Here at WIRED, we test many laptops. We know how hard it is to find a good deal there. To help us out, we’ve scoured the web for the best laptop deals available. Be sure to check out our Best Laptops, Best Gaming Laptops, and Best Cheap Laptops guides for more of our top recommendations.
Updated July 2022: We’ve added new devices from Dell, Asus and Razer.
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The best budget laptop deals
Budget laptops come in many forms, from budget Chromebooks to entry-level, kid-friendly Windows laptops, all for $700 or less. You can find more of our favorite cheap laptops here.
In our guide to the best Chromebooks, this Asus machine leads the way, and it gets even better with this discount. It’s a well-balanced laptop with plenty of battery life, a nice display, and solid performance. The 360º hinge also makes it friendly for watching movies and videos.
When it comes to cheap laptops, Acer is one of the most prolific brands. The Aspire 5 is an upgraded, but slightly more expensive, version of one of our favorites, the Aspire 3. This model offers an excellent 11th Gen Intel Core i5 and 8GB of RAM for under $400 . A 256GB SSD isn’t a lot of storage, but it should be enough unless you’re a file hoarder. (If you are, you can always pair it with an external SSD.)
The best gaming laptop deals
Gaming laptops are generally not cheap, so it’s always good to buy them on sale. Below are some powerful and value machines.
The Nitro 5 range is one of our favorite budget gaming laptops, and while this isn’t the latest model, it’s still one of the cheapest ways to get into high-fps gaming, currently at nearly $100 of discount Along with a 10th Gen Intel CPU, you get 8GB of RAM, a 15.6-inch 144Hz display, and an Nvidia RTX 3050 GPU.
If you’re looking for an entry-level gaming laptop, a machine with an Nvidia RTX 3050 GPU is what you want. For under $700, you still get a 144Hz panel, an 11th Gen Intel Core i5 CPU, 8GB of RAM, and a 256GB SSD. It’s a combination to facilitate basic gaming needs, and MSI is a usually reliable brand that will get the job done.
The best laptop deals
You may have come here looking for a bargain, but these are decent deals on some fancier machines.
This is a significant discount on a newly released machine, although only Costco subscribers can take advantage of the offer. It’s so new that we haven’t tested this model yet, but its predecessors have offered a remarkable combination of a large screen and feather-like weight. The Gram doesn’t use the most luxurious build materials, but its unique portability for such a large device, as well as good specs including a 12th Gen Intel Core i7, make it worth considering.
The new Galaxy Book 2 range has just landed, but the previous iterations are still excellent, especially with these new discounted prices. The regular Galaxy Book Pro model offers an AMOLED display (beautiful colors and deep blacks), 11th generation Intel Core i5 CPU and 8GB of RAM in a sleek and well-built design.
The best deals on laptop accessories
Working on the couch is all well and good, but there’s plenty of room to make your desk setup more comfortable and just plain better. Here are some top accessory deals, from monitors for a second screen to a quality webcam for Zoom meetings.
Razer’s Viper Ultimate is our favorite wireless gaming mouse that comes with a dock, making it extremely easy to charge when it’s time to recharge. In addition to this level of comfort, this mouse is very responsive, with an optical sensor of 20,000 dots per inch, eight programmable buttons and 70 hours of battery life.
Gaming monitors with high refresh rates used to be prohibitively expensive, especially at enhanced 1440p resolutions. Fortunately, they have started to come down in price over the last couple of years. We usually like Asus’ TUF gaming brand, and this monitor gives you a fast 144Hz refresh rate, 1440p resolution, 1ms response time and FreeSync Premium, making it ideal for anyone with an AMD graphics card. At 32 inches, it’s a good size for a bedroom desk setup.
How to buy a refurbished laptop
Buying refurbished devices is relatively simple, with retailers and manufacturers offering refurbished devices at attractive prices. Stores like Amazon, Best Buy, Newegg, and Walmart sell these laptops. Brands like Apple, Dell and Lenovo also sell refurbished models in their own stores.
The key is to find out what “refurbished” means on each of these websites, so you know exactly what you’re getting. First, refurbished can often mean that a device that has been tested is still in good working order or restored to meet certain standards, along with a new warranty.
For example, this is an excerpt from Best Buy’s refurbished laptop policy: “A refurbished item has been inspected, repaired and restored to like-new, clean and working condition and includes all parts and accessories. In generally, these are electronics that have been returned for some reason… Since they have gone through a careful inspection process to ensure they work like new, the best refurbished laptop is less likely to has defects or issues than one that came from the factory… Most refurbished items are covered by Best Buy’s return and exchange promise and have a minimum 90-day warranty.
Policies differ between retailers, so it’s worth checking whether there’s a thorough testing process and whether these devices are refurbished to a ‘as new’ standard (and whether they come with a new warranty). It’s also worth checking your state or country’s refund and return policies to see what recourse you may have if you have issues outside of warranty.