Best gaming laptop under $1500 in 2024 – our top picks
If you’re looking for the best gaming laptop under $1500, then we have you covered right here.
Now, $1500 is quite a roomy budget, and there’s a lot you could do with this amount. Plus, there’s quite a wide variety of laptops out there, so you can be picky.
While shopping for gaming laptops, you should be looking for powerful CPUs and GPUs that can run AAA games. For instance, some of the best Intel 13th-gen laptops come equipped with NVIDIA RTX 4000-series GPU, which makes them a powerhouse for running demanding games.
Further, the display is another important factor when it comes to gaming laptops. To ensure that you keep up with all the action happening onscreen, you need to choose the right display size, resolution, and refresh rate for your laptop.
For instance, for fast-paced games, you might want to look at laptops with high refresh rates, high resolution and a small screen so you can see what’s going on and keep up the pace.
With that being said, you are getting quite a bit of variety here, so we did the hard work and picked what we think are the best gaming laptops under $1500.
Products at a Glance
How we picked
For this guide, we looked at several laptops in the given budget, compared them, and then picked the ones we thought were the best. The laptops were selected based on specs like processor, graphics card, display, and other features. Further, we are regularly updating our guides with new products to keep them as updated as possible – so check back in here again soon for new updates.
On the same note, if you can stretch your budget a little, you can also check out the best gaming laptops under $2000, so get a wider variety of laptops to choose from.
Product Reviews
- NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050
- Intel Core i7-13620H processor
- 144Hz refresh rate
- Mediocre battery life
If you’re looking for the best gaming laptop under $ 1,500, then you should look at MSI Cyborg, which we think deserves to be one of the best MSI laptops.
The laptop comes with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050, a new GPU that sports the new Ada Lovelace architecture with advanced ray tracing and DLSS 3.0, which should deliver great graphics performance.
Along with this, you get the 13th Generation Intel Core i7-13620H processor, which promises to run through demanding and resource-intensive tasks, like gaming, efficiently.
The model that we have picked comes with 32GB RAM and 2TB SSD, which should be sufficient for most users. However, you can choose a different configuration depending on your requirements and budget.
On the outside, the laptop has a 15.6-inch screen with FHD resolution, which should deliver clear visuals. Plus, it is an IPS display, so you should be able to have wider viewing angles. The display also gives you a 144Hz refresh rate, which should give you smooth gameplay without screen-tearing.
- NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 GPU
- AMD Ryzen 7 7840HS CPU
- 165Hz refresh rate
- Mediocre display
If you want an FHD gaming laptop, then we think you should check out the Lenovo Legion 5 Slim, which we think is a good budget contender for the best RTX 4060 laptop.
This laptop comes with an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 graphics card with 8GB of VRAM, so you can expect high-quality graphics with faster loading times. Along with this, the laptop has an AMD Ryzen 7 7840HS CPU, which should perform heavy, demanding tasks smoothly.
The model we have chosen comes with 32GB RAM and 1TB SSD, which should reduce loading times and give you enough storage space. However, depending on your requirements, you can choose to change this configuration.
Coming to the display, the laptop has a 16-inch screen with 2.5K resolution, which should deliver stunning pictures. Plus, you get a 165Hz refresh rate, which should be sufficient for running most AAA games stutter-free.
- NVIDIA RTX 4060 GPU
- AMD Ryzen 7 7840HS CPU
- 17.3-inch QHD dsiplay
- Heavy
If you want a 17-inch gaming laptop under $1500, then you should check out the Acer Nitro 17, which we think is one of the best Acer gaming laptops.
The laptop has a 17.3-inch screen with 1440p resolution, which, like some of the best 17-inch laptops, should give you detailed visuals on a comparatively larger screen. Plus, it is an IPS display, so you get better and wider viewing angles. The laptop has a 165Hz refresh rate, which should give you a stutter-free gaming experience.
On the inside, the laptop has an NVIDIA RTX 4060 graphics card, which, with its advanced ray tracing capabilities and DLSS 3.0, should deliver great graphics performance.
Along with this, the laptop runs on an AMD 8-core Ryzen 7 7840HS Processor that has a max boost speed of 5.1GHz, which should run demanding games and applications quite easily.
The model we have chosen comes with 16GB RAM and 1TB SSD, which should be sufficient for most users. However, depending on your requirements, you can go with a different combination.
As far as connectivity options are concerned, the laptop has plenty of ports, including two USB-A 3.2, two USB-C 3.2, one USB2.0, one HDMI, one Killer E2600 Ethernet, and one MicroSD card slot, among others.
- 16.1-inch QHD display
- 165Hz refresh rate
- 12th-gen Intel processor
- Last-gen GPU
If you want a 1440p gaming laptop for under $1,500, then you should check out this HP OMEN model.
The laptop sports a 16.1-inch screen with QHD resolution, which should deliver stunning and detailed visuals. Much like some of the best 16-inch laptops, this one, too, has micro-edges, which should give you more screen space for viewing. Plus, you get an IPS panel along with an anti-glare coating, which should give you wider viewing angles and reduce reflections.
For gaming, the laptop gives you a 165Hz refresh rate, which should be sufficient for running AAA games smoothly without any screen stuttering.
On the inside, the laptop packs in an RTX 3060 GPU, which is a last-gen graphics card, but it should run most games smoothly. Further, the laptop has a 12th-gen Intel processor, which, combined with the RTX 3060 GPU, should handle demanding games well.
This model has 64GB RAM along with 1TB SSD, which should be sufficient for most users. However, you can choose to lower or upgrade this configuration depending on your needs and usage.
- NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 GPU
- 13th Gen Intel i7-13650HX processor
- 165Hz refresh rate
- FHD display
If you want the best 16-inch gaming laptop within your budget, then you should consider getting the Asus ROG Strix G16, which we think is one of the best Asus laptops.
Much like the name suggests, the laptop has a 16-inch screen with an FHD resolution, which should be suitable for most gamers out there. Plus, you get 100% of the sRGB color space and Dolby Vision, which should deliver highly accurate colors as well as HDR content.
To give you a smooth gameplay experience, the laptop has a 165Hz refresh rate, which should be sufficient for running most games without any stuttering.
Under the hood, the laptop has a 13th Gen Intel Core i7-13650HX processor along with an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 GPU, which, together, can take on demanding games and run resource-intensive software with ease.
As far as cooling is concerned, the laptop comes with ROG Intelligent Cooling system, which features Thermal Grizzly’s Conductonaut Extreme liquid metal on the CPU along with a third intake fan – so you can expect this device to sustain optimal temperature when under load.
How to pick the best gaming laptop under $1500
While shopping, you can use these pointers to narrow down your search:
CPU
With a $ 1,500 budget, you can expect to find laptops with Intel 13th-gen or Intel 12th-gen processors, which are both capable of running demanding games and applications. Depending on your budget and requirements, you can pick one.
GPU
Much like the CPU, you are likely to find gaming laptops that feature the latest NVIDIA RTX 4000-series or the last-gen RTX 3000-series graphics card in this budget range. The RTX 4000 GPUs have advanced ray tracing and DLSS 3.0, which can improve your gaming experience, and you will have the latest tech.
RAM
Even the basic gaming laptops have at least 8GB RAM, which is required to run video games. And most manufacturers let you choose a combination of RAM and SSD as per your requirements. If you’re planning to run demanding games or applications, then we’d recommend you get at least 16GB of RAM for everything to run smoothly.
Display
As far as the display is concerned, you have to determine the display size first. You will find gaming laptops ranging from 14 inches to 18 inches, with 15.6 inches being the most common size. Once you decide on a size, you can pick a resolution – 1080p or 1440p.
Next, it’s time to find a laptop with high refresh rates. Most gaming laptops come with a 120Hz refresh rate, which can give you stutter-free gameplay. However, nowadays, you will find many budget options offering a 144Hz or even a 165Hz refresh rate.
Our Verdict
If you want the best gaming laptop under $1500, then we think that this 2023 MSI Cyborg laptop is a solid option. The laptop runs on an Intel 13th-gen processor and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050 GPU, which are both new components – so you can expect the combination to run demanding games and applications smoothly. Plus, you get a 15.6-inch FHD display with a 144Hz refresh rate, which should deliver great picture quality as well as a smooth, stutter-free gameplay.