Ranking: Best business laptops reviewed by Notebookcheck

As the only ThinkPad laptop in the 15.3-inch form factor, the X9-15p Gen 1 Aura Edition occupies a unique position. It is a premium model that does away with many traditional ThinkPad design elements and is positioned primarily as a competitor to Apple's MacBook lineup. Our review revealed only a few weaknesses, but plenty of strengths. With Panther Lake CPUs, an Arc iGPU and a large OLED panel, the X9-15p is simply a compelling package.

With the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 14 Aura Edition, Lenovo continues the X1 series' strong tradition as its flagship lineup. The new design, with improved repairability, impresses in our review. The only real drawback is the soldered RAM; otherwise, this ultralight laptop has little but strengths. As a result, the new X1 Carbon G14 once again earns a high spot in this year's ranking.

The latest version of Lenovo’s most portable T-series ThinkPad is the Lenovo ThinkPad T14s Gen 7. This business laptop with a 14-inch display is priced between the ThinkPad T14 and the ThinkPad X1 Carbon, offering a blend of the two: a more premium design than the T14 series, but a significantly lower price than the premium X1 Carbon. In our review of the AMD variant, it showed hardly any notable weaknesses, earning a “Very good” rating.

The EliteBook X is the crème de la crème of HP's EliteBook lineup. The latest model, the HP EliteBook X G2i 14, arrives with Intel Panther Lake and a completely new design. In our review, it demonstrated many strengths, including high performance, a premium chassis, and a very comfortable keyboard. Weaknesses, on the other hand, were few and far between, so the EliteBook laptop deservedly earned a "Very good" rating.

For some, it's the X1 Carbon G14; for others, it's the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 2-in-1 Gen 11 Aura Edition. They are essentially the same laptop, but with two small yet significant differences: The X1 2-in-1 swaps the carbon fiber chassis for an all-metal one, in this case a mix of aluminum and magnesium. It is also a convertible, with a fold-back display, digitizer and touchscreen. All in all, the X1 2-in-1 is almost as good as the X1 Carbon, making it particularly appealing if you actually need the convertible features.

The T14 Gen 7 is here—and it has plenty to offer. Most notably, it delivers improved repairability with upgradeable LPCAMM2 memory and modular USB-C ports. While the Panther Lake platform with the smaller CPU variant is not a major step forward compared to Lunar Lake, the previous model's core strengths remain intact. All of this makes the T14 Gen 7 one of the best business laptops.

With its ExpertBook Ultra, Asus aims to make its mark in the business market. This premium model for business customers features a slim, extremely lightweight design and Intel's 2026 Panther Lake CPUs. We found no major weaknesses in this Asus ExpertBook, with performance and battery life particularly impressive. One minor drawback: the matte OLED display is slightly less vibrant than comparable glossy models.

HP has launched the second generation of its EliteBook 8 series. This new EliteBook does not disappoint. With its aluminum chassis, very comfortable keyboard, long battery life, and powerful speakers, the notebook has a lot to offer. It is a shame, however, that the RAM is soldered, and the chassis of our review unit unfortunately creaks a little.

Lenovo has refreshed the smallest ThinkPad this year. The Lenovo ThinkPad X13 Gen 6 is available with both Intel and AMD CPUs; we tested the AMD version. Overall, it performs very well in terms of performance, battery life, noise levels, and heat output. However, we were not entirely satisfied with the keyboard and hinges on our review unit, so the X13 only earned a "Good" rating rather than a "Very good."

They don't get any bigger: The Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 5 is the latest version of the largest model in Lenovo's ThinkPad T series. With a large 16-inch display and a numeric keypad, it should particularly appeal to people who work extensively with numbers. The AMD version we tested offers an excellent balance of performance and efficiency, paired with good serviceability and comfortable input devices—all in all, a capable work laptop, although the configuration we tested unfortunately has a disappointing display.

HP's answer to the ThinkPad T series is called the HP EliteBook 8. The EliteBook 8 G2a 16 is currently the largest model in the series, and the unit we tested was equipped with an AMD processor. It delivered very good and, above all, consistent performance, along with very good battery life. There is little else to fault with the EliteBook, either. The only real shame is that HP soldered the RAM in our review unit.

With the transition from Dell Latitude to Dell Pro in 2025, the Dell Latitude 7000 series was effectively discontinued without a replacement. This proved to be a mistake, as Dell came to realize: in 2026, the company restored the status quo with the new Dell Pro 7 14 P714265. The new business laptop, which competes with models such as the ThinkPad T14s, impresses with long battery life, plenty of ports, and good performance. However, the new Dell Pro 7 is not perfect, as its fan is unfortunately relatively loud.