Buying the best laptop these days is a real problem as there are so many laptops available in the market and all of them tend to be the best. We consumers can’t risk purchasing a laptop by seeing the hype created by laptop manufacturers. So, to help you, our team of laptop professionals have picked the 10 best laptop computers for under $ 400, which will reduce your work in picking the best laptops and ensure that you will end up buying the best laptop for under $ 400 for yourself.
To find the best budget laptops, we thoroughly examined the laptop market. We visited stores and also checked all the major e-commerce sites that sell laptops. We found that there are many good laptops available for purchase for under $ 400. We’ve checked the hardware specifications for each laptop for its capabilities, we’ve seen the build quality as well as customer reviews and ratings. After thinking of all these things, we have compiled a list of the best budget laptops under $ 400 to reduce your sifting headaches and buy the best laptop that suits your requirements.
So here are our top 10 recommendations with reviews, hardware specs, and links to get the best deals on every laptop! let’s start.
Best Laptops Under 400 Dollars – Top Picks
1. Asus VivoBook 15
Asus VivoBook 15 is a recently launched laptop that is the best choice for students and frequent travellers who are looking for good laptops under $400. Finished in a slate grey that adds a premium look to it, it is also a lightweight machine.
It’s equipped with a 15.6-inch HD display that isn’t bright enough to be used in direct sunlight, but it’s a generally suitable board for work and multimedia with good viewing angles. The bezels around the screen are quite small, giving this budget laptop a modern look.
The backlit keyboard of the ASUS VivoBook 15 is ergonomically designed to provide a comfortable typing experience, and the touchpad is bulky and offers good accuracy. It comes with all the ports and slots required daily, and it comes with Wi-Fi 5 for wireless internet connectivity, which is not the latest but considering the price of this good laptop. The powerful 10th Generation Intel Core i3 processor sits underneath its rugged exterior, and it is paired with 8GB RAM to deliver the best performance for all your work. The storage partition on the laptop is managed by a compact and fast 128GB SSD. It has Intel UHD integrated graphics that provide enough graphics backup to run Adobe Photoshop and other similar software efficiently.
Given the latest specifications and features offered by the ASUS VivoBook 15, it is one of the biggest competitors in the best laptops under $400.
| Hardware Specifications of Asus VivoBook 15 (F512JA-AS34) Laptop | |
| Processor | Intel Core i3-1005G1 Dual-Core Processor (Turbo up to 3.4GHz) |
| RAM | 8GB RAM |
| Storage | 128GB SSD (Upgradable) |
| Graphics | Intel UHD Graphics |
| Display | 15.6-Inch Full HD NanoEdge Display with 1920 x 1080 pixels resolution |
| Operating System | Windows 10 Home 64-bit |
| Battery Life | Up to 7 hours |
| Weight | 3.7 lbs |
2. HP 17z-ca200 17 Inch Laptop
HP has been the best laptop brand for many years, and its laptops are always the competition laptops in all categories. Well if we talk about this notebook from HP, it’s one of the best looking and well-designed laptops for under $ 400.
It has a huge 17.3-inch LED-backlit screen that produces a decent colour gamut and is bright too. It provides a wide range of communication options to ensure you stay in touch with your loved ones from anywhere. It comes with the latest pre-installed Windows 10 system that runs smoothly by cooperating with the powerful dual-core AMD Athlon CPU (up to 3.2GHz) and 8GB RAM. It offers 2 TB of the hard disk drive on which you can store all needed files and your collection of movies and games.
Although it is not a professional gaming machine, it does allow to play some of the best favourite games of all time like Counter-Strike. This laptop can also be used for photo editing as it has a large screen. Even so, its larger size makes it a slightly bulky device at around 5.2 pounds. Overall, the HP 17z-ca200 is the best laptop under $400 for people looking for a budget laptop for editing photos, games, and other similar things.
| Hardware Specifications of HP 17z-ca200 Laptop | |
| Processor | AMD Athlon Silver 3050U Dual-Core Processor (Turbo up to 3.2 GHz) |
| RAM | 8GB DDR4 RAM |
| Storage | 2TB 5400RPM Hard Drive |
| Graphics | AMD Radeon Graphics |
| Display | 17.3-Inch Diagonal HD+ Anti-Glare WLED Display with 1600 x 900 resolution |
| Operating System | Windows 10 Home 64-bit |
| Battery Life | Up to 8 hours |
| Weight | 5.2 lbs |
3. Lenovo IdeaPad S340 15.6″ Laptop
The Lenovo IdeaPad S340 is a relatively old model, but inside it has very powerful hardware which makes it still a great buy for under $ 400. The core of it is, an Intel Core i3 processor with a top speed of 3.5GHz, which makes this laptop a good device in the $ 400 price category.
Apart from the powerful processor, this laptop has 8GB of RAM for smoother and more efficient multitasking, and it also comes with a 128GB solid-state drive for storage. Performance-wise, this laptop is ideal for all types of high-end users, plus it has built-in UHD 620 graphics, so it can handle moderate gaming and photo and video editing as well. The screen on this laptop isn’t the best we can find in the category of under $400 laptops, but it looks good. The 15.6-inch LED-backlit backlit panel with a standard 1366 x 768 HD resolution produces good colours but isn’t bright enough for use in direct sunlight. However, it does have an anti-glare coating, which helps a bit for laptop use in well-lit areas.
Apart from that, this laptop comes with all the required standard ports and fast Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity. So, if you don’t mind a slightly older model, the Lenovo IdeaPad S340 is a good budget laptop with few negligible flaws.
| Hardware Specifications of Lenovo IdeaPad S340 (High-Performance Laptop under $400) | |
| Processor | Intel Core i3-8145U dual-core 2.1GHz Processor (Turbo up to 3.9GHz) |
| RAM | 8GB DDR4 RAM |
| Storage | 128GB SSD |
| Graphics | Intel UHD 620 Graphics |
| Display | 15.6-inch HD LED-backlit Anti-Glare Display with 1366 x 768 Resolution |
| Operating System | Windows 10 Home 64-bit |
| Battery Life | Up to 8 hours |
| Weight | 4.0 lbs |
4. Dell Inspiron 5593 (15-inch Laptop With 10th Gen Intel Processor)
Dell Inspiron Series laptops are designed to fit the demands of a wide range of users. They are good looking and come with enough strength inside to do all the daily tasks efficiently. This is the latest model in the Dell Inspiron lineup, and it’s no exception. It is finished in silver and follows a similar design language to the Dell Inspiron series laptops. There’s nothing exceptional about the design, but it looks good and feels strong in its hands.
It has a 15.6-inch HD display with narrow bezels, and a panel with an anti-glare coating helps reduce eye strain. It has stereo speakers with MaxxAudio technology as well as a built-in HD webcam. The keyboard of this laptop has a complete design, and the touchpad is large with enough room for a palm. Provides all required ports and slots; However, it doesn’t come with an optical drive, so if you’re someone who works on CD / DVD this isn’t the laptop for you. The latest 10th Gen Intel Core i3 Ice Lake processor on the laptop produces enough power to do all the basic to medium tasks required efficiently on this laptop, and the 4GB RAM helps to multitask on this laptop efficiently.
Surprisingly, it has 128GB of SSD to store your files, and it also features built-in Intel UHD graphics that help boost its overall performance. This laptop contains a 42Wh battery that keeps this laptop working for 5 hours. So, overall, this Dell laptop offers a great deal for people who find the best business laptop for themselves and is hence on this month’s top 10 laptops list under $ 400.
| Hardware Specifications of Dell Inspiron 5593 15-inch Laptop | |
| Processor | Intel Core i3-1005G1 1.2 GHz Dual Core Processor (Turbo up to 3.4 GHz) |
| RAM | 4 GB DDR4 RAM |
| Storage | 128GB SSD |
| Graphics | Intel UHD Graphics |
| Display | 15.6-Inch Full HD Anti-Glare (LED-backlit) Display with 1920 x 1080 resolution |
| Operating System | Windows 10 Home S mode 64-bit |
| Battery Life | Up to 5 hours |
| Weight | 4.03 lbs |
5. Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14″ Laptop
Lenovo IdeaPad 3 is known for its decent performance devices packed inside a thin and light body. It’s one of the best under $ 400 gaming laptops for all budget gamers right now. Although the design of this laptop suggests otherwise, its high-performance hardware can allow users to play some popular gaming titles and do tough tasks like editing photos or videos. It’s not a professional laptop or anything else, but it gets the job done for budget laptop buyers.
The laptop is finished in a colossal blue colour as you can see in the image above and is durable to withstand everyday wear and tear. It has a 14-inch HD screen with narrow bezels, which are accurate and somewhat bright colours.
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 features a powerful AMD Ryzen 5 processor and 8GB of RAM making it the most powerful laptop in the sector! It has integrated AMD Radeon Vega 8 graphics that handle games and other work on this laptop with ease. With all the standard ports and slots, and decent battery life, this Lenovo laptop is the best choice for people looking for a mix of work and play in their new laptop.
If you’re looking for a better gaming laptop, we recommend you check out our guide to buying the best gaming laptop under $500. They are the best performance gaming laptops that won’t break the bank.
| Hardware Specifications of Lenovo IdeaPad 3 – Best Gaming Laptop Under $400 | |
| Processor | AMD Ryzen 5 3500U Quad-Core 2.1 GHz Processor (Turbo up to 3.7GHz) |
| RAM | 8 GB DDR4 RAM (Expandable up to 16GB) |
| Storage | 256GB SSD |
| Graphics | AMD Radeon Vega 8 Graphics |
| Display | 14-Inch Full HD Anti-Glare LED-backlit Display with 1920 x 1080 resolution |
| Operating System | Windows 10 Home 64-bit |
| Battery Life | 5 hours |
| Weight | 3.3 lbs |
6. Acer Aspire 5 (A515-43-R19L) Notebook (#1 Best Seller)
Acer is also not slow in making value-for-money laptops. This is another laptop on this list of the best under $ 400 laptops that comes with impressive hardware specs. However, it is one of the very few laptops in this price range that offers a full HD display and backlit keyboard. Moreover, it doesn’t compromise on the specs or the build quality making it a top pick in the sub-$ 400 laptops.
It’s made of premium quality plastic and is also heat-resistant to keep this laptop’s temperature under control. It has a precision touchpad and a backlit keyboard complete with a Numpad for easier data entry. This laptop will be the perfect on-the-go partner for students to do their homework and homework or college. It’s backed by AMD Ryzen 3 processor with 4GB RAM and 128GB SSD smoothing the overall Windows 10 performance on this laptop. It also has all the standard ports and holes lined up on either side.
The Acer Aspire E15 E5-576-392H, the predecessor of this particular model, was also one of the most value-for-money laptops in the $ 400 price range that came with the Kaby Lake Intel Core i3 processor. Now as it has been updated, it is better than ever. This laptop is suitable for a large group of users as it does not compromise on any of the features as it has the latest processor. Hence, the Acer Aspire 5 A515-43-R19L laptop is currently the best laptop to buy for under $ 400.
| Hardware Specifications of Acer Aspire 5 A515-43-R19L Laptop | |
| Processor | AMD Ryzen 3 3200U Dual-Core Processor (Turbo up to 3.5 GHz) |
| RAM | 4GB DDR4 RAM |
| Storage | 128GB SSD |
| Graphics | AMD Radeon Vega 3 Graphics |
| Display | 15.6-Inch Full HD LED-backlit IPS Display with 1920×1080 resolution |
| Operating System | Windows 10 in S mode |
| Battery Life | Up to 8 hours |
| Weight | 3.9 lbs |
7. Dell Inspiron 14 5000 (2-in-1 Laptop)
Dell Inspiron 2-in-1 laptops are all bestsellers worldwide, and the Inspiron 5000 is one of the most affordable budget laptops Dell makes right now. It features a 14-inch HD anti-glare touchscreen that’s perfect for playing touch games, watching movies and of course working on the go. It comes with two USB 3.2 Type-A, 1 x USB 3.2 Type-C, and HDMI ports, and it also has a microSD card slot. It also has fast Wi-Fi 802.11ac and Bluetooth to ensure that you stay on a fast internet connection everywhere.
It’s powered by the latest Intel 10th Gen i3 processor that delivers a reliable amount of power for everyday computing. It has 4GB RAM and 128GB SSD storage and is suitable for everyday productivity tasks. Windows 10 Home runs out of the box which works very smoothly through collaboration with the hardware of this laptop.
This laptop does not have a Numpad on the keyboard which might discourage a few businessmen from purchasing this laptop, but you cannot ignore the fact that this laptop weighs only three and a half pounds which makes it the best budget convertible laptop in the 400 dollars price range.
| Hardware Specifications of Dell Inspiron 5400 2-in-1 Laptop | |
| Processor | Intel Core i3-1005G1 Dual Core 1.2 GHz Processor (Turbo up to 3.4GHz) |
| RAM | 4GB DDR4 RAM |
| Storage | 128GB SSD |
| Graphics | Intel UHD Graphics |
| Display | 14-inch HD LED-backlit Touchscreen Display with 1366×768 resolution |
| Operating System | Windows 10 Home 64-bit OS |
| Battery Life | Up to 8 hours |
| Weight | 3.42 lbs |
8. HP 14-df0020nr Laptop
If you are looking for a laptop under $ 400 that has a full HD display, you shouldn’t look anywhere other than this 14-inch HP laptop. There are very few laptops that come with Full HD displays in this price range, and this is one of them. So, this is an excellent all-round laptop that can handle games to some degree.
The laptop can handle multitasking with ease as it has 8GB of RAM and it comes with a fast 256GB SSD storage for faster read/write speeds. Aside from performance, the build quality of this laptop is also good. It’s painted silver and has a glossy HP logo on its textured cover that looks nice and also adds a grip to hold this laptop securely with one hand. The keyboard on this laptop is also perfect. Although not backlit, the keys look good and offer soft notes while typing.
It comes with all the necessary ports padded on either side of the laptop and it also provides a very good battery backup. On a final note, the HP 14-df0020nr offers a lot more than you’d expect at this price and with the latest hardware specs and a Full HD display, it’s one of the best low-cost laptops under $ 400 to buy now.
| Hardware Specifications of HP 14-df0020nr Laptop | |
| Processor | 10th Generation Intel Core i3-1005G1 1.2 GHz Processor (Turbo up to 3.4 GHz) |
| RAM | 8GB DDR4 2666MHz SDRAM |
| Storage | 256GB SSD |
| Graphics | Intel UHD Integrated Graphics |
| Display | 14 inch Full HD IPS Anti-Glare Display with 1920 x 1080 resolution |
| Operating System | Windows 10 Home 64-bit OS |
| Battery Life | 5 hours |
| Weight | 3.2 lbs |
9. Dell Inspiron 15 3593 Laptop
Another Dell laptop in our budget laptop buying guide, it absolutely deserves to be on our list of best laptops under $ 400 for its unique features. It features a matte black body and a durable build quality as you’d expect from a brand like Dell.
It has a 15.6 ”HD LED display that delivers great visuals and is also a bright panel. The keyboard is ergonomically designed to provide a more convenient typing experience, and its plastic touchpad is smooth and precise. It has a powerful 10th Generation Intel Core i3 processor inside, and has an 8GB RAM that can be extended up to 16GB! It has a fast 128GB solid-state drive for storage and integrated Intel UHD graphics that keep a solid performance on the laptop. It comes with all ports, slots and speakers to enjoy your favourite movies and music albums.
By looking at its features, we can conclude that this laptop provides everything one would need from a daily running computer and its hardware is powerful enough to carry out all kinds of intensive tasks. So whether you are a student who loves to play games or you are an entrepreneur looking for a productivity machine, this Dell Inspiron laptop is your best bet for your money.
| Hardware Specifications of Dell Inspiron 3593 Series Laptop | |
| Processor | Intel Core i3-1005G1 1.2 GHz Processor (Turbo up to ) |
| RAM | 8 GB DDR4 RAM |
| Storage | 128GB SSD |
| Graphics | Intel HD 620 Graphics |
| Display | 15.6 Inch Full HD Anti Glare LED Display with 1920 x 1080 resolution |
| Operating System | Windows 10 Home S 64-bit OS |
| Battery Life | Up to 6 hours |
| Weight | 4.8 lbs |
10. HP 15-ef0021nr Professional Laptop
If you are looking for a thin and light looking laptop for under $ 400, this laptop from HP is the perfect choice for you. It is powered by an AMD Ryzen 3 processor that produces nearly the same performance as that of Intel Core i3 laptops and has an 8GB RAM that lets you multitask without any limits. For storage, it offers 256GB of SSD, and it has integrated AMD Radeon Vega 3 graphics that can support some low-end games.
The design and quality of this laptop are great with the slim body and polycarbonate shape that helps reduce weight. Although it doesn’t have a built-in CD/DVD drive, it has all the required ports and slots. It comes with a 15 inch HD screen, which is a WLED panel that has enough brightness to use this laptop in well-lit locations. However, the colours on the screen appear to be somewhat inaccurate, but it can be fixed by calibrating them properly.
Overall, this is an excellent laptop if you prefer AMD hardware, and it would be the perfect choice for those who do not like to carry large amounts of their laptop.
| Hardware Specifications of HP 15-ef0021nr (Thin and Light Laptop) | |
| Processor | AMD Ryzen 3 3200U Dual Core 2.6 GHz APU (Turbo up to 3.5GHz) |
| RAM | 8GB DDR4 SDRAM |
| Storage | 256GB SSD |
| Graphics | AMD Radeon Vega 3 Graphics |
| Display | 15.6 Inch HD Anti-Glare WLED Display with 1366 x 768 Resolution |
| Operating System | Windows 10 Home 64-bit OS |
| Battery Life | Up to 9 hours |
| Weight | 3.7 lbs |
These are the 10 best laptops you can buy for under $400. Read reviews, check hardware specifications, and buy the laptop that suits your everyday needs. Feel free to comment below, if you have any questions about the aforementioned laptops.
Hope this Budget Laptop Buying Guide helped you buy the best laptop under $400 for yourself.