Meanwhile, the decently large trackpad is smooth and has no issue picking up your finger’s movements. The full-sized keyboard offers responsive keys that perfectly tow the line between soft and bouncy. While the Inspiron won’t win any beauty awards, the body feels rugged and does a great job of warding off fingerprints. The Dell Inspiron 3501 accepts it with grace: it’s thin, lightweight, and powerful enough to run any productivity task without issue. While this laptop currently retails for about $580 to $600 due to supply chain issues, it regularly goes on sale for $500 or less.įinding a good budget laptop that can keep pace with the premium ultrabooks is no small feat. These are the best laptops under $500 we tested, ranked in order: We’ve gone hands-on with a number of sub-$500 laptops to help you narrow down the field. But as long as you prioritize the features that matter most to you, a great laptop doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg. Maybe they aren’t as portable, or maybe they use a cheap screen that can’t get as bright as the more expensive competition. At that price, we think the Dell Inspiron 3501 ( available at Amazon) gets you the best bang for your buck.Įvery laptop under a certain price range has to cut corners somewhere. Not all budget laptops can strike that balance gracefully, but if you’re a student writing the occasional paper or someone who only needs a computer for the occasional email and Facebook message, $500 can often get you everything you need. You want something fast enough for daily tasks, without sacrificing too much in build quality and battery life. Written by Whitson Gordon and Adrien Ramirezīuying a laptop on a tight budget is tricky.

Best desktopr below $500