Tech specs are usually overrated when choosing a PC, but not when it comes to gaming systems. Buying a cheap gaming laptop is definitely a case where you need to get the best value value for money for as little money as possible without sacrificing your gaming experience. This is a delicate balance, however, as doubling your RAM or getting a better graphics card will impact your budget.
The closer you get to the $1,000 price point, you'll likely get more than just that gaming laptop Specs: Maybe a newer processor, 16GB of RAM, or a 512GB SSD. However, if you're watching every dollar, you'll have to settle for these minimum specs.
Two other important considerations are weight and battery life, neither of which are a gaming laptop's specialty. The laptops on this list fall on either side of the 5 pound mark, but if you plan to take it with you, a lighter system might be more important to you. You shouldn't expect miracles when it comes to battery life either, as more powerful components pushed to the max by PC games will reduce the load. However, while staying unplugged for as long as possible is crucial, it's worth giving serious thought to the Asus TUF A15's impressive 12-hour battery.
Buy this budget-friendly gaming laptop… |
If you need… |
Asus TUF A15 |
A complete, budget-friendly gaming laptop. The Asus TUF A15 has an impressive 12 hours of battery life and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 Ti graphics card. |
MSI Katana 15 |
A budget-friendly gaming laptop for content creators. With a 144Hz refresh rate and an RTX 4050 graphics card, you'll be able to stream, record, and create digital art for your Twitch or YouTube channel. |
Acer Nitro5 |
A budget-friendly, beginner-friendly gaming laptop. Priced just under $800, the Acer Nitro 5 is a great choice for PC gaming newcomers who don't want to spend a fortune on a decent rig. |
MSI Bravo15 |
A budget-friendly, AMD-based gaming laptop. The MSI Bravo 15 is built with an AMD Ryzen 7 5800H processor and an AMD Radeon RX 6500M graphics card. |
Lenovo Legion Pro 5i generation 8 |
A budget-friendly, Intel-based gaming laptop. The Lenovo Legion Pro 5i Gen 8 can be configured with a 13th Gen Intel Core i7 processor and an RTX 4070 graphics card. |