Ranking: Best business laptops reviewed by Notebookcheck

The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon has long been the flagship of the ThinkPad lineup, catering to executives and professionals who need a premium work laptop.

With the latest ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 13, Lenovo delivers a top-tier device featuring Intel's Lunar Lake platform, which significantly improves battery life while keeping temperatures lower than its predecessors. Despite these upgrades, Lenovo has also managed to make the X1 Carbon even lighter, now weighing under a kilogram. The only real downside is the rather underwhelming webcam, but otherwise, the ThinkPad X1 Carbon fully justifies its high price.

HP is one of the largest PC manufacturers for a reason, and its EliteBook series is a staple in the enterprise sector. The HP EliteBook 845 G11 is one of the standout models, combining the premium EliteBook 800 platform with AMD's Ryzen processors.
Performance is excellent for a compact 14-inch laptop, and the high-quality metal case, comfortable keyboard, numerous upgrade options, and wide range of ports make it a compelling choice. The fast and high-resolution display further adds to its appeal. The only drawbacks are the relatively loud fan and the absence of Wi-Fi 7, but these do little to detract from an otherwise outstanding business laptop.

AMD has been delivering mobile processors that balance high performance and efficiency for years, and the Ryzen AI series, known as Strix Point, continues this trend. The Lenovo ThinkPad T14s Gen 6 AMD benefits from this, offering both speed and long battery life.
With a lightweight carbon case, the T14s Gen 6 lasts around 14 hours in our Wi-Fi test and outperforms comparable Intel Lunar Lake models. This combination makes it an excellent all-around business laptop for everyday office use.

HP's EliteBook 1000 series represents the pinnacle of its business laptop lineup, offering top-tier features and premium build quality. The HP EliteBook x360 1040 G11, a high-end convertible, is one of the most expensive models in HP's enterprise range.
In testing, the EliteBook x360 1040 G11 delivers on its promises with an excellent keyboard, extensive features, and solid battery life. Weak points are minimal—its display response time is a bit slow, and sustained CPU performance isn't class-leading, but overall, it remains a top choice for business professionals.

The Lenovo ThinkPad X13 Gen 4 is the smallest model in Lenovo’s business lineup, designed as a compact subnotebook for frequent travelers. It offers many features within its small case, making it an attractive choice for mobility-focused users.
However, there are compromises. Despite its efficient Ryzen CPU, performance lags behind larger ThinkPads. The selection of display options is also limited to lower resolutions. Additionally, the mobility advantage over models like the T14s Gen 5 is not as significant as before, making larger ThinkPads a better choice for many users.

The Lenovo ThinkPad T14 Gen 5 is the defining model of the ThinkPad lineup, embodying the brand’s business-oriented design and reliability. The latest version marks a major shift toward improved repairability, with fully upgradeable RAM returning for the first time since 2018.
Beyond that, the ThinkPad T14 G5 retains all the strengths of the series, including extensive features, high-quality input devices, and a replaceable keyboard. However, the Intel Meteor Lake U CPU delivers only average performance, and the speakers leave room for improvement.

Dell's premium business laptops fall under the Latitude series, with the upper mid-range represented by the Latitude 7000 lineup. The most compact model, the Dell Latitude 7350, stands out with Intel Core Ultra processors, Wi-Fi 7 support, and excellent battery life.
However, its small M.2 2230 SSD limits upgradeability, and Turbo Boost performance could be better. Despite these drawbacks, the Latitude 7350 remains a powerful and highly portable choice for business users.

The Asus ExpertBook P5 P5405 blurs the lines between business and consumer laptops, combining a slim ultrabook design with enterprise features. It is also the first business laptop equipped with Intel's Lunar Lake platform. The new, more efficient Intel processors benefit the ExpertBook P5, delivering excellent battery life, low temperatures, and quiet fan noise. Along with a matte, high-resolution display with a 120 Hz refresh rate, this makes for a strong mobile productivity machine. The only major downside is the somewhat wobbly hinge.

Good battery life, extensive features including a standard digitizer pen and optional 5G, and a sturdy magnesium case define the Lenovo ThinkPad X13 2-in-1 Gen 5. As the successor to the ThinkPad X13 Yoga, this compact convertible remains ideal for handwritten notes or artists thanks to its integrated Wacom digitizer. However, similar to its predecessor, its performance is somewhat lacking, making other laptops a better choice for demanding tasks.

For HP, the EliteBook Ultra G1q marks a first as the brand’s first EliteBook with an ARM processor. Unlike previous Qualcomm CPUs, the Snapdragon X Elite now competes well with x86 alternatives. This high-quality, slim laptop offers long battery life with minimal fan noise. However, despite improvements, Windows on ARM still faces some compatibility issues.