Top 7+ Best Laptops under $600 in 2021: Buying Guide

If you’re looking for a mid-range laptop, then the $600 price range is an excellent starting point.

At this price, you get the latest processors like Intel’s 11th generation Intel Core i5-1135G7 processor and AMD’s Ryzen 5 4500U processor for faster processing time.

Both processors are clubbed with Intel Iris Xe and AMD’s Vega 6 integrated graphics, respectively, which offer stunning gaming performance at an affordable price point.

However, there are plenty of options available; hence, we’ve listed the 7 best laptops under 600$ for everyday usage.

Top 5 Best Laptops under $600 in 2021

Image	Products	Speciality	Price
	HP 15-DY2021NR	Best HP Laptop	Check Price
	Acer Aspire 5	Best Value For Money	Check Price
	Asus Vivobook 15	Best Design	Check Price
	Lenovo Ideapad Flex 5	Best 2-in-1	Check Price
	Lenovo Ideapad 3	Best For Student	Check Price

7 Best Laptop under 600$ in 2021

1.HP 15-DY2021NR – Best HP Laptop Under 600

The HP 15-DY2021NR is a featured-packed laptop that is ideal for everyday usage. It has capable hardware that can handle everyday apps and software very easily.

For starters, this laptop comes with Intel’s latest 11th generation Intel Core i5-1135G7 processor. It is a quad-core processor that has 8 threads, with a base clock of 2.4GHz. This processor changes its characteristics during extensive tasks and power usage, and offers Turbo Boost up to 4.2GHz for extreme performance.

To further enhance graphical performance, this processor is equipped with Intel’s Iris Xe integrated graphics. Compared to Intels UHD graphics, the Iris Xe graphics offers over 300% better graphical performance. In simple terms, Intel’s Iris Xe graphics can compete head-to-head with AMD’s Vega graphics.

During regular usage, this processor consumes around 28W of power. While basic web browsing and simple tasks, the battery life power consumption drops close to 12W for improved battery life performance like in the case of the best laptop with glowing keyboard.

Design-wise, the HP 15-DY2021NR looks very sleek and modern. It comes with a 15.6-inch Full HD screen with an IPS display. This screen offers anti-glare properties and has slim bezels on the left and right sides.

This laptop is available in beautiful silver color, which HP likes to call Natural Silver. On the other hand, the screen bezels are black that offer a nice color contrast. The upward-firing stereo speakers are situated above the full-size keyboard for better sound output.

Unfortunately, the keyboard isn’t backlit, which limits its nighttime usage. However, the keys are well spaced out and offer an excellent typing and gaming experience in the best laptops under 600.

On the inside, the HP 15-DY2021NR comes with a memory of 8GB DDR4 RAM and 256GB NVMe SSD drive with options to upgrade them later.

Connectivity-wise, it comes with 2x USB 3.1 Type-A ports, 1x USB 3.1 Type-C port, HDMI port, SD card reader, audio jack, WiFi 6, and Bluetooth 5. All of these features are packed within a body that weighs just 3.75 pounds.

Bottom Line

“The HP 15-DY2021NR is a fabulous mid-range laptop from the American PC brand. It features the latest and powerful processor with extremely potent Iris Xe integrated graphics. You get a great set of connectivity features and options to further upgrade RAM and storage.”

2. Acer Aspire 5 A515 – Best Value For Money

If the absence of a backlit keyboard soured your taste for the above-mentioned HP 15-DY2021NR, then the Acer Aspire 5 A515-44-R41B is the best pick for you.

Just like the HP 15-DY2021NR, this laptop is available in silver color with black-colored screen bezels and keyboard keys. This color combination offers better contrast and gives this mid-range laptop a premium feel.

Once you open the lid, you are greeted with a 15.6-inch Full HD screen with an IPS display. This screen offers a maximum brightness of 300 nits and is sufficient for daytime indoor usage.

It also comes with a full-size backlit keyboard that forms the USP of this laptop. The keys are uniformly lit, and you won’t have any issues using the keyboard during nighttime. Having said that, each key is slightly smaller in size; thus, it might take some time to get used to longer typing sessions.

Below the keyboard, there’s a compact-size touchpad, which gets the job done efficiently. Windows precision drivers make this touchpad work like a charm.

Talking about its innards, the Acer Aspire 5 A515-44-R41B is equipped with AMD’s latest Ryzen 5 4500U processor. It is a 6-core CPU with Vega 6 integrated graphics. This processor has a base clock of 2.3GHz and a boost clock of 4GHz for a performance spurt.

Coupled with this powerful processor is an RAM 8GB DDR4 stick, with options to upgrade further. At the same time, the storage option is satisfied by a storage 256GB SSD drive.

Connectivity-wise, you get USB 3.2 Type-C and Type-A ports along with an HDMI port. However, it comes with an older WiFi 5 support, which is more than enough for a mid-range laptop.

Bottom Line

“The Acer Aspire 5 A515-44-R41B is a featured-packed laptop with options to upgrade it even further. The latest AMD Ryzen 5 4500U processor offers better performance in everyday tasks. Whereas, the inclusion of a backlit keyboard at this price point makes it a better choice for students.”

3. Asus Vivobook 15– Best Designed laptop

Asus started the whole rage of equipping sleek-looking mid-range laptops with a premium design and powerful internals with its Vivobook series. The Asus Vivobook 15 F512JA-AS54 mentioned in this list is no exception. It is probably the best-looking 15-inch laptop under $600.

On the design front, this laptop is available in a beautiful Slate Gray color with a sleek design that gives this laptop a premium feel. It is the only laptop under $600 with very slim bezels on all 4 sides and offers an 88% body-to-screen ratio. You get a Full HD 15.6-inch screen with an IPS display for better color accuracy.

The Asus Vivobook 15 F512JA-AS54 has an ergolift feature that raises the laptop base by 2° for a better typing experience and heat dissipation.

On the inside, this laptop is clubbed with Intel’s 10th generation Intel Core i5-1035G1 CPU, along with 8GB DDR4 RAM and a whopping 512GB SSD drive.

This processor is extremely power efficient, and hence you can expect better battery life from your laptop. It is a quad-core processor with 8 threads and offers 1GHz of base clock and Turbo boost up to 3.6GHz.

The Asus Vivobook 15 F512JA-AS54 is equipped with a full-size keyboard, which unfortunately isn’t backlit. Below the keyboard, you get a moderately-sized touchpad with an integrated fingerprint scanner at the top-right corner.

Connectivity-wise, you get a USB 3.2 Type-C port, USB 3.2 Type-A port, USB 2.0 port, HDMI port, and combo audio jack. In terms of wireless connectivity, you get WiFi 5 and Bluetooth 4.1.

You get fast charging capabilities with this Asus Vivobook 15 laptop. It can charge up to 60% under 49 minutes. The battery life is small, and with continuous usage, it can last between 4-6 hours.

Bottom Line

“The Asus Vivobook 15 F512JA-AS54 is a stunner-looking product in our list of best laptop under $600 with decent RAM. It has an extremely sleek design and very thin bezels on all 4-sides. Moreover, the Intel Core i5 processor is power efficient and can offer up to 6 hours of continuous usage from a smaller battery life.”

4. Lenovo Ideapad Flex 5 – Best 2-in-1 Laptop

The Lenovo Ideapad Flex 5 is the most handsomely equipped laptop on our list. Price close to $600, it comes with an AMD Ryzen 5 4500U processor that is clubbed with a whopping 16GB RAM and 256GB SSD storage.

In terms of upgradability, you can swap the 256GB NVMe SSD storage drive with a larger one. However, there’s no extra RAM slot, nor can the RAM be user replaced. Hence, it a good option that this one comes with 16GB RAM out of the box, making it a decent RAM option.

It has a smaller 14-inch form factor and is available as a 2-in-1 convertible chassis. Thus, you can use it as a regular laptop – later, you can flip the display in tent mode or tablet mode to improve its usability. Moreover, the 14-inch Full HD screen has an IPS display along with a touchscreen. Lenovo has also included its Active Pen with the package for creative purposes.

Due to its small form factor, this one weighs just 3.6 pounds and is very easy to carry around with you. The smaller form factor results in a tenkeyless keyboard that has large keys for a better typing experience. This keyboard is backlit and offers excellent nighttime usage. The touchpad is slightly bigger than what we’re used to seeing on 15-inch models. A fingerprint reader is present below the arrow keys for easy biometricaccess.

The 2x 2W stereo speakers are present on either side of the keyboard, just like the Apple Macbook Pro. For casual usage, the speakers seem pretty loud and clear. However, the speakers’ usability gets limited when you use this laptops in movie mode.

In terms of wired connectivity, it has got a 1x HDMI port, 1x USB 3.1 Type-C port, combo audio jack, 2x USB 3.0 ports, and an SD Card slot. Moreover, you also get Bluetooth 4.2 and WiFi 5 to complete the wireless connectivity options.

Talking about its design and built quality, Lenovo has taken cues from its premium 2-in-1 Yoga series, which you can see in the Flex series. The outer shell looks like metal, but it is made out of sturdy plastic. The 360° hinge features is effortless to use, and you can rotate the display full 360° in a single motion.

Talking about battery life, this one can last close to 8 hours with moderate web browsing and daily tasks with 50% brightness. However, when you switch to video editing and gaming, the battery life starts to drop faster. To tackle this battery life issue, Lenovo claims that this laptop can fast charge up to 80% in just 1 hour.

Since it comes with AMD Ryzen 5 4500U with Vega 6 graphics, gaming on this will be a breeze. While this can run casual games like a charm; however, games like GTA V, Fortnite, and Rocket League worked well with 720p resolution and Medium to High settings. You can expect over 30fps from similar types of games as well.

Bottom Line

“All in all, the Lenovo Ideapad Flex 5 is a killer laptops with mind-boggling specs compared to its price. With its 2-in-1 form factor, the capabilities are endless. Moreover, with a powerful processor you can work and game without any issues.”

5. Lenovo Ideapad 3 – Best Laptop For Students

At first look, the Lenovo Ideapad 3 looks premium due to its brushed metal finish on the top lid and the key board area. It is available in the Abyss Blue color, making the laptops stand out from a plethora of laptops features available in the market.

Design-wise, it is very basic and retains the aesthetics that we’re used to with the Lenovo laptops. Once you open the lid, you are greeted with a display 15.6 Full HD screen. The screen has close to 300 nits of brightness, which is acceptable for daytime indoor usage; however, the absence of an IPS display affects the legibility.

On the inside, the Lenovo Ideapad 3 is equipped with AMD’s latest Ryzen 5 4500U cpu processor. This processor comes with integrated Vega 6 graphics that offers pretty good gaming performance from an integrated graphics setup.

Coupled with this processor is an RAM 8GB DDR4 and a 1TB hard disk storage drive. While most laptops at this point come with an SSD drive; however, an HDD drive offers bigger storage if that concerns you like hp pavilion x360.

Moreover, the Lenovo Ideapad 3 also comes with an NVMe SSD slot. You can use this slot to install a faster performing NVMe SSD drive and transfer the pre-installed Windows 10 OS for overall superior performance.

If you’re a writer or do plenty of writing throughout the day, you’ll love the full-size key board on this laptop. The key board has big-sized keys and is spaced appropriately for longer typing sessions. Plus, the touchpad below is of moderate size and works well for daily use and web browsing.

Regarding the connectivity, it misses out on a USB-C port; however, you get a 2x USB 3.0 port, 1x USB 2.0 port, HDMI 1.4 port, combo audio jack, and an SD card reader. Moreover, you get WiFi 5 and Bluetooth 4.1 wireless capabilities.

Bottom Line

“The Lenovo Ideapad 3 comes with a powerful CPU coupled with a mighty Vega 6 integrated graphics. Moreover, if you’re looking for a premium design and sturdy keyboard, then this is the laptop for you.”

6. HP 15-EF0022NR – Best Gaming Laptop

Design-wise, the HP 150EF0022NR is very similar to the previously mentioned HP 15-DY2021NR, although with a different processor.

This comes with AMD Ryzen 7 3700U cpu processor. It is the top-of-the-line processor from AMD’s 3^rd generation Ryzen stable and offers an excellent price to performance ratio.

For starters, it a quad-core cpu processor that has 8 processing threads. This processor has a base clock of 2.3GHz and a boost clock of 4.0GHz to squeeze maximum performance from this processor like hp pavilion x360.

Moreover, this one comes with AMD’s Vega 10 integrated graphics. The Vega 10 graphics offer a dedicated graphics card-like performance. Thus, you can play modern games like GTA V, Valorant, Fifa 21, Forza Horizon 4, and Battlefield V. You can expect the above games to offer 30+ FPS display 15.6 inch with 720p or 1080p resolution and Medium to High settings.

Along with a powerful processor, you get 8GB DDR4 RAM and 256GB NVMe SSD storage drive in hp pavilion. Plus, you also get options to upgrade the RAM and SSD drive storage even further.

On the connectivity front, this comes with a 2x USB 3.0 Type-A port, 1x USB 3.0 Type-C port, HDMI 1.4 port, combo audio port, and an SD card reader. The hp pavilion 15-EF0022NR comes in a beautiful natural silver color with brushed metal finish around the key board area.

In terms of portability, this has a smaller form factor with a display 15.6 inch, and hence it weighs around 3.75 pounds. However, the most significant disadvantage here is the HD display. It misses on a Full HD display and comes with a 1366 x 768 resolution display.

Bottom Line

“If you require a casual gaming laptops with the dressing of a business laptop, then the HP pavilion 15-EF0022NR is a perfect pick. It comes with a powerful processor and a potent Vega 10 integrated graphics for a dedicated graphic card-like performance.”

7. Acer Aspire 3 – Best Acer Laptop

The Acer Aspire 3 is the entry-level version of the Acer’s Aspire series. Even though it sits at an entry-level point, this has a great configuration for the money you spend.

For starters, the Acer Aspire 3 comes with a process Intel Core i5 1035G1, a power-efficient CPU from 10th gen intel core i5 lineup (intel core i5 1035g1). Although, it’s a quad-core processor with 8 threads and offers Turbo boost up to 3.6GHz for maximum performance from intel core i5 1035g1 and integrated intel uhd graphics gpu like hp pavilion x360.

Acer has coupled this processor with an 8GB DDR4 RAM and a 256GB NVMe SSD storage drive. This features an empty 2.5-inch SATA drive. Thus, to improve the storage option further, you can add either a 2.5-inch SSD or HDD drive to take some load off the pre-installed 256GB NVMe storage drive.

Design-wise, the Acer Aspire 3 seems like a watered-down version of the previously mentioned Acer Aspire 5. It is available in a Steel Gray color that looks slightly less premium than the Acer Aspire 5.

The Acer Aspire 3 is bundled with a display 15.6-inch Full HD but misses on an IPS display. Thus, the colors on this don’t look vibrant as the IPS display equipped Acer Aspire 5. The screen is attached to the body with the help of two individual hinges. While it’s no comparison to the longer hinge on the Acer Aspire 5; however, it gets the job done.

On the connectivity front, laptops comes with a 1x USB 3.1 Type-A port, 2x USB 2.0, 1x HDMI port, 1x combo audio jack, and Ethernet port. In terms of wireless connectivity, this laptop has WiFi 5 and Bluetooth 4.2.

For the range this sits at, it misses out on a backlit keyboard. However, the keyboard offers numeric keys and is a pleasure to type on. The moderate-size touchpad gets the job done efficiently due to the inclusion of Windows Precision drivers.

Acer suggests these laptops can put out 8 hours of battery life with its 2-cell battery; however, the real-day battery life output is around 3-4 hours. Moreover, weighing 4.6 pounds, the Acer Aspire 3 is slightly heavier than its competition.

Bottom Line

“The Acer Aspire 3 is the entry-level model in the Acer’s Aspire lineup. For a lower price, you get a great set of internals; however, it misses out on creature comforts like IPS display, lightweight body, and longer battery life.”

Things to Consider While Buying Best Laptop under $600

1. Processor

At $600, laptops manufacturers can’t add a dedicated graphics card. Hence the processor has to do both jobs of central processing and graphical processing.

To compete with AMD’s integrated graphics dominance, the latest Intel’s 11th generation processors now come with powerful Iris Xe integrated graphics.

Intel’s Iris Xe offers head-to-head graphical performance with AMD’s Vega integrated graphics. Hence, you can now choose an Intel-based best laptops under 600 to play modern games with respectable frame rates.

2. Backlit Keyboard

Finding a backlit keyboard under $600 is undoubtedly a luxury. As a testament to this statement, only two laptops in our list come with backlit keyboards. Backlit keyboards are a costly affair for laptops manufacturer to include in a budget or mid-range laptop. Hence, most manufacturers tend to skip it to offer a better spec’d product.

If you’re a student or work late into the night – you’ll understand the importance of a backlit keyboard. While you don’t get the extravagance of adjusting the backlighting brightness; however, getting one is still a luxury with good battery life.

3. Expandable RAM and Storage Options

At $600, most laptops under 600 dollars come with 8GB RAM and 256GB NVMe SSD storage drive. At first sight, it seems ideal for everyday usage. However, over time both the RAM and SSD will get overloaded. Most 15-inch best laptops under 600 come with extra slots to add additional RAM and storage.

It comes with a 2.5-inch SATA slot to add an SSD or HDD, whereas an NVMe SSD slot that comes with a pre-installed SSD.

4. Fingerprint Scanner

Just like the backlit keyboard, a fingerprint scanner is again a luxury on a sub-$600 laptop. However, a fingerprint scanner offers easy access if there’s confidential information on your laptop.

With the inclusion of Windows Hello, you can easily log into your laptops with face recognition via the webcam or biometric scan via the fingerprint sensor. The face recognition won’t work if you’re working in a dark or dimly lit environment. In such a scenario, the fingerprint scanner comes to our rescue.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best ‘integrated graphics’? Intel Iris Xe or AMD Vega?

The popular processor in a best laptops under 600$ is the AMD Ryzen 5 4500U, which comes with Vega 6 integrated graphics. Vega graphics are available in Vega 3, Vega 6, Vega 8, and Vega 10 series with incremental performance. In contrast, Intel Iris Xe’s graphical performance is standard across the range.

Hence, compared to Vega 6 integrated graphics, the Intel Iris Xe graphics offer powerful performance.

What games can I play on Intel Iris Xe or AMD Vega graphics?

While the gaming performance isn’t comparable to the best laptops under 600 with a dedicated graphics card; however, you can play most modern games with the help of Iris Xe or Vega 6 graphics.

At 720p resolution with Medium to High settings, you can play games like GTA V, Fortnite, Rocket League, Forza Horizon 4, and Fifa 21. With the above settings, you can get over 30+ FPS and playable frame rates.

Conclusion

As seen above, there are a variety of mid-range options available under the $600 range. You get great laptops under 600 dollars from brands like Lenovo, HP, and Asus at this price point.

If you want a no-fuss best laptops under 600, then the top 2 laptops on our list are the ideal choice. However, if you want a smaller form factor with great specs, then the Lenovo Ideapad Flex 5 is an excellent pick.

Moreover, laptops containing Intel i5-1135G7 CPU and AMD Ryzen 5 4500U CPU offer superior gaming performance at an affordable bracket.

Thus, getting one with either of these processors will be a perfect choice.