Best Cheap Gaming Laptops for 2016

ASUS F555LA-AB31

The ASUS F555LA-AB31 serves as probably the lowest point in laptops that I’d recommend. And, even then you’d be much better served saving some more money, or considering building your own PC instead.

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HP 15-ay011nr

The HP  15-ay011nr is another option that is just okay, but like the cheap ASUS laptop listed above, lacks the dedicated graphics card to make it a true gaming laptop.

And, while it does have a better Intel Core i5 processor, it still has similar integrated graphics and, as such, will only be able to provide an entry-level experience at best.

It has 8GB of RAM, a 15.6″ monitor with a 1080p resolution, and a 1TB hard drive.

Again, this laptop would have benefited from having a 1366×768 resolution to lessen the demand on the integrated graphics card and, because of this, this laptop is rated lower than the two options below.

Ultimately, this is a decent option, but in my opinion you’d be better off going with one of the lower resolution options below if you are concerned with your in-game framerate.

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HP ProBook

If you are looking for the best sub-$500 gaming laptop, then the HP ProBook is probably it.

It doesn’t have an Intel Core processor, but the A10-8700P APU is probably the better processor for entry-level gaming as the integrated graphics on it are better.

And, with a 1366×768 resolution this laptop will be better able to handle more demanding games thanks to the lowered resolution.

It also comes with 16GB of RAM, which they probably should have only included 8GB and reallocated their budget elsewhere.

Overall, the integrated Radeon R6 graphics, the lowered resolution (which will take less stress off of the APU), and the price make this one of the best cheap gaming laptops currently available.

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Dell Inspiron 15 5000

The Dell Inspiron 15 5000 is similar to the HP ProBook listed above, but a little more dated and quite a bit more expensive.

Like the ProBook it has a 15.6″ 13366×768 screen, which will help take the load off of the processor and help you achieve higher frame rates in more demanding games.

The A10-7300 APU is a little weaker than the A10-8700P that comes on the ProBook, but both come with similar integrated graphics.

It also has a 1TB hard drive and 8GB of memory, but the operating system is the older Windows 8.1 (but you should be able to upgrade for free to Windows 10) and the laptop is priced significantly higher than the ProBook.

So, all-in-all, the ProBook is the better buy. Unless this one drops significantly in price, I would suggest getting the better deal.

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Acer Aspire E5-573G-56RG-AB31

The Acer Aspire E5-573G-56RG-AB31 is probably the best budget gaming laptop under $600, but that doesn’t mean that it’s an amazing option.

With a dedicated GT 940M graphics card, the Acer Aspire E5-573G-56RG-AB31 at least doesn’t have to rely on integrated graphics and, thus, can handle games a little bit better.

But the GT 940M isn’t the strongest of cards and so you will still be limited quite a bit with this laptop.

Still, though, you should expect to be able to play most game on at least lower settings and non-demanding games on medium-or-higher settings.

Aside from the GT 940M, the Acer Aspire E5-573G-56RG-AB31 comes with an Intel Core i5 5200U processor, 8GB of RAM, and a 15.6″ screen with a 1080p resolution.

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ASUS X555UB-NH51

There really isn’t much difference between the Acer laptop listed above and the ASUS X555UB-NH51. Both have a GT 940M dedicated graphics card—which will be the biggest determining factor in your in-game performance–as well as a 15.6″ 1080p monitor.

And, both come with 8GB of RAM, a 1TB HDD, and Windows 10.

However, the main difference is the processor.

Whereas the Acer laptop above comes with an Intel Core i5-5200U, this ASUS laptop comes with an Intel Core i5-6200U.

Or, in other words, the ASUS X555UB-NH51 has the newer generation CPU.

Ultimately, this won’t provide much of an in-game performance upgrade and so if it were me I’d rather just save the ~$25 and go with the Acer Aspire E5-573G-56RG-AB31.

But, in the end, both laptops will perform fairly similar.

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Acer Aspire V15 Nitro

Of all of the affordable gaming laptops that have been listed so far, the Acer Aspire V15 Nitro is probably the first one that should truly be dubbed a “gaming laptop.”

With a GTX 950M, an Intel Core i5 processor, 8GB of RAM, and a 1080p monitor, the V15 Nitro has all of the key components to make it a very solid budget-friendly gaming laptop.

On top of that, along with the 1TB hard drive it has, it also comes with a 128GB solid state drive, which will drastically improve your boot time and load times.

Overall, if you don’t have much more than $700 to spend then the Acer Aspire V15 Nitro is currently your best bet. If you can go up another $100 or so, though, you can get the even better Acer Aspire V Nitro…

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MSI CX62

The MSI Cx2 is not quite as good of an option as the Acer Aspire V15 Nitro, but it is decent nonetheless.

Essentially, the MSI CX62 has similar specs to the Acer Aspire E5-573G-56RG and ASUS X555UB. Each of them have Intel Core i5 processors, 8GB of RAM, a GT 940M graphics card, and a 15.6″ screen.

However, where the MSI CX2 differs is in the fact that it has a lower screen resolution (1366×768) than the other two.

It might seem strange to hear, but the lower screen resolution makes the MSI CX62, in my opinion, the better laptop for gaming.

The reason for this is that the provided GT 940M graphics cards isn’t exactly the best dedicated laptop card around and, as such, will struggle to play certain games.

However, with the 1366×768 resolution monitor, the GT 940M in the MSI CX62 won’t be pushed as hard as it would be if it had a 1920×1080 resolution and, as such, will allow it to run more demanding games at higher framerates.

Yes, you will lose better visuals, but at this price point, you should really only be expecting to play games on low-to-medium settings anyways.

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Acer Aspire V Nitro

The Acer Aspire V Nitro is definitely one of the best all-around gaming laptops on this list in terms of price-to-performance.

For starters, it is the most affordable gaming laptop currently on the market that sports a GTX 960M dedicated graphics card.

Or, in other words, this is the most affordable laptop on the market that will play pretty much any game on medium-to-high settings.

The V Nitro also comes with 8GB of RAM, a 15.6″ screen with a 1080p resolution, and a 1TB hard drive.

It’s Intel Core i7-4720HQ is a couple of generations old, but since modern games rely mostly on the graphics processor now, the in-game performance will be right on par to a similar machine with a newer processor.

So, ultimately, if you’re looking for the best deal on this list, the Acer Aspire V Nitro is probably it.

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Dell Inspiron 15 7000

In my opinion the Dell Inspiron 15 7000 is the best gaming laptop under $1,000. It has everything you could possibly need out of a gaming laptop and then some.

And, it does it all for quite a bit less than the other options in this price range.

It comes with a new generation Intel Core i5 6300HQ processor, 8GB of RAM, a 15.6″ screen with a 1080p resolution, annd it also has a sizable 256GB SSD to go along with a 1TB traditional hard drive.

It’s GTX 960M video card is also superior to the other GTX 960Ms in the other laptops in this price range because the Dell’s GTX 960M comes with 4GB of VRAM in comparison to the 2GB of VRAM on the other options on this list.

In most cases that extra VRAM won’t come into play, but on certain games it can give a decent performance boost and can allow you to play on higher settings.

Ultimately, though, the Dell Inspiron 15 7000 is the most complete gaming laptop on this list and it is also priced better than any of the other laptops in this price range.

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Acer Aspire V15 Nitro Black

In the grand scheme of things, the Acer Aspire V15 Nitro Black is a solid affordable gaming laptop. It will run pretty much any game on at least medium settings at respectable frame rates.

However, for the price it doesn’t quite match up to the Dell Inspiron 15 7000.

It does have an Intel Core i7 processor and even though it’s the older version, it should still be more than fine for gaming. But, it lacks an SSD and unlike the Inspiron 15 7000, it comes with the 2GB version of the GTX 960M instead of the 4GB version.

While the lack of an SSD and the extra 2GB of VRAM aren’t detrimental, the fact that the Inspiron laptop listed above has them both and costs nearly ~$50 less makes this laptop a lot less appealing.

So, while this laptop will provide good performance, in my opinion you’d be much better off with the Dell laptop listed above.

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ASUS K501UW-AB78

Of the five laptops in this price range, only the ASUS K501UW-AB78 can compete with the Dell Inspiron 15 7000 in terms of features and price.

For about $70 more than the Inspiron, the ASUS K501UW-AB78 comes with a better processor (the i7-6500U) and a bigger SSD (512GB).

While neither of these features will affect your in-game performance, they are nice throw-ins and are definitely something to consider when comparing this unit to the Dell laptop.

However, the ASUS K501UW-AB78 laptop only comes with the 2GB version of the GTX 960M, instead of the 4GB version that the Inspiron has.

Again, this isn’t a huge deal, but given the fact that the Dell laptop is quite a bit less expensive, you have to decide whether you want more VRAM for less, or if you’d rather settle for less VRAM, but get an i7 processor and a bigger SSD.

If it’s me, I’m saving the $70 and going with the 4GB version of the GTX 960M… but I can understand where some would choose differently.

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Lenovo Y700

The Lenovo Y700 is in a similar boat to the Acer Aspire V15 Nitro Black…

Both are solid gaming laptops, but ultimately both fall short in terms of features and price.

The Lenovo Y700, like the V15 Nitro Black, lacks an SSD and doesn’t come with the 4GB version of the GTX 960M.

And, even though the Y700 comes with an i7 processor, that shouldn’t have too big of an impact on your in-game performance in comparison to an i5 processor.

So, while the Y700 will perform well as a gaming laptop, its price and lack of an SSD/4GB GTX 960M keep it from matching up with the Dell Inspiron 15 7000.

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ASUS ROG GL552VW-DH71

Finally, we have the ASUS ROG GL552VW-DH71… As the most expensive laptop on this list, you’d probably expect it to have some features that help it stand out from the pack.

However, the only real difference between this laptop and the others on this list, is the fact that is comes with 16GB of DDR4 memory, whereas the others on this list come only come with 8GB of DDR3 memory.

But, since most games don’t even utilize more than 4GB of memory, the extra 8GB is kind of overkill. And, despite this unit having the newer DDR4 memory, in most scenarios the difference in performance over DDR3 memory is negligible at best.

Another thing, though, that you might want to consider, is ASUS’ popular ROG design, which some say is better in terms of cooling.

Ultimately, though, I’d recommend to save your money and get either the Dell Inspiron 15 7000 or the ASUS K501UW-AB78.

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