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Four chromebooks pictured from above Credit: Reviewed.com / Jackson Ruckar

The best chromebooks of 2023

Recommendations are independently chosen by Reviewed's editors. Purchases made through the links below may earn us and our publishing partners a commission. Prices were accurate at the time this article was published but may change over time.

Four chromebooks pictured from above Credit: Reviewed.com / Jackson Ruckar

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Editor's Choice Product image of Acer Chromebook 516 GE (2022)
Best Overall

Acer Chromebook 516 GE (2022)

The Acer Chromebook 516 GE is a gaming-focused device that has more to offer than a standard Chromebook, like a high refresh rate display. Read More

Pros

  • Fantastic performance
  • 120Hz display makes everything smoother
  • Plenty connectivity options

Cons

  • No Thunderbolt 4 connectivity
  • Speakers don’t sound great
2
Editor's Choice Product image of Samsung Galaxy Chromebook 2 (2020)
Best Value

Samsung Galaxy Chromebook 2 (2020)

The Samsung Galaxy Chromebook 2 is great for students, writers, and anyone else who saves their documents in the cloud. Read More

Pros

  • QLED display
  • Wi-Fi 6 compatible
  • 2-in-1

Cons

  • Touchy trackpad
  • Battery life
3
Product image of Acer Chromebook Vero 514 (2022)

Acer Chromebook Vero 514 (2022)

Acer's Chromebook Vero 514 features a unique, durable design made with recycled materials. Its processor delivers strong performance for everyday tasks. Read More

Pros

  • Eco-friendly, durable, practical design
  • Good processor performance
  • Responsive touchpad and keyboard

Cons

  • CPU runs fairly hot
  • Average display quality
  • Average battery life
4
Editor's Choice Product image of Lenovo IdeaPad 5 Gaming Chromebook (2022)

Lenovo IdeaPad 5 Gaming Chromebook (2022)

The Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming Chromebook is ideal for most productivity and web-based tasks, and cloud gaming. However, it’s still a standard Chromebook. Read More

Pros

  • Excellent 120Hz display
  • Snappy processor
  • Lots of useful ports

Cons

  • Middling graphics performance
  • Limited native game compatibility
5
Product image of Framework Chromebook

Framework Chromebook

Read More

Pros

  • Fully repairable
  • Great 100% sRGB screen
  • Fast processor

Cons

  • Middling battery life
  • High initial cost

The best Chromebooks are simpler alternatives to traditional laptops for people who don’t need high-powered computing. They’re meant for light usage and feature long battery life.

Our top pick is the Acer Chromebook 516 GE (available at Amazon) . Not only is it powerful and well-built, but it was designed specifically for cloud gaming. If that’s not your jam, there are plenty of other options from traditional clamshell bodies to versatile 2-in-1s.

An open and powered on laptop showing a scene from a video game
Credit: Reviewed / Kris Wouk
Best Overall
Acer Chromebook 516 GE (2022)
  • Processor: Intel Core i5-1240P
  • Graphics: Intel Iris Xe Graphics
  • Memory: 8GB LPDDR4X
  • Storage: 256GB SSD
  • Display: 16-inch, 2560 x 1600, 120Hz LED
  • Battery life: 7+ hours

The Acer Chromebook 516 GE isn’t the most powerful laptop ever built, but it’s solidly constructed, reasonably priced, and pretty buff for a Chromebook. You don’t have to love gaming to appreciate what this machine offers.

Of course, if gaming is your priority, you do get anti-ghosting and an RGB backlit keyboard, as well as a 120Hz refresh rate that’s almost unheard of for a Chromebook. Honestly, if you don’t mind the web-only limitations, this is a great way to get more features than some of Acer’s best Windows productivity laptops for similar or less money.

Naturally, any device can deliver cloud gaming. Having a stable Internet connection is more important than a specific machine. The good news is that in addition to being one of the fastest Chromebooks we’ve ever tested, it boasts WiFi 6E and an Ethernet port for when you absolutely need rock-solid Internet connectivity.

Read our full Acer Chromebook 516 GE review.

Pros

  • Fantastic performance

  • 120Hz display makes everything smoother

  • Plenty connectivity options

Cons

  • No Thunderbolt 4 connectivity

  • Speakers don’t sound great

Credit: Samsung
Best Value
Samsung Galaxy Chromebook 2 (2020)
  • Processor: Intel Core i3-10110U
  • Graphics: Intergrated
  • Memory: 8GB
  • Storage: 128GB SSD
  • Display: 13.3-inch, 1920 x 1080, QLED touchscreen
  • Battery life: 6.5+ hours

The fiery red 2-in-1 Samsung Galaxy Chromebook 2 is a great Chromebook for people already invested in Samsung’s ecosystem. It’s not the speediest machine, but it has enough oomph to run multiple apps at once. You can even load up the Chrome browser with a bunch of tabs (just don’t overdo it).

The Galaxy Chromebook 2 has a bright, vibrant 1080p QLED display, topping out at 440 nits. Shows like Life in Color and video games like Cyberpunk 2077 look gorgeous on this screen.

This Chromebook is advertised with up to 13 hours of battery life, but it falls well short of that. In our standard battery test, we measured only 6.5 hours of battery life with moderate web-browsing usage.

The trackpad isn’t the most responsive, though we eventually reached a compromise with it. The shallow keyboard makes for quieter keystrokes, but a less satisfying press. However, the touch screen is super responsive.

Pros

  • QLED display

  • Wi-Fi 6 compatible

  • 2-in-1

Cons

  • Touchy trackpad

  • Battery life

Product image of Acer Chromebook Vero 514 (2022)
Acer Chromebook Vero 514 (2022)
  • Processor: Intel Core i5-1235U
  • Graphics: Intel Iris Xe (integrated)
  • Memory: 8GB LPDDR4X
  • Storage: 256GB SSD
  • Display: 14-inch, 1920 x 1080, IPS, LED-backlit, optional touchscreen
  • Battery life: About 10 hours

Acer Chromebook Vero 514 is part of Acer’s Vero line of sustainable devices, which are made from recycled materials and you can repair yourself. It’s the most eco-conscious choice on this list, and the spotted plastic chassis actually looks super cool in person. Acer even included subtle nods to its eco-friendly mission in the design: yellow E and R keys.

Its hardware configuration hits a sweet spot between price and performance, but if it’s power you’re after you’ll be better served by our overall best pick or the Lenovo IdeaPad 5 Gaming Chromebook (our next pick right below this one). It might be cheaper, too, depending if there is a sale.

Read our full Acer Chromebook Vero 514 review.

Pros

  • Eco-friendly, durable, practical design

  • Good processor performance

  • Responsive touchpad and keyboard

Cons

  • CPU runs fairly hot

  • Average display quality

  • Average battery life

Product image of Lenovo IdeaPad 5 Gaming Chromebook (2022)
Lenovo IdeaPad 5 Gaming Chromebook (2022)
  • Processor: Intel Core i5-1235U
  • Graphics: Intel Iris Xe (Integrated)
  • Memory: 8GB DDR4
  • Storage: 256GB SSD
  • Display: 16-inch 2560 x 1600p 120Hz IPS
  • Battery life: 12+ hours

Like our top pick, Lenovo’s IdeaPad 5 Gaming Chromebook is uniquely souped up for a Chromebook. It boasts a 120Hz display, RGB lighting, anti-ghosting keys, and Wi-Fi 6E. Unfortunately, it costs more than its similarly-specced competition, despite having a slower processor.

Still, if you can grab it on sale, it’s well worth it. It makes up for the weaker processor with a battery life that surpasses the Acer’s by five hours.

It’s compatible with plenty of cloud gaming services like Nvidia GeForce Now, Xbox Cloud Gaming, Luna, Utomik, and more. GeForce Now stands out by supporting ray tracing and 120Hz refresh rates.

You can still have a good cloud gaming experience with a Chromebook that isn’t gaming-specific. But particularly when it comes to the display, this premium Chromebook has some standout options you won’t see in a traditional model.

Read our full Lenovo IdeaPad 5 Gaming Chromebook review.

Pros

  • Excellent 120Hz display

  • Snappy processor

  • Lots of useful ports

Cons

  • Middling graphics performance

  • Limited native game compatibility

Product image of Framework Chromebook
Framework Chromebook
  • Processor: Intel Core i5-1240P
  • Graphics: Integrated
  • Memory: 8GB DDR4 3200
  • Storage: 256GB SSD
  • Display: 13.5-inch, 2256 x 1504, IPS touchscreen
  • Battery life: About 5 hours

The Framework Chromebook turns the Chromebook scene on its head with a high-quality, DIY repairable laptop. Its vital hardware components are interchangeable and available for purchase on the Framework Marketplace, which means that repairs and upgrades are simple and without fuss.

While it is one of the best Chromebooks out there, it isn’t necessarily one of the best laptops for your money. It costs about the same as the regular Framework Laptop, and ChromeOS is not as versatile as Windows.

If you were thinking of a Chromebook for its reputation as a cheap machine, this isn’t it. But even if you are a diehard ChromeOS fan with a thousand dollars to spend, you still have to contend with the Framework Chromebook’s five-hour battery life.

Despite the drawbacks, the Framework Chromebook is still a good laptop. Its vivid 2K display, sturdy aluminum chassis, fast performance, interchangeable ports, replaceable parts, and overall mastery are hard to deny.

Read our full Framework Chromebook review.

Pros

  • Fully repairable

  • Great 100% sRGB screen

  • Fast processor

Cons

  • Middling battery life

  • High initial cost

Product image of Acer Chromebook Spin 514 (2022)
Acer Chromebook Spin 514 (2022)
  • Processor: AMD Ryzen 5 5625C
  • Graphics: Integrated
  • Memory: 8GB LPDDR4X
  • Storage: 128GB eMMC
  • Display: 14-inch, 1920 x 1080, IPS with LED backlight technology
  • Battery life: Around 6.5 hours

This Acer Chromebook Spin 514 isn’t bad. In fact, we enjoy using it! That said, the asking price feels high for what you get.

For the price, we’d love to see better specs. We could do with more RAM and storage, or maybe a little extra battery life. The speakers are also tinny-sounding, which we, unfortunately, encounter a lot in the Chromebook space.

Still, the Spin 514 is sturdy and doesn’t overheat when you push the processor harder than social media or video streaming. It also has enough ports included around that you shouldn’t need a USB dock.

Read our full Acer Chromebook Spin 514 review.

Pros

  • Sturdy build

  • Comfortable keyboard

  • Stays cool

Cons

  • Dim display

  • Tinny audio

  • Mediocre battery life

Product image of Lenovo Chromebook Flex 5 (2020)
Lenovo Chromebook Flex 5 (2020)
  • Processor: Intel Core i3-10110U
  • Graphics: Intergrated
  • Memory: 4GB DDR4 2667MHz
  • Storage: 128GB SSD
  • Display: 13.3-inch, 1920 x 1080, IPS touchscreen with stylus support
  • Battery life: 7.5+ hours

This older Lenovo Chromebook Flex 5 hits a sweet spot of power, sophistication, and value. Its components are mid-range but quality, matching the laptop’s ruggedness. It’s capable of running several apps and dozens of Chrome tabs before its performance dips.

The sturdily-built, gunmetal grey chassis is gorgeous. The 1080p touch display offers great brightness and color. As for inputs, you’ll need to supply your own stylus. However, the keyboard and trackpad are both comfortable and easy to use for long stretches.

The big downside here is the middling battery life. It doesn’t quite reach 8 hours, which is passable for a laptop, but rough for a Chromebook. On top of that, the speakers aren’t great—you’ll definitely want earbuds. Still, for the money and the build quality, those are small sacrifices for most folks.

If you like the Flex 5 but need something faster, there is a more recent configuration available.

Pros

  • Elegant design

  • Great trackpad and keyboard

  • Fast performance

Cons

  • Middling battery life

Product image of Lenovo IdeaPad Chromebook Duet 3
Lenovo IdeaPad Chromebook Duet 3
  • Processor: Snapdragon 7C Gen 2
  • Graphics: Integrated
  • Memory: 4GB
  • Storage: 128GB eMMC
  • Display: 10.9-inch, 2000 x 1200, LCD touchscreen with stylus support
  • Battery life: 10+ hours

The Lenovo IdeaPad Chromebook Duet 3 doesn’t have a lot of processing power, but we wouldn’t expect it to match our favorites with a price tag under $390. From that perspective, this device’s long battery life, small size, keyboard folio cover, and vibrant display are well-built, well-considered features.

You’ll be hard-pressed to find a lighter Chromebook than this two-pound wonder—and that’s including the detachable keyboard. Videos and ebooks (when they finally load) appear vivid and bright on the 1200p display. Its ten hours of battery life outshines many of the best laptops.

Portability comes at the cost of connectivity, as the Lenovo Chromebook Duet 3 has only two USB-C ports. (That’s enough to charge it while one device is attached, at least.) Another downside is that the front-facing camera (webcam) is only 5MP, so you’re going to look grainy in video chats.

The processor isn’t the slowest we’ve tested, but it does get sluggish if you open more than one program at a time. The speakers are tinny and aren’t up to anything beyond talking.

This isn’t an unreserved value pick. The performance issues should be taken seriously. But given the build quality and lightness for the price asked, we think it’s the best value in the space, as long as your needs are light. If you can find it further on sale, so much the better.

Read our full Lenovo IdeaPad Chromebook Duet 3 review

Pros

  • Gorgeous 500 nit display

  • Comfortable keyboard folio

  • Long battery life

Cons

  • Slow performance

  • Grainy webcam

  • Tinny audio

Product image of Asus Chromebook Detachable CM3 (2021)
Asus Chromebook Detachable CM3 (2021)
  • Processor: MediaTek Kompanio 500(8183) 2.0 GHz
  • Graphics: Intergrated
  • Memory: 4GB LPDDR4X
  • Storage: 64GB eMMC
  • Display: 10.5-inch, 1920 x 1200, OLED IPS touchscreen with stylus support
  • Battery life: 12+ hours

The Asus Chromebook Detachable CM3 is similar to the Duet 3, but although it's cheaper than its Lenovo competitor, we’d really only recommend it on sale. It’s lighter, gets two more hours of battery life, and has an OLED display.

But extra portability and more vibrant visuals won’t make up for the CM3’s processor speeds. As the slowest ChromeOS machine we’ve tested so far, it’s maybe best suited for keeping the kids entertained on a long trip. The 64GB flash storage is more than enough to hold a bunch of movies and TV shows, Google Play Store mobile games, and drawing or other creative apps.

Tablet mode may be great for watching media, but we were frustrated by the flimsy folio keyboard our testing unit included. One of the keyboard cover’s corners kept popping up from the flat surface we were typing on.

Read our full Asus Chromebook Detachable CM3 review.

Pros

  • Great convertible form factor

  • Excellent battery life

  • Stylus is included

Cons

  • The keyboard cover is flimsy

  • Small display for getting work done

  • Weak processor

How We Test Chromebooks

Since Chromebooks aren’t really sold for processing power, we adjust our testing accordingly. We do benchmark the processor. But we generally focus on usability, including the quality of the screen and keyboard, and other factors like battery life. We rate overall usability by combining these factors into a weighted score.

Laptop pictured with the screen folded back into a tablet configuration
Credit: Reviewed.com / Jackson Ruckar

Because Chromebooks are mostly designed for running web applications like Google Docs, we use two different web benchmarks: Basemark and Speedometer. These test the processing power of the laptop in a web browser: for all of them, we used Google Chrome.

Since most people will tote their Chromebooks around, brightness in different settings is important. We measure this with a colorimeter, a handheld device that measures luminance. We examine the white levels and black levels at max brightness and then again at 50% brightness.

Finally, we test the battery life of each laptop to see how long they last between charges. With their displays adjusted to a moderate brightness of 200 nits, we set them to continuously cycle through popular websites. This simulates idle web browsing, and we time how long each laptop does it until the battery dies. We also consider human factors like how comfortable the screen is to look at and how easy the keyboard is to type on.

What’s the Difference Between a Chromebook and a Laptop?

Chromebooks stand apart from Macbooks and Windows laptops. ChromeOS isn’t a full-fledged operating system in the same sense as Windows or MacOS.

You’ll be spending most of your time in the Chrome browser using web-based tools. You can install Android mobile apps for extra functionality, but it’s more limiting than using desktop-class software. Likewise, you’ll typically find less onboard storage. Instead, you’ll rely on cloud storage services like Google Drive.

Without access to desktop-class software, you won’t be able to perform tasks like audio editing or install mandatory workplace software for most jobs. That may make this a poor choice of primary device for some folks.

But if you’re fine doing most of your work in a browser, Chromebooks can be a great way to save money. They’re significantly cheaper than their full-fledged counterparts, with a solid Chromebook usually running around $400.

How to Choose the Best Chromebook for You

Running Chrome OS (aka Google's default browser), Chromebooks are inexpensive and largely virus-free, a great option for college students. Equipped with low-power processors, Chromebooks typically have good battery life and are fanless. That said, they’re not the most powerful laptops in the world. Most of the time they can only handle everyday tasks like browsing the web, checking e-mail, and watching Netflix.

Display Size

Most laptops range in size from 13-17 inches. Generally, smaller ones are meant for lighter work, and larger ones give you more screen space for heavy-duty work like video editing or intense gaming.

Accordingly, apart from a couple of 16-inch gaming Chromebooks, most of the laptops we’ve tested here float around 13-14 inches. For most people, that hits a great spot for lightweight portability while still giving you a clear look at your web browsing or streaming video.

Person uses Google Pixelbook on their lap
Credit: Reviewed / Jackson Ruckar

A Chromebook’s size can influence how easy the keyboard and trackpad are to use, which is important. Interacting with your laptop should be as smooth as possible.

Size can also affect the number of included ports, which you’ll want to pay special attention to. If you’re streaming intense games, a Chromebook with an Ethernet port for hardwired Internet connections can be a huge benefit. If you attach extra devices, you’ll want a healthy number of USB ports, as well.

ChromeOS

In an age where so much software lives online, a Chromebook may serve you better than you’d think. Plenty of people live on Netflix, Gmail, and Google Docs already. Add in online photo editors like Pixlr, and you can do almost anything in a browser. Many web apps can even work offline for those rare occasions you don’t have Wi-Fi.

Chromebooks have the added bonus of being virtually virus-free since they’re running Linux under the hood. Finally, they’re generally far cheaper, since they don’t need as much processing power.

Windows is still the dominant OS these days, so for certain games or intense work in editing photos and videos, you’ll probably want to stick to Microsoft for your main machine. But the nimble versatility of a Chromebook can be surprising.

Under the Hood

Chromebooks don’t need as much power, but hardware specs still matter. The processor, graphics card, RAM, and storage determine your laptop’s capabilities. For browsing the web and using office software, lower-power chips like Intel’s i3 and i5 are more than adequate.

You can get away with 4GB of RAM in a Chromebook, but given how RAM-intensive modern web browsing can be, we don’t recommend it. Stick to 8GB if you tend to open lots of tabs, use lots of browser extensions, or just want to future-proof your laptop.


Meet the testers

Michael Garrett Steele

Michael Garrett Steele

Contributor

@MGarrettSteele

Michael Garrett Steele has been writing and editing professionally since 2013, and has been a part of Reviewed since 2020. An MFA in music composition, Garrett has lent audio expertise to everyone from Independence Community College to Bethesda Softworks, informing reviews of audio equipment and services. Garrett also covers tech, drawing on experience working everywhere from IT helpdesks to enterprise architecture sales. Steele has also become a go-to reviewer for minor plumbing fixtures since covering bidets for Reviewed in early 2020.

See all of Michael Garrett Steele's reviews
Adrien Ramirez

Adrien Ramirez

Staff Writer

@itsaramkat

Adrien is a staff writer for Reviewed, mainly focused on reviewing laptops and other consumer tech. During his free time, he's usually wandering around Hyrule.

See all of Adrien Ramirez's reviews
Joanna Nelius

Joanna Nelius

Senior Editor, Electronics

@JLNwrites

Joanna specializes in anything and everything gaming-related and loves nerding out over graphics cards, processors, and chip architecture. Previously she was a staff writer for Gizmodo, PC Gamer, and Maximum PC.

See all of Joanna Nelius's reviews

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