Ranking: Best ultra-portable laptops reviewed by Notebookcheck

The base M5-powered MacBook Air 13 is a powerful, yet very lightweight notebook for everyday use. It impresses with its elegant design, long battery life and brilliant Liquid Retina display with highly accurate colors. The new M5 chip provides a further increase in performance compared to the previous generation, enabling smooth multitasking and powering through demanding creative and productivity applications. Despite the larger display size, the machine is fit for use on the go, offering solid features such as two Thunderbolt ports, Wi-Fi 7 and fast SSD storage. The passively cooled internals work silently, which makes the MacBook particularly convenient in everyday use. Its weaknesses are the slow 60-Hz display refresh rate, and how sharply the price goes up with higher-end SKUs.

Lenovo's ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 13 is a premium business ultrabook, offering an excellent combination of mobility, performance, and build quality. At just 0.98 kg, it's exceptionally lightweight yet highly robust thanks to its premium case.

The legendary ThinkPad keyboard provides outstanding typing comfort, while the bright 14-inch OLED display (400 nits, 100% sRGB) ensures a razor-sharp image, even in challenging lighting conditions.

In terms of performance, Intel's Core Ultra 7 258V processor paired with 32 GB of LPDDR5X RAM easily handles office tasks, multitasking, and demanding applications. Battery life is also strong, delivering nearly 11 hours in our Wi-Fi test. The product is available directly from Lenovo Germany for 2,819 euros.

Dell's Pro 13 Premium is a high-performance business ultrabook for demanding users that sports attractive looks. With its 13.3-inch display (either Full HD or 4K), it offers brilliant colors and sharp images. Powered by the latest Intel Core processors, up to 32 GB of RAM and a fast SSD, it promises high performance and effortless multitasking. Its slim and robust aluminum case, backlit keyboard and large Precision touchpad promise to make performing daily duties more comfortable. Thanks to Wi-Fi 6E support, along with Thunderbolt 4 and long battery life, the system is ideal for doing work on the go while security features such as a built-in fingerprint reader and an optional IR camera ensure data protection and security.

HP's EliteBook Ultra G1i 14 is a powerful and elegant-looking business notebook for pros. With its 14-inch 2.8K OLED display, it offers sharp, detailed visuals with brilliant colors. Equipped with the latest Intel Core Ultra processors of the Lunar Lake family, as well as 32 GB of LPDDR5 RAM and a 1-TB SSD, it delivered first-class performance for multitasking and demanding applications in our testing. Its lightweight, yet durable enough aluminum case, backlit keyboard and precise touchpad all deserve praise, as do security features such as HP Wolf Security, the fingerprint reader and the IR camera for Windows Hello. Wi-Fi 7 and long battery life round out the list of the product's key features.

The ThinkPad X1 2-in-1 G10 is a high-quality convertible for business use. It combines a slim, robust chassis with flexible 360-degree hinges, allowing one to use it both as a notebook and as a tablet. Equipped with the latest Intel processors of the Lunar Lake generation, a bright 14-inch display (optionally OLED) and extensive security functions, it has other features that professional users should appreciate, such as its typical ThinkPad input devices - precise and comfortable. Despite the performance, the convertible does not make much noise and is ideal for working on the go.

Tipping the scales at around 1.2 kg, the ThinkPad T14s G6's magnesium-aluminum casing is robust enough, yet portable. Featuring Intel's latest-generation Core Ultra 5 228V processor, 32 GB of LPDDR5X RAM and a 1-TB PCIe SSD, the system delivered solid performance in our testing that is more than sufficient for everyday tasks. Its 14-inch, 16:10 IPS display resolves at 1,920 × 1,200 pixels while delivers almost 100% sRGB color space coverage and brightness of up to 500 cd/m². The backlit keyboard and classic TrackPoint make tackling work that bit more pleasant.

Features-wise, its two Thunderbolt 4 ports, HDMI, USB-A, smart card reader and Wi-Fi 6E are complemented by good battery life of over 20 hours and fast charging support.

The 13.8-inch Surface Laptop 8 is one of the best Windows laptops for anyone looking to combine an elegant design with high portability and strong everyday usability. The high-quality aluminum chassis impresses with its excellent build quality, while the bright 120-Hz touchscreen display ensures smooth visuals and a pleasant user experience. Thanks to the modern Qualcomm Snapdragon X2 Plus X2P-64-100, this compact laptop offers plenty of power for Office, multimedia, and demanding multitasking. It also features quiet cooling, long battery life, and the latest ports, including USB 4. If you’re looking for a lightweight, premium laptop with an excellent keyboard, a large touchpad, and a well-rounded overall package, this is one of the most compelling choices for work, school, and everyday on-the-go use.

The ZenBook S14 UX5406AA is one of the highest-quality 14-inch ultrabooks on the market and impresses with a successful blend of performance, portability, and premium build quality. The exceptionally lightweight chassis, made from durable Ceraluminum, offers a premium feel and makes the notebook the ideal companion for on the go. Inside, a modern Intel Core Ultra 9 386H processor with a powerful Panther Lake graphics unit and integrated NPU handles everything from classic office tasks to AI-powered applications and creative workloads with ease. The brilliant 3K OLED display delivers vibrant colors, high contrast, and excellent picture quality. It also features a comfortable keyboard, modern ports including Thunderbolt 4, and very good battery life. If you’re looking for an exceptionally lightweight premium laptop with high-quality build, powerful performance, and an outstanding OLED display, the Asus ZenBook S14 is one of the best Windows ultrabooks in its class.

The OmniBook Ultra 14 Core Ultra X9 stands out as a powerful, premium ultrabook for demanding users. Equipped with a modern Intel Core Ultra X9 388H processor, it delivers high computing power for productivity, multitasking, and AI-powered applications. The high-resolution 14-inch display in a 16:10 aspect ratio ensures a sharp picture and a comfortable working experience, while fast LPDDR5x RAM and an NVMe SSD guarantee a smooth user experience. The high-quality, slim aluminum chassis, long battery life, modern ports—including USB4/Thunderbolt—and the latest wireless standards make the OmniBook Ultra 14 a versatile, premium laptop for work, school, and everyday on-the-go use.

With the X14 Pro, Geekom enters the notebook world for the first time - specifically, the premium segment of it. The 14-inch ultrabook, which weighs only around one kilogram, combines a high-resolution OLED display with Intel's latest Core Ultra platform and is aimed at demanding mobile users. High-quality materials, modern design and solid every-day performance make the machine an exciting alternative to established brands' products. Its brilliant display and solid runtimes stood out in our tests as well. Some performance sustainability issues do not spoil the fun; Geekom managed to make a remarkably mature debut with the GeekBook X14 Pro, thus securing a place in our Top 10 list.