The Best Laptops - 2021 Picks!

The Best Gaming Laptops and Performance Laptops from 2021 stacked up against the worst ones that came out this year.

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[agentraf]

The timestamps for lazy people who just want to see a specific laptop:
0:44 Alienware X17
1:11 Alienware X15
1:57 MacBook Pro 16
2:20 MacBook Pro 14
2:49 Prometheus 16
3:42 Prometheus 17
4:09 Mech/Neo 15
5:21 Acer Triton 300 SE
6:45 Acer Triton 500 SE
7:28 Acer Nitro 5
8:32 ASUS Zephyrus G15
9:56 ASUS Zephyrus G14
11:10 Razer Blade 14
12:25 Alienware M15 R5
13:43 Alienware M15 R6
14:29 Dell G15
15:44 ASUS Dash F15
16:27 ASUS Zephyrus S17
17:47 ASUS Zephyrus M16
19:04 ROG STRIX Scar G15
19:54 ASUS Zephyrus G15 AMD
20:46 ASUS Zephyrus Duo 15 SE
21:55 Lenovo Legion 5
22:29 Lenovo Legion 5 Pro
23:02 Lenovo Legion 7
23:47 Dell XPS 15
24:59 Dell XPS 17
25:24 Aorus 15G
25:52 Aorus 17G
26:09 AERO 15
26:42 MSI GE 76
27:13 MSI GF66
28:37 MSI Stealth 15M
28:47 HP Victus
30:01 HP Omen 15
30:35 Tierlist Rearrangement (ASUS Dash F15 changed based on personal opinion and not just specs)

[jcalerre]

Wow! Your laptop tier list is getting a lot better response than your one from last year! Not a single dislike!

[arcenite]

I find it amazing how Dave seems to remember everything about the laptops, not reading from a script. Insane memory if that's reality.

[AwesomeChin]

It’s oddly satisfying when Dave justifies my Black Friday impulse buy with his tier list.

[AhmadMido]

As a completely unbiased Legion 5 owner i believe this is absolutely accurate

[ActuallyAwesomeName]

I'd love a tier list like that for ultrabooks like the surface laptop, macbook air...

[nazibkhan]

As someone who bought the 2020 version of the Nitro 5, it makes me really happy to see Dave giving it the credit it deserves. Because like he said, I had just graduated from high school at the time and my old laptop had broken down, and so I was able to convince my parents to get me the Nitro 5 since it was such a good laptop for the $670 I paid for it. 1 year later and it still runs just as great. Plus the performance has gone up a lot too since I upgraded to dual-channel memory

[Sai_]

love this! please never stop this list. we want this every year.

[shrtaznant]

can't believe you put the dash f15 immediately in the S tier because it was beautiful and then at the end took a logical re-evaluation and moved it down to the bottom lmao

[Sonchuo]

You can tell Dave takes way more consideration into the aesthetic of the product as well as the fan noise compared to it's performance. If you can make a really clean and sleak design while it's quiet and performs decent then you're on top of the list. And I agree. Sometimes in the pursuit of performance we neglect other crucial features along the way.

[tonybui]

This year’s Zephyrus G14 deserves an A, the 1440p screen has much better response time and refresh rates, the performance is great for a 14’ at that price. Thermals have also been improved

[mr.misterqereq]

S tier :
8:32 ASUS Zephyrus G15
21:55 Lenovo Legion 5

A Tier :
0:44 Alienware X17
2:20 MacBook Pro 14
4:09 Mech/Neo 15
11:10 Razer Blade 14
22:29 Lenovo Legion 5 Pro
23:02 Lenovo Legion 7

B Tier :
1:57 MacBook Pro 16
3:42 Prometheus 17
7:28 Acer Nitro 5
9:56 ASUS Zephyrus G14
16:27 ASUS Zephyrus S17
19:54 ASUS Zephyrus G15 AMD
26:09 AERO 15 BBB27:13 MSI GF66
30:01 HP Omen 15

C Tier :
1:11 Alienware X15
2:49 Prometheus 16
14:29 Dell G15
17:47 ASUS Zephyrus M16
19:04 ROG STRIX Scar G15
25:52 Aorus 17G
26:42 MSI GE 76

D Tier :
6:45 Acer Triton 500 SE
13:43 Alienware M15 R6
20:46 ASUS Zephyrus Duo 15 SE
23:47 Dell XPS 15
24:59 Dell XPS 17
25:24 Aorus 15G

E Tier :
12:25 Alienware M15 R5
15:44 ASUS Dash F15
28:47 HP Victus

F Tier :
5:21 Acer Triton 300 SE
28:37 MSI Stealth 15M

[suyogghosh]

I really wish Dave just gives a one liner long term review of every laptop he includes in this list. People really like to know how the laptop is performing after one year.

[stc]

How to become S tier: paint your laptop white!

[Lasershot]

I 100% agree with the treatment the Dell XPS got. Extremely lazy work from Dell, and I’ve been a fan of that lineup for years.

Would’ve loved to see where you would have put the Surface Laptop Studio, but I guess it would’ve been an “F” because of the quad-core chip !

[Sumitssj]

Its just really fascinating that most of Dave's choices on the chart ends up making a bell curve distribution (:

[jjlm]

I bought a Legion 5 based on Dave's review and it has not disappointed, one of the best budget laptops I have even owned. Thank you Dave. We appreciate your honesty always.

[OotoriKyouya]

I bought the G14 this year and I would make the case for A tier for two reasons.

1. The QHD 120hz model does not have the ghosting issues that the FHD 2020 model had last year.
2. It has a Print Screen button.

[TotallyURGrandpa]

Loving my Zephyrus G15. It's been really great for uni and playing games. Also, I feel like both of the MacBooks should be bumped up a tier. They're expensive, but nothing else has the battery life + the performance in the same package. I also think that the Zephyrus G14 should be at least an A. The major complaint that Dave had (the slow screen) was fixed in the 2021 model.

[fabbenation]

I just got an ABSOLUTE steal deal on a stock clearance on Lenovo Legion 5 with RTX 2060, Ryzen 7 4800h, 16GB RAM for 700$ brand new. This is my first laptop ever and i am SO happy with my purchase!