7+ Best Laptops Under $300 in 2021 [+Buying Guide]

by CT | Last Updated: April 19, 2021

The best cheap laptops provide solid performance, long-lasting battery life, and a lightweight design all at an affordable price. If you’re looking for sub $300 options, we’ve compiled the list of the top performers to help make your decision easier.

Being on a tight budget can make the process of finding a great laptop a lot trickier.

However, we hope to help you gain a better understanding of the features these budget laptops have to offer and how to go about choosing the one that’s right for you.

Best Laptop Under 300 Dollars

1. Acer Chromebook Spin 311

The Acer Chromebook Spin 311, is an excellent option for anyone looking for a budget-friendly laptop with great features.

This 11.6″ convertible laptop offers a 360° hinge (hence the name) and two touchscreens: one in front of the keyboard and another on top of it.

With its 4GB memory, 16GB SSD storage capacity and Intel Celeron N3350 processor, it has more than enough processing power to do basic tasks like browsing social media or watching videos online.

The Acer Chromebook Spin 311 comes at an affordable price that can’t be beat.

2. Asus VivoBook L203MA

A powerful laptop with a Chromebook price

The Asus VivoBook L203MA offers a great laptop for the price. It comes with an Intel Celeron N4000, which is good enough to run most of basic programs without any lag time or slowing down during use.

This laptop weighs in at just 2.2 lbs and can last up to 10 hours on a single battery charge. It has a decent resolution of 1366 x 768 which is enough for most basic tasks.

This laptop also comes with an SD card reader, HDMI output port and USB ports – all great features to have in your new computer!

3. Lenovo Ideapad 330

“Display too good for the price”

Lenovo’s Ideapad 330 has been constructed with a lightweight design at just 4.8 lbs which makes it effortless to carry around with you. Although if you want something super lightweight, a Chromebook would be your best option.

The design is also durable to make sure that it can stand the test of time. With a 15” LED display, you’re able to watch videos in HD.

The Ideapad 330 comes with range of ports including Ethernet, 3 USB slots, and HDMI ports. An optical hard drive has been included which you can use to insert DVDs and CDs with.

With an Intel Pentium N5000 quad-core and 4GB of RAM, you’re able to multitask pretty well with this laptop. Overall, this laptop is awesome for both work and play.

4. Lenovo Flex 11

“The portable option”

The Flex 11 is another excellent budget laptop by Lenovo that has been made with high-quality plastic materials that provide it with a premium aesthetic. We liked how it has a 2-in-1 design that lets you use it as a regular laptop, as well as a tablet.

You can simply flip the laptop screen to use the touchscreen features more easily. While the touchscreen may lack some of the bright bold colors that the more expensive laptops have to offer, it’s actually very responsive. Therefore, you can use the touchscreen features and the keyboard seamlessly.

If you type a lot, you may be glad to hear that the keyboard has been made with an ergonomic design to make sure that you can be comfortable. The laptop is also powered by an Intel Pentium N5000 processor.

This works in combination with 4GB of RAM to let you work and play some light games. With a battery life of 6 hours, you’re able to use this laptop to get work done and stay entertained while on the go.

5. Dell Inspiron 3000

“Doesn’t heat up much”

The Dell Inspiron comes with an LED backlit display measuring in at 15.6 inches, where most budget laptops have smaller screens.

While it’s not 1080p HD, it still provides you with a good resolution of 1366 x 768.

There are plenty of ports to let you connect a range of devices without any hassle. You can even take advantage of the optical drive to burn DVDs and CDs with. The 4GB of RAM and Intel Pentium N500 processor enables you to get a lot of work done on a daily basis without the laptop feeling too sluggish.

The Inspiron 3000 comes with quad core processor and an Intel HD Graphics card.

6. Lenovo Chromebook C330

“Our touchscreen option”

This Chromebook by Lenovo has an HD display that’s 11” in size and can convert into a tablet as well.

You can feel confident in using it for play as well as in professional environments. The keyboard feels comfortable to use and the touchpad is large, which makes it a lot easier to use. You’re able to use the 3 USB ports, HDMI port, and SD card slot. The C330 also comes with a MediaTek quad-core processor, along with 4GB of RAM.

7. Asus Chromebook C202

“Our Waterproof option”

On top of being a great Chromebook, this Asus Chromebook C202SA is touted as being water resistant as well. So if you have younger kids, are clumsy and spill a lot (like me!), or live in rainy Seattle and travel to work a lot, this might be the option for you.

In addition to this, this Chromebook comes with an Intel Celeron processor and 4GB of RAM.

The battery life is highly reveled as being so good that you don’t need to bring a charger with you anymore. The screen has great readibility in the sunlight too, so if you’re working on the train, or are often outside in bright lights, this Chromebook will suit you well.

8. Acer Chromebook 14

“Our Chromse OS option”

The Acer Chromebook 14 has a 14” display that is 1920 x 1080 HD resolution which is almost unheard of when it comes to Chromebooks.

The laptop comes with 32GB of storage is available internally and a 100GB Google Drive storage system is included as well.

The battery life can clocks in around an impressive 12 hours, which is great for those working on the go or traveling.

Buying Guide for Gaming Laptops Under $300

Factors to Consider Before Purchasing a Gaming Laptop

After reading through our review of the best laptops under $300, you’ll be able to have a better understanding of the kinds of features that they have to offer. Therefore, you’ll be able to make the best decision possible.

Having said that, there are a lot of aspects that should be taken into consideration when it comes to selecting a laptop under $300. The sections below cover all the details that you need to know.

Display

Many laptops under $300 will have a display that is HD, but not quite 1080p. Most people don’t need to have laptop screens that can support full HD or 4K. But, if that’s a feature that’s important to you, it may be a struggle finding a budget laptop that has a higher screen quality.

Processors

Processors (AKA CPUs) are what provide the laptop with its speed. This is one of the main components of a laptop that you want to look out for.

The most common CPUs among $300 laptops are Intel Celeron processors. They can still enable you to use the laptop and multitask, but it won’t be quite as speedy as i5 or i7 processors.

Operating Systems

The operating systems that come with these laptops will vary between Chrome OS and Windows. When it comes to the Chromebooks that we’ve reviewed, naturally they will use the Chrome OS system.

This is great if you’re only looking to surf the web, however Chromebooks don’t allow you to use all of the normal functions of a typical laptop.

So, if you do a lot of your work online, Chromebooks could be an excellent choice. This is especially since wifi responds faster too. If you’re looking for a $300 or under laptop that lets you use different programs on and offline, a Windows operating system could be the better option. This is because Chromebooks have adopted a 100% cloud-based system.

So, you’re not able to download software, such as Microsoft Office. You can just use Microsoft Office online. However, if you’d prefer to install software to have offline documents, a laptop with Windows may suit you more.

The other popular operating system that’s available in Mac OS X. However, Apple’s laptops are not within the $300 price range.

Conclusion

While there are many great laptops that we’ve reviewed, our overall top pick is the Asus VivoBook L203MA. It has been made with high-quality aluminum materials in grey that looks great in professional and casual environments.

The screen is HD and shows your colors vividly. It’s also smaller at 11” which makes the laptop effortless to carry around with you. With an ergonomic keyboard, large touchpad, and 4GB of RAM, you have everything you need to get work done and relax with entertainment.

CT loves marketing, entrepreneurship, and learning about the latest tech. She blogs about laptops has always been a nerd at heart from the young age of 8 when she got her first computer. She now owns multiple machines and spend 10-15 hours a day on them learning about tech and working from home.