The best laptops for graphic design, according to experts

Read our full review of the 14-inch M3 MacBook Pro.

MacBook Pros power the creative industry in graphic design and video editing, and the same is true when it comes to podcast production. The MacBook Pro with M3 chip is one of the most powerful computers we've tested, with superior processing and stunning visuals that will be an added bonus for those who want a video component to their podcast.

A hidden perk to getting a MacBook (if you don't already have one) for your podcasting needs, is that it comes with free software for editing. Weber says that Apple's GarageBand is a great place to start podcast editing, and because it comes preloaded, you'll have what you need without spending an extra cent.

But if all Apple laptops come loaded with GarageBand, couldn't you swing for a cheaper model? Great question. If you're on a budget, a MacBook Air can work, but it has different computing power. In her full review of the MacBook Pro, Mashable tech editor Kimberly Gedeon noted that the MacBook Pro scored 11,998 on Geekbench, a CPU performance test, while the Air only scored 10,416. That difference matters, especially when juggling software like audio and video editors, which will drain your memory.

Read Mashable's full review of the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio 2.

Who it's for:

The Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio 2 is an unconventional and versatile machine for deep-pocketed professional artists. Gedeon also "[recommended] this laptop for differently abled users who could take full advantage of [its] adaptive touch trackpad feature."

Why we picked this:

The Surface Laptop Studio 2 is, as its name suggests, a laptop. But the unique pull-forward design of its 120Hz, 14.4-inch touchscreen display means it can also "transform into a digital easel and a tablet," said Gedeon, "[making] it an artist's playground." Just like its predecessor from 2021, it's fine-tuned for drawing, sketching, and other creative work — though it still doesn't come bundled with a stylus, which feels like a silly omission on Microsoft's part. (It does have built-in storage and charging for the Surface Slim Pen 2, at least.) Notably, though, its silky-smooth haptic touchpad has an adaptive touch mode for users with limited mobility; it's the same one on the Surface Laptop 7.

Things start looking more familiar once you move inside the Surface Laptop Studio 2, as far as higher-end laptops go. There's a desktop-grade Intel Core H-Series processor and an Intel Iris Xe graphics card in the base model, which you can opt to upgrade to a dedicated Nvidia GeForce RTX GPU for more oomph. It's not technically a Copilot+ PC, since it doesn't have a Snapdragon X Series CPU, but it does have an NPU that equips its 1080p webcam with Windows Studio Effects. It also counts a microSD card reader among its ample array of ports. All that machinery means it's quite a bit heavy and doesn't last very long away from a power supply, so it'll probably pass on plein air doodling sessions in favor of staying parked on a desk.

Read Mashable's full review of the Asus Zenbook Duo laptop.

Who it's for:

Working with multiple monitors can be a huge advantage for photo editors, and the Asus Zenbook Duo offers dual displays and a detachable keyboard in a single laptop. The device's stacked screens allow you to work on more than one screen without giving up the convenience of a laptop, which saves a ton of space and maintains portability. Add in solid performance, and you've got a great option for jumping between photo editing apps without having to minimize a bunch of windows. It's truly a whole workspace shrunk down into one laptop.

If you prize a crisp OLED display, multitasking, and plenty of screen space in a photo editing laptop, then this is a worthy alternative to a MacBook or Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio 2. Plus, for early adopters who love innovative design, it just looks really cool.

Why we picked this:

“Single-display laptops are now canceled,” Mashable Tech Editor Kimberly Gedeon wrote in her review of the Asus ZenBook Duo laptop. The portable workstation comes with two 1900 x 1200, 14-inch OLED screens stacked on top of one another, making it effortless to switch between two screens while you edit photos. More screen space means more multitasking, and luckily this machine has all the specs to make that happen, including up to 32GB of RAM.

The ZenBook Duo laptop comes with an included stylus (we're side-eyeing the Microsoft Laptop Studio 2 right now, as its stylus costs extra), and did we mention that one of the screens is touch-enabled? The laptop also brings a great variety of ports, which allows for even more screens — you can connect an external monitor using HDMI, USB-A, or a Thunderbolt cable.

If you're a multitasking photo editor (which you probably are), you'll find a lot to love about the Asus ZenBook Duo laptop.

Read our first impression of the Apple iPad Pro M4 and check out our benchmark testing on it.

Who it’s for:

The best laptop for graphic designers may turn out to not be a laptop at all in some use cases. “Illustrators are more and more using Procreate on iPad. It has an insane tactile quality, professional output, and it's super portable,” says Selman.

With the advancements in iPads, especially the 2024 iPad Pro, these tablets compete alongside laptops when it comes to performance, but they’re lighter and more portable. Illustrators especially will find the iPad Pro to be the one-stop shop device for getting work done, as corroborated by Ramos: “For my personal projects, which are generally sketches to vector graphics, I find that I’m able to do most of my work on an iPad Pro exclusively, without having to move to a computer at all.”

Why we picked this:

Yes, we know this technically isn't a laptop, but hear us out. iPad Pros have essentially the same computing power as the laptops on this list, just without the keyboard, unless you pair it with the Magic Keyboard — then you’re set. When it first launched, Apple claimed it was going to be the fastest iPad model yet. They neglected to note that its speed surpasses their laptops too.

Tech editor Kimberly Gideon tested the M4 iPad Pro with Geekbench, and it blew the MacBook Pro's multi-core benchmark score out of the water (14,586 to 11,998). The only laptop that has a higher Geekbench score than the M4 iPad Pro is the $4,000 Lenovo Legion 9i gaming laptop.

With the latest M4 chip, you’ll get faster performance whether you’re working in Procreate, Illustrator, or Photoshop. The responsive touchscreen and Apple Pencil is an illustrator's dream and with the debut of the Apple Pencil Pro, even more design capabilities are getting unlocked.

Read Mashable's full review of the HP Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch.

Who it's for:

HP's Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch is a low-cost, large-screened laptop for those who work in the Google productivity ecosystem and watch a lot of YouTube in their free time. If you like numpads, all the better.

Why we picked this:

This HP Chromebook Plus is helmed by a huge, vibrant display that blew me away when I reviewed it: "The colors are intense, with good contrast and rich blacks, and an anti-reflective panel preserves that quality at most viewing angles," to quote my write-up. I loved using it for movie-watching and light gaming (via Xbox Game Pass). On the clock, it was fast enough to handle my daily workflow, which involves a lot of Gmailing and Google Meeting, though its battery life disappointingly drained before the end of my eight-hour shift. I also found it hard to listen to anything playing on it while naked-eared: Its speakers stink.

As one of eight new Chromebook Plus devices, this puppy comes with some interesting new software extras like File Sync, AI-powered webcam settings, and support for some multimedia tools (including Google Magic Eraser and Adobe Express). None of them felt revolutionary in my testing, but they're decent value-adds for such a cheap machine.