or machine learning workloads. The 13.6-inch IPS display has a resolution higher than Full HD but is not touch-enabled. It offers excellent portability at 2.7 pounds and has a lengthy battery life suitable for all-day use. It runs on MacOS and connectivity includes two USB-C/Thunderbolt ports and USB-C charging, but no support for traditional USB or HDMI without adapters. Suitable for general use, everyday multitasking, and light engineering work, but not aimed at intensive gaming or the most demanding engineering software.
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 (2022) is in the upper midrange price category and features a powerful Apple M2 main processor, suitable for general use and lighter engineering tasks, but its integrated M2 GPU is not ideal for intensive 3D rendering, machine learning, or gaming. It has a large 512 GB of storage and a substantial 24 GB of RAM. With a 13.3-inch IPS display, it offers high resolution and excellent color accuracy, without touchscreen capabilities. Its 58.2 Wh battery provides long battery life, and the laptop is quite portable considering its capabilities. The build quality, keyboard, and speakers are rated highly, and its silent, fanless operation is a plus for quiet environments. It supports fast USB-C charging and has two Thunderbolt 4 ports, but lacks an HDMI port and dedicated graphics card. This MacBook doesn't have options for expandable RAM or storage and isn't suited for hardware-intensive gaming. It's pre-installed with MacOS and is considered best for general use, offering a balance of portability and performance, especially for users integrated into the Apple ecosystem.
The Apple MacBook Pro 16 (2023) is positioned at a premium price point with powerful performance thanks to its Apple M2 Pro processor. It boasts a large 16.2-inch Mini LED display with high resolution, making it an excellent choice for professionals who need accurate colors and clear visuals for tasks such as video editing or graphic design. Its battery is robust, providing long hours of typical usage, which is ideal for those who need to work on the go. Weighing 4.7 pounds, it is heavier than some laptops, which may affect its portability. This MacBook Pro also comes with a large touchpad, a high-quality backlit keyboard, a fingerprint reader for added security, and multiple USB-C/Thunderbolt ports for connectivity, but it lacks an HDMI port and an Ethernet connection. It doesn't come with a number pad on the keyboard, so for tasks that require numerical data entry, this could be a limitation. It’s not primarily designed for gaming, but it can handle general and engineering tasks very well. Overall, if you value top-notch build quality, excellent screen performance, and are not constrained by budget, the MacBook Pro 16 (2023) would be a strong choice, albeit with some trade-offs in portability and gaming capabilities.