Club Benefits
15 inches is still alive and kicking! And the best 15-inch laptops you can buy today prove it. I know, with 14- and 16-inch machines stealing the limelight, it's harder to find that classic size that's equal parts portable and practical with a big display, but I'm here to tell you that they're still out there — and better than ever.
With the hundreds of laptops my team of computing experts and I have tested throughout the years, we're slowly seeing the decline of the 15-inch form factor. But not completely, and the ones we do see tend to knock it out of the park when it comes to what's important: design and performance. Oh, and a fantastically well-sized display, of course.
Darragh here, Computing Editor at Tom's Guide, and 15-inch laptops will always hold a special place in my heart. To this day, they strike a fine balance between portability and size to make the most of a display, something professionals and gamers can take advantage of. Being someone who fits into both those groups, I'm always on the lookout for the next 15-inch notebook worth recommending (with testing to back it up, of course!).
The best 15-inch laptops you can buy today
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The best overall
The 15-inch MacBook Air was already the best laptop of its size for the money, but Apple keeps this machine updated anyway, now sporting an M5 chip for greatly improved performance across web surfing, video editing and gaming. It's just too bad that it now starts at $1,299, a $100 bump over its M4 predecessor.
But with that price hike comes worthwhile updates, including Apple's N1 wireless chip for faster Wi-Fi 7 connectivity, higher 512GB base storage and longer battery life at a whopping 15 hours and 30 minutes. Otherwise, this is the same MacBook Air we've applauded, but that's no bad thing considering its perks.
The lovely 15.3 inches (2880 x 1864) Liquid Retina display is as bright and colorful as ever, and with the extra screen space, the sharp, detailed visuals are even more appealing. And, at 13.4 x 9.5 x 0.4 inches and 3.3 pounds, it gives you more room to type comfortably on its roomy keyboard.
The star of the show is M5, flying past its M4 predecessor and even beating Intel's strong Panther Lake chips in performance. So, expect this machine to juggle multiple tasks at once, take on heavy-duty tasks, render video and even play demanding PC titles like Resident Evil 4 Remake at a rock-solid 60 FPS. Just note that it's only a nominal upgrade over the M4 model, so I wouldn't recommend rushing for an upgrade if you already own Apple's older Air. If you're after the finest 15-inch laptop around, the MacBook Air M5 15-inch should be your top choice.
Read our full MacBook Air M5 review.
The best value
It's remarkable what the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3x can achieve for $749 (or less on sale), showcasing what you can get out of a fittingly slim, well-built 15-inch laptop. If you're more of a Windows user and prefer to save your pennies, then Lenovo's notebook is tough to beat.
By no means perfect, due to its low brightness and dim colors on its otherwise detailed (and nicely sized) 15.3-inch (1920 x 1200) 60Hz IPS touch display, along with its quiet speakers. But you'll find it impresses far more in other departments.
I mean, having over 16 hours of battery life not only surpasses the MacBook Air, but it also lands it as one of the best laptops for battery life. Throw in its brilliantly sleek design with a satisfying keyboard (number pad included) and decent performance from its Snapdragon X chip, and you've got yourself a reliable 15-inch machine for work and casual use.
Don't expect to play games on this laptop, as it's more for basic everyday tasks like web browsing, replying to emails and watching shows on Netflix, but if that suits your fancy, you'll find a lot of value in Lenovo's IdeaPad Slim 3x.
Read our full Lenovo IdePad Slim 3x review.
The best 15-inch gaming laptop
Think 15-inch gaming laptops are reserved for budget options? Well, the Lenovo Legion 5i Gen 10 just proved us all wrong, because this machine boasts an absolutely stunning 15-inch WQXGA (2560 x 1600) OLED display.
We've rated it as one of the best gaming laptops for value, and you'll see why with the power it packs for $1,249/£1,151 (or less, especially when Lenovo has a sale). Along with its stunning visuals with a smooth 165Hz refresh rate, you're getting enough power to play the latest AAA games.
That's thanks to its Intel Core Ultra 7 255HX CPU paired with an Nvidia GeForce RTX 5060 GPU, along with its 16GB of DDR5 RAM and 1TB SSD (going up to 32GB and 2TB, respectively, if you're after ever greater performance). For 1080p gaming, it's a beast, but it still manages to pull off superb details at 1600p, with colors that pop and stunning HDR quality.
Throw in its reliable keyboard and tactile touchpad, and you've got yourself a winning 15-inch laptop for gaming and productivity, with the components this machine packs. It's not perfect, as its battery life is poor, and fans can get real loud when put under pressure. Regardless, the Lenovo Legion 5i Gen 10 has value written all over it.
Read our full Lenovo Legion 5i Gen 10 review.
Also tested
We test and review dozens of laptops every year, and just because they don't all make this list doesn't mean they aren't good machines.
There are loads of great laptops that don't quite achieve the level of excellence needed to be the best 15-inch laptops you can buy. Below, we've gathered all the good laptops we've tested that don't quite make this list, but are still great alternatives well worth considering if they meet your unique needs, or if you can't find your first choice on sale.
How to choose the best 15-inch laptop for you
Performance: If you only need something to get work done and watch videos on, don't bother shelling out for one of the laptops on this list with a discrete graphics card. The Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3x is plenty good enough, and if you want something nicer, you can do everything you need to on the MacBook Air.
Graphics and gaming: Most mainstream 15-inch laptops feature integrated graphics, which can handle lightweight titles such as Minecraft and Overwatch but aren't ideal for graphically-intensive games or heavy visual work. For that, you'll want a laptop with a discrete graphics card, such as the RTX 50-series graphics card you get with the Lenovo Legion 5i Gen 10.
Screen quality: More and more 15-inch laptops are shipping with high refresh rate screens or OLED display options, though you may need to pay extra to get one. If you plan to play a lot of games on your laptop, it's a good idea to get one with a high-refresh screen, like the Lenovo Legion 5i Gen 10.
But if you want something crisp and easy to see, the MacBook Air M4 actually offers a brighter screen than anything else on this list. Whichever system you decide on, you may also want to pick up the best mouse for your particular work situation.
Battery benchmarks: comparison
To better help you pick the best 15-inch laptop for your needs we run every laptop we review through a series of battery tests to see how long it lasts on a full charge.
These tests do not reflect real-world use patterns since we have to set every laptop to the same settings in order to do fair comparisons. Thus, while the times listed here are accurate and useful as a comparison point, your own experience with a laptop's battery life will likely vary.
This is because when we run our battery test we set the laptop's display to 150 nits of brightness and have it endlessly browse the web via Wi-Fi until it dies. However, when you use your laptop you're likely adjusting brightness on the fly and doing all kinds of stuff I can't account for.
So while I stand by our testing and the battery life results we compare in the chart below, I want to be clear that your own experience will vary!
Laptop | Battery life (tested) |
Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3x | 16:29 |
MacBook Air 15-inch (M5) | 15:30 |
Lenovo Legion 5i Gen 10 | 04:05 |
How we test the best 15-inch laptops
To find the best 15-inch laptop, we run every machine we review through a rigorous suite of benchmarks and real-world tests to gauge how it will perform during everyday use.
We measure the average brightness and color quality of each laptop's display using our in-house light meter and colorimeter. For general performance, we run our machines through tests that include Geekbench 6 (CPU performance), as well as various 3DMark tests to measure graphics capabilities. We also run a file transfer test to measure how fast a machine's hard drive is, and a custom battery test that has the machine browse the internet over Wi-Fi until it runs out of juice.
When testing dedicated gaming laptops, we run benchmarks for popular games such as Grand Theft Auto V, Hitman and Red Dead Redemption 2.
For more information on our testing process, check out our guide to how we test products at Tom's Guide.
