Is 13.3 laptop big enough?

You might think that the best 13-inch laptops available right now only excel when it comes to portability. And, while they are typically the easiest devices to take on the road outside of a tablet, they come equipped with much more power than their small size lets on.

In fact, some of these 13-inch laptops are almost as powerful as their larger 15-inch and 17-inch siblings. Youll find, for instance, plenty of fantastic examples of smaller sized notebooks on our best laptops list that are more than capable of getting you through intensive tasks like video editing, despite their diminutive size.

Look no further than the MacBook Air [M1, 2020] for an example of that outsized performance in a portable package. Its thin and light but has no issue tackling light gaming and photo editing, making it a great choice for college students and professionals who need something thats as robust as it is lightweight. Its our top student laptop for a reason.

There are a lot of 13-inch portables out there. So, to help you find the right one, weve collected our top picks here. Dont forget to take a look at our included price comparison tool to find the best cheap laptop deals right now.

Apple finally out their much-talked about M1 silicon chip thats so far been a real game-changer. And, the first laptop to receive it is the companys thinnest and lightest, putting it on the list of the most exciting Apple laptops of recent years. With this new chip, the MacBook Air is better than ever, touting excellent performance alongside its brilliant battery life without raising the price to keep it [fairly] affordable still. Its not going to be the cheapest option for students, but for those who have a slightly bigger budget, this is the best student laptop to get.

Read the full review: MacBook Air [M1, 2020]

The second-generation HP Elite Dragonfly ups the ante in the best 13-inch laptops game. HPs impressive business laptop is back with its smart design, great battery life, and 2-in-1 prowess. Of course, its more powerful now than its ever been, touting 11th-gen Intel Core chips, Intel Iris Xe graphics, and now a 4K display, upgrading from its previous Full HD models. Theres a lot to love here, and it might just be as close to being the perfect business laptop as any manufacturer can get. If you can afford it. However, as it is meant for professionals, its definitely worth the investment.

Read the full review: HP Elite Dragonfly G2

While Apple blew us away with the new MacBook Air [above], arch rival Microsoft has also impressed us with its new Surface Laptop 4. As with previous Surface devices, build quality and design is absolutely top-notch here, and its gorgeous PixelSense touchscreen really sets it apart from the competition [a touchscreen is something we've yet to see on an Apple laptop, as Microsoft likes to remind us]. It also comes with a brilliant keyboard that's a joy to type on, and some pretty great specs as well, which ensures that Windows 10, and all your favorite apps, run extremely well. Battery life is also very impressive lasting over 13 hours in our tests and the price is impressively competitive as well.

Read the full review: Microsoft Surface Laptop 4

If the Asus ZenBook 13s striking OLED display, with its bright, rich colors, doesnt make a convert out of you, then maybe its incredibly long battery life will. This 13-inch notebook has a lot going for it. Its powerful enough to handle most of your day-to-day tasks, even if the graphical performance is somewhat underwhelming, particularly when compared to Intels Iris Xe. Theres, surprisingly, also no headphone jack or Thunderbolt 4 support. But, if you can live with those shortcomings, this diminutive portable is a multi-tasking champ that will get you through a whole days worth of work on a single charge.

Read the full review: Asus ZenBook 13

The Samsung Galaxy Book Pro may not be reinventing the wheel but thats okay. Its a great, if somewhat unexciting, 13-inch portable that rivals the MacBook in a lot of ways. Its not only very light and provides great day-to-day performance, but has the kind of battery life most other laptops aspire to, making this the ideal kind of laptop to take on the road. On top of that, its a fully featured machine that integrates well with Samsung devices, such as the companys smartphones for an Apple-like ecosystem.

Read the full review: Samsung Galaxy Book Pro

The flagship HP Spectre x360 [2021] is the newest in the flagship product line and continues the tradition of pairing elegance and premium design with the newest in specs for a 2-in-1 laptop thats as much substance as it is style. This gorgeous Windows laptop comes with the new 11th-gen Intel CPU and enough battery life to get you through a long day at work. While it does come with a price tag to match and its 2-in-1 factor can be bulky for those making use of its tablet mode, not to mention that it can get loud, its a stunning laptop with excellent performance.

Read the full review: HP Spectre x360 [2021]

If youve long been admiring Googles premium Chromebook but the price is holding you back, then you might want to consider the new Google Pixelbook Go instead. Freshly-baked by Google, this alternative to the manufacturers pricey Pixelbook boasts many of its high-quality features, but without that steep price tag namely, an incredible battery life and that coveted keyboard. If your computing use is limited to sending and responding to emails, creating documents and excel sheets on Google Docs and Sheets, and streaming movies and videos after work, then this ones a winner.

Read the full review: Google Pixelbook Go

The MacBook Pro 13-inch [M1, 2020] may not have gotten a massive design overhaul, but what it lacks in that department, it makes up for big time in performance and battery life. Thanks to Apples groundbreaking M1 chip, the new MacBook Pro 13-inch delivers excellent performance and exceptional battery life. Its performance is so impressive, in fact, that it can easily handle 4K - and even 8K - videos. If youre looking for a powerful laptop that keeps things small and lightweight, this is the best 13-inch laptop money can buy.

Read the full review: MacBook Pro 13-inch [M1, 2020]

At this point, we doubt that the Dell XPS line can do anything wrong. Its yearly updates have consistently made it to our best laptops list, and theyre only getting better. The Dell XPS 13 [2020] is not only a gorgeous piece of kit. It also comes, as expected, with excellent performance, a stunning display and long battery life, alongside a few others. Much like its predecessor, its a pricey investment but that is barely reason enough for us to discourage Ultrabook fans. This is among the best 13-inch laptops, and its worth every penny.

Read the full review: Dell XPS 13 [2020]

With the Lenovo Yoga C940, the company continues with its tradition of making elegant and stunning Ultrabooks. And, don't be thrown off by its looks, there's plenty of power hiding inside. With a comfortable keyboard, stylus, TrueBlock Privacy Shutter and rotating soundbar, it's quite a feature rich machine as well. It's not perfect - that soundbar is a work in progress and the battery life could be better - but it's a great portable that can stand up to the competition.

Read the full review: Lenovo Yoga C940

• Want more choices? Check out our list of the best laptop 2022