Hunting New Laptops? These Are The Best Thin & Light Laptops Under $1000 Right Now
Thin and light laptops are revolutionary; they offer significant performance in an extremely compact package. Almost all major laptop OEMs have been focusing on this category of laptops, leaving the average consumer with plenty of decent options to choose from. Likewise, we have picked a few of the best thin and light laptops under $1000 to buy.
The laptop market has several great options to pick from, but this list contains laptops that offer top-of-the-line specifications while remaining under budget. Most thin and light laptops in the U.S. right now come with a 12th-Gen Intel Evo platform. Hence, the performance of these machines would be excellent.
Things to note about thin and light laptops
To house a high-performing system in a compact package, there are certain sacrifices that laptop manufacturers make. For instance, you would get lesser ports on these thin and light machines compared to other laptops. Likewise, it is better to get a laptop with Thunderbolt support so you can make full use of the limited port situation.
While some laptops on manufacturers’ websites would be cheaper compared to other e-commerce platforms, they are mostly out of stock. Hence, we’ve picked the best thin and light laptops under $1000 that you can get from Amazon and BestBuy. Also, not all laptops in this budget segment have 16 GB memory, so you would have to upgrade it if you need to.
Best thin and light laptops under $1000
Note: Laptops mentioned in this list aren’t in any order of preference.
1. ASUS ZenBook 14
The ASUS ZenBook 14 is an excellent performing laptop that often goes unnoticed by the average buyer. Likewise, the 14″ laptop weighs only 3 pounds (around 1.4 kilograms) and houses a 12th-gen Intel Core i5 1240P Evo platform. ASUS put 2 Thunderbolt ports, an HDMI port, a 3.5mm port, and an SD card reader to achieve this form.
The pros of this machine are that it has a stunning 2.8K OLED display with accurate colors and a high-performing Core i5 CPU. However, it has very limited system memory and storage, so you would have to upgrade.
| Processor & Graphics | 12th-gen Intel Core i5 1240P Evo platform with Iris Xe graphics |
| RAM | 8 GB (soldered) |
| SSD | 256 GB (upgradable up to 512 GB) |
| HDD | N.A. |
| Display | 14-inch 2.8K OLED display with 90Hz refresh rate and 400 nits brightness |
| Battery | 75 Wh battery lasting up to 8 hours |
| OS | Windows 11 Home |
| Weight | 3.06 pounds (or 1.38 kg) |
2. HP ENVY x360 2-in-1
Next up, the HP Envy x360 makes it to the list of the best thin and light laptops under $1000. This 2-in-1 laptop is an excellent choice for content creators and students, as you can use it as a large-sized tablet too. Likewise, the Envy x360 series is among HP’s best-selling laptops and offers value for its price.
While the 15.6-inch screen only comes with a 1080p display, it offers the touchscreen experience. Moreover, you get a 12th-gen Intel Core i5 Evo platform that offers viable performance. However, you might need to upgrade the memory and storage to get the maximum performance or use the Thunderbolt port to use external storage.
| Processor & Graphics | 12th-gen Intel Core i5 1235U Evo platform with Iris Xe graphics |
| RAM | 8 GB (upgradable to 16 GB) |
| SSD | 256 GB (upgradable) |
| HDD | N.A. |
| Display | 15.6-inch 1080p IPS panel touchscreen display with 400 nits brightness |
| Battery | Up to 10 hours |
| OS | Windows 11 Home |
| Weight | 3.88 pounds (or 1.75 kg) |
3. Apple MacBook Air M1 (2020)
Despite being launched in 2020, the MacBook Air M1 is a worthy machine to be considered among the best thin and light laptops under $1000. Likewise, the M1 chip is well-optimized and can handle most workloads easily. It comes in an extremely compact package with a 13-inch screen.
While the M1 MacBook Air only has 2 Thunderbolt ports, you can use them to extend its functionality on par with a regular laptop. However, it limits you to only use one external display with the machine. All in all, it’s an excellent performer suitable for most users, including students, professionals, and content creators.
| Processor & Graphics | Apple M1 |
| RAM | 8 GB |
| SSD | 256 GB |
| HDD | N.A. |
| Display | 13.3-inch Retina Display |
| Battery | Up to 18 hours |
| OS | macOS Ventura |
| Weight | 2.8 pounds (or 1.25 kg) |
4. Samsung Galaxy Book Pro 360
The next entree on the list of the best thin and light laptops under $1000 is the Galaxy Book Pro 360. Samsung recently made a comeback to the laptop market, and it was indeed successful. Likewise, the Galaxy Book Pro 360 is a top-performing laptop that checks most boxes.
The 2-in-1 form factor paired with a 15.6-inch AMOLED display is the perfect choice for every user, and it even comes with an S-Pen. Moreover, it houses an 11th-gen Intel Core i7 Evo platform along with 16 GB memory and 1 TB storage. These specifications alone make it a better-performing laptop than almost all thin and light laptops in this segment.
| Processor & Graphics | Intel 11th Generation Core i7 1165G7 Evo platform with Iris Xe graphics |
| RAM | 16 GB |
| SSD | 1 TB |
| HDD | N.A. |
| Display | 15.6-inch 1080p AMOLED panel touchscreen display |
| Battery | Up to 18 hours |
| OS | Windows 11 Home |
| Weight | 3.06 pounds (or 1.38 kg) |
5. Dell Inspiron 2-in-1
Finally, the Dell Inspiron 2-in-1 makes it to the list of the best thin and light laptops under $1000. Dell’s 2-in-1 machine checks most boxes — great performance, decent build quality, compact form factor, and a great display.
Moreover, it has 16 GB memory and 512 GB storage out of the box, unlike several other laptops in this budget, so you wouldn’t need to worry about that. Another unique feature of the Dell Inspiron is that it houses a 1080p webcam, which many other OEMs do not prioritize.
| Processor & Graphics | Intel 12th Generation Core i7 1260P with Iris Xe graphics |
| RAM | 16 GB (upgradable to 32 GB) |
| SSD | 512 GB (upgradable) |
| HDD | N.A. |
| Display | 16-inch 1200p WUXGA panel touchscreen display |
| Battery | 87 Wh battery lasting up to 8 hours |
| OS | Windows 11 Home |
| Weight | 4.62 pounds (or 2 kg) |
Our recommendation: Best thin and light laptops under $1000
While the market is saturated with plenty of thin and light laptops, our picks are the ones that check most boxes. Hence, you can pick any from this list to fulfill your everyday workload requirements. If you have trouble choosing one, we recommend going for the Galaxy Book Pro 360 or the HP Envy x360 for a smooth experience.
