Tech keeps getting more expensive. Thats why these 4 cheap laptops are so special.

two colors of the macbook neo

If you prefer Windows, the 2025 Acer Aspire 16 AI is pretty easy to recommend. It has an impressive battery life, a backlit keyboard, a good mix of ports, and a healthy amount of RAM. It’s the fastest sub-$900 laptop for multi-core tasks like video editing (by a hair).

For those who can spend a little more, last year’s ultraportable Asus Zenbook A14 is my favorite laptop under $1,000. Conversely, if you’re trying to spend less than $500, go with the Acer Chromebook Plus 516.

What’s new

I revisited this guide in May 2026 to verify our top picks’ pricing and availability, which remain stable.

What’s on deck

Acer announced a new cheap laptop called the Swift Air 14 at Computex 2026, a tech trade show in Taiwan. It has an all-metal build and starts at just $699 with Intel’s new Core Series 3 processors, 8GB of RAM, 512GB of storage, and a 120Hz display, making it a very strong MacBook Neo competitor. It’s set for release this August.

Click here to read more >> https://mashable.com/tech/best-cheap-laptops-2026-reviewed