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The Best Laptops for Under $800

September 2024 update. If price is the most important criteria for you when purchasing a new laptop then maybe this list will help you narrow your choices down. The following table contains an overview over the best laptops for less than 600 Euros reviewed by us.

Every month, Notebookcheck reviews various affordable devices that have to undergo the exact same tests and identical review process as their premium siblings. The price bracket of less than 600 Euros is occupied by a number of notebooks made by various manufacturers competing for the price-conscious customer’s attention. Constant marketing emphasizing Gigahertz and Gigabytes carries the risk to lose sight of what is really important in a notebook. The following top lists might be interesting for your purchase decision as well:

The Best Cheap Notebooks For Less Than 600 Euros (old v7 Rating)

Position
Total Rating
Date
Image
Model / Review
Size
Resolution
Screen
Height
Weight
183.6 %
v7 (old)
03 / 2024
Ninkear A15 Plus (16+512)
Ninkear A15 Plus (16+512)
AMD Ryzen 7 5700U ⎘
AMD Radeon RX Vega 8 (Ryzen 4000/5000) ⎘
16 GB Memory, 512 GB SSD
15.60"1920x1080matte18.2 mm1.8 kg
282 %
v7 (old)
05 / 2024
SCHENKER Work 14 Base
SCHENKER Work 14 Base
Intel Core i5-1235U ⎘
Intel Iris Xe Graphics G7 80EUs ⎘
16 GB Memory, 500 GB SSD
14.00"1920x1080matte20.2 mm1.3 kg
381 %
v7 (old)
04 / 2024
Acer Aspire Go 15 AG15-31P-34JP
Acer Aspire Go 15 AG15-31P-34JP
Intel Core i3-N305 ⎘
Intel UHD Graphics 32EUs (Alder Lake) ⎘
8 GB Memory, 512 GB SSD
15.60"1920x1080matte18.9 mm1.7 kg
479.5 %
v7 (old)
06 / 2024
Asus BR1104CGA-N00007XA
Asus BR1104CGA-N00007XA
Intel Processor N100 ⎘
Intel UHD Graphics 24EUs (Alder Lake-N) ⎘
8 GB Memory, 128 GB SSD
11.60"1366x768matte21.2 mm1.6 kg
579.5 %
v7 (old)
03 / 2024
Asus BR1402FG
Asus BR1402FG
Intel Core i3-N305 ⎘
Intel UHD Graphics 32EUs (Alder Lake) ⎘
8 GB Memory, 1024 GB SSD
14.00"1920x1080glossy20.8 mm1.7 kg
678.5 %
v7 (old)
01 / 2024
Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3 CB 14M868
Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3 CB 14M868
MediaTek Kompanio 520 ⎘
ARM Mali-G52 MP2 ⎘
4 GB Memory, 64 GB eMMC
14.00"1920x1080matte19.3 mm1.3 kg
775.2 %
v7 (old)
12 / 2023
HP 250 G9 7N029ES
HP 250 G9 7N029ES
Intel Core i3-1215U ⎘
Intel UHD Graphics 64EUs (Alder Lake 12th Gen) ⎘
8 GB Memory, 512 GB SSD
15.60"1920x1080matte19.9 mm1.7 kg

Note: The switch to a new rating system took place in June 2024. In the new v8 rating, the criteria were adapted to current hardware developments, new points were added and individual measurement methods were changed. As a result, the v8 ratings are slightly lower than under v7. The new v8 rating is not directly comparable with previous versions. For this reason, we are listing two tables with the best devices according to v7 and v8 rating here for the time being. Further information on the new v8 rating can be found here.

The table above contains an overview over the best notebooks for less than 500 Euros reviewed by Notebookcheck over the course of the past 12 months as well as still relevant and available older products. In cases of identical score the more recent device is listed first. All prices in above table and price comparisons are updated daily and can thus differ.
Link: all devices in this class reviewed

1st – Ninkear A15 Plus (R7 5700U)

Ninkear A15 Plus
Ninkear A15 Plus

"Surprisingly good and inexpensive" was the title of our author's review of this Chinese banger. The Ninkear A15 Plus has more than enough power for everyday use, is quiet, has a powerful keyboard and an attractive light metal casing. Our version of the Ninkear A15 Plus is available from various retailers for a good 500 euros. In our test, the laptop is clearly a top performer in terms of price/performance, although there are some compromises to be made compared to the inexpensive device with AMD Ryzen 7.

The Ninkear A15 Plus proved to be a useful laptop for the home office in our test. Good performance meets an appealing design. The loudspeakers, WLAN and screen brightness have to be compromised.

Unfortunately, our 16+512 configuration of the Ninkear A15 Plus is currently out of stock almost everywhere. Another configuration currently costs around $615 at Tomtop with shipping from a German warehouse.

Price comparison

2nd – Acer Aspire Go 15 (i3-N305, UHD 32 EUs)

Acer Aspire Go 15
Acer Aspire Go 15

Alder Lake, 8 GB RAM, 512 GB SSD, FHD panel result in a simple office notebook for a small budget. Very good battery life and USB-C power delivery make the 15.6-inch laptop even more attractive.

With the Aspire Go 15, Acer delivers an office notebook for a small budget that has revealed some weaknesses.

The Acer Aspire Go 15 AG15-31P is widely available from online retailers, such as Amazon.

Price comparison

3rd – Asus ExpertBook BR1104CGA (N100, UHD 24 EUs)

Asus ExpertBook BR1104CGA
Asus ExpertBook BR1104CGA

Powered by Intel's efficient N100 CPU, this rugged notebook for education offers excellent battery life, quiet operation and robust connectivity. For under €400, Asus also delivers 8GB of LPDDR5 4800 RAM, 128GB SSD storage and an 11.6-inch 1,366 x 768 pixel display.

The high CPU efficiency, quiet operation and great battery life recommend the Asus ExpertBook BR1104CGA as a reliable solution for students on a budget.

Exactly this variant is not available in stores, as it is intended to be ordered by schools or universities at a discount.

Price comparison

4th – Asus BR1402FG (i3-N305, UHD 32EUs)

Asus BR1402FG
Asus BR1402FG

The new Asus BR1402FG is designed for robustness with scratch-resistant Corning Gorilla Glass and US military standard MIL-STD 810H certification. Coupled with the 2-in-1 design and good repairability, this notebook is the ideal companion for everyday school life.

The Asus BR1402FG targets the education sector with its rugged design and price-performance ratio, but faces challenges in system performance.

At the time of writing, the Asus BR1402FG is not yet available in North America.

Price comparison

5th – Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3 CB (MediaTek Kompanio 520, Mali-G52 MP2)

Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3 CB
Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3 CB

For 250 euros, the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3 CB 14M868 can only really be a Chromebook. A Full HD display, 8-core CPU, thin and visually appealing casing sound tempting for the cheapest notebook on the market. We bought the laptop new from Amazon for an incredible 100 euros on Black Friday.

However, the long battery life and the silent and cool operation, even under load, are pleasing. 

We bought the IdeaPad Slim 3 CB from Amazon for an unbeatable 100 euros on Black Friday. It currently costs 170 euros there. The 128 GB version is only listed at around 300 euros and the version with IPS touchscreen is currently not available in Germany. Depending on the price and requirements, the IdeaPad can definitely be a bargain.

At the time of writing, Amazon US offers the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim CB for $220.

Price comparison

6th – Asus Chromebook CM14 (MediaTek Kompanio 520, Mali-G52 MP2)

Asus Chromebook CM14
Asus Chromebook CM14

The Asus CM14 is an entry-level Chromebook. However, it also has advantages such as 12 hours of battery life and a 10-year update guarantee. The Asus CM14 (CM1402C) has an RRP of 299 euros, but it has also been sold several times for 150 euros by well-known retailers. This makes the CM14 one of the cheapest notebooks, and its performance must be rated accordingly.

If you can live with the dark display and slow memory, the Asus CM14 is a durable and affordable Chromebook with long-term update support.

The Asus Chromebook CM 14 is available through the usual retail channels, including Amazon US. Alternatively, users can order the laptop via Asus's official online store.

Price comparison

7th – HP 250 G9 (i3-1215U, UHD 64EUs)

HP 250 G9
HP 250 G9

With the 250 G9, HP offers an affordable 15.6-inch office laptop that is equipped with a Core i3 processor from Intel and a matte IPS display for around 400 euros. The Core i3 processor in particular sets the laptop apart from other laptops in this price range, which are often only equipped with Celeron or Pentium chips.

An inexpensive laptop for the home office: HP 250 G9 offers sufficient performance for everyday use with the Core i3 processor and the subjective image quality of the matte IPS panel is okay. However, the fan can quickly become annoying.

Currently, the device is currently unavailable on common retailers.

Price comparison

Size Comparison

362.9 mm / 14.3 in 239.7 mm / 9.44 in 18.9 mm / 0.744 in 1.7 kg3.77 lbs360 mm / 14.2 in 229 mm / 9.02 in 18.2 mm / 0.717 in 1.8 kg4.01 lbs358 mm / 14.1 in 242 mm / 9.53 in 19.9 mm / 0.783 in 1.7 kg3.76 lbs332 mm / 13.1 in 228 mm / 8.98 in 20.8 mm / 0.819 in 1.7 kg3.79 lbs325.9 mm / 12.8 in 221.8 mm / 8.73 in 19.3 mm / 0.76 in 1.3 kg2.87 lbs324.9 mm / 12.8 in 219.5 mm / 8.64 in 20.2 mm / 0.795 in 1.3 kg2.85 lbs296.9 mm / 11.7 in 213 mm / 8.39 in 21.2 mm / 0.835 in 1.6 kg3.57 lbs297 mm / 11.7 in 210 mm / 8.27 in 1 mm / 0.03937 in 5.7 g0.01257 lbs

Test Results

Ninkear A15 Plus (16+512)SCHENKER Work 14 BaseAcer Aspire Go 15 AG15-31P-34JPAsus BR1104CGA-N00007XAAsus BR1402FGLenovo IdeaPad Slim 3 CB 14M868HP 250 G9 7N029ES
Display
Display P3 Coverage
39.04
72.4
39.4
43.19
37.87
43.3
sRGB Coverage
58.06
99.8
58.9
64.95
56.7
54.35
64.8
AdobeRGB 1998 Coverage
40.34
73.8
40.7
44.62
39.15
37.54
44.7
Response Times
Response Time Grey 50% / Grey 80% *
25 ?(15.5, 9.5)
60 ?(27.5, 32.5)
32 ?(15.5, 16.5)
37.68 ?(19, 18.68)
39 ?(17.5, 21.5)
39.3 ?(20.7, 18.6)
31.9 ?(15, 16.9)
Response Time Black / White *
14 ?(6.5, 7.5)
34.7 ?(17, 17.7)
26 ?(13.5, 12.5)
20 ?(15, 5)
30 ?(16.5, 13.5)
9.4 ?(6.1, 3.3)
21.6 ?(12.2, 9.4)
PWM Frequency
25000 ?(71)
Screen
Brightness middle
254
402
321
290
278
281
281
Brightness
244
404
320
274
252
259
257
Brightness Distribution
89
89
92
87
80
85
82
Black Level *
0.1587
0.16
0.2032
0.48
0.075
0.45
0.16
Contrast
1601
2513
1580
604
3707
624
1756
Colorchecker dE 2000 *
7.42
2.2
6.11
7.68
7.02
12.4
4.7
Colorchecker dE 2000 max. *
19.74
4.2
9.93
9.6
24.28
21.9
18
Colorchecker dE 2000 calibrated *
5.72
1.3
3.65
1.9
4.25
3.7
Greyscale dE 2000 *
5
3
4.9
7.4
0.8
13.2
3.6
Gamma
1.855 119%
2.18 101%
1.925 114%
2.658 83%
2.158 102%
2.2 100%
CCT
6421 101%
6801 96%
6365 102%
8017 81%
5966 109%
7267 89%
Noise
off / environment *
24.78
23.6
24.8
23.59
24.78
24.3
Idle Minimum *
24.78
23.6
30.5
23.98
24.78
24.3
Idle Average *
27.6
23.6
30.5
23.98
24.78
24.3
Idle Maximum *
26.5
24.8
31
23.98
30.8
28.2
Load Average *
34.38
34.2
33.2
24.09
33.5
45.2
Load Maximum *
34.58
42.9
35.5
24.04
37.25
45.2
Witcher 3 ultra *
34.2
45.2
Heat
Maximum Upper Side *
37
39.2
35.8
37.1
41
32
35.1
Maximum Bottom *
33
40.4
44.5
40
37.6
33
44.8
Idle Upper Side *
23.5
25.3
23.1
26.2
24.1
26
25.7
Idle Bottom *
28.1
25.8
30.1
26.6
22.2
27
26.5
Battery Runtime
WiFi v1.3
634
458
693
820.1
563
866.6
361
Load
136
Power Consumption
Idle Minimum *
4.8
3.7
3.5
2.483
4.8
2.9
3.6
Idle Average *
5.4
6.8
4.6
4.2429
4.8
4.6
7.8
Idle Maximum *
7.7
7.2
8
4.8869
7
5.1
8.1
Load Average *
36.05
31.8
25.7
13.04
26.9
11.3
34.7
Load Maximum *
62
47.2
45
28.507
35
14.1
44.6
Witcher 3 ultra *
31
26.6
12.4
28.2
34.9

* ... smaller is better

Benchmarks

3DMark 11 - 1280x720 Performance (sort by value)
Ninkear A15 Plus (16+512)
Vega 8, R7 5700U, GOFATOO P110E-512GB
4600 Points
SCHENKER Work 14 Base
Iris Xe G7 80EUs, i5-1235U, Samsung SSD 980 500GB (MZ-V8V500BW)
5431 Points
Acer Aspire Go 15 AG15-31P-34JP
UHD Graphics 32EUs, i3-N305, WD PC SN740 SDDQNQD-512G-1014
3037 Points
Asus BR1104CGA-N00007XA
UHD Graphics 24EUs (Alder Lake-N), N100, Micron MT 128GBCAV2U31
1688 Points
Asus BR1402FG
UHD Graphics 32EUs, i3-N305, Kingston OM8PGP41024Q-A0
2861 Points
HP 250 G9 7N029ES
UHD Graphics 64EUs, i3-1215U, SK hynix HFS512GEJ9X125N
4116 Points
3DMark - 1280x720 Cloud Gate Standard Score (sort by value)
Ninkear A15 Plus (16+512)
Vega 8, R7 5700U, GOFATOO P110E-512GB
16817 Points
Acer Aspire Go 15 AG15-31P-34JP
UHD Graphics 32EUs, i3-N305, WD PC SN740 SDDQNQD-512G-1014
12397 Points
Asus BR1104CGA-N00007XA
UHD Graphics 24EUs (Alder Lake-N), N100, Micron MT 128GBCAV2U31
6177 Points
Asus BR1402FG
UHD Graphics 32EUs, i3-N305, Kingston OM8PGP41024Q-A0
11548 Points
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Notebookcheck (Update: 2024-09-28)