If you are looking for the best laptops for graphic design as Beginners then MacBook Pro is the most popular laptop among graphic designers. we can help as we have rounded up some amazing laptops that will help jumpstart your creative work no matter where you are.
If you’re a professional graphic designer, buying a powerful, yet portable, laptop for work can be one of the best investments you can make.
This allows you to work on more projects and can generate more clients, which justifies the sometimes high prices of these graphic design laptops.
The laptops on this list are available everywhere in the USA and UK Canada also these laptops offer enough power to easily handle creative applications, reducing the time it takes to complete complex tasks and speeding up workflow.
The laptops on this page are not only powerful, but they come with beautiful displays so your creative work shines through, while the slim, lightweight designs and long battery life allow you to get creative no matter where you are.
Top 8 Best Laptop for Graphic Design as Beginners
The best laptops for graphic design aren’t just for professionals, we also have options for beginners and students. We also have a very popular list of the best laptops for video editing that are worth checking out.
Because there are so many great laptops out there, we’re here to help make choosing the best hp laptop for graphic design as easy as possible, We give you clear buying advice for a variety of budgets.
1. MacBook Pro 16 Laptop for Graphic Design
It might come as no surprise that the MacBook Pro is my first pick, as it is still considered the best laptop for designers.
MacBook Pro is the most popular laptop among graphic designers. Additionally, Apple managed to keep the iconic design light and slim while increasing the screen size.
As Apple says in its press release designed for developers, photographers, filmmakers, scientists, music producers, and anyone who relies on a Mac to create the best work of their life.
This MacBook is blazing fast, has a bigger battery, incredible speakers, and tons of storage. I wasn’t always a fan of Apple, but I remember when I got my first Macbook Pro about a decade ago, and I’ve never looked back since.
Do you need a touch screen for graphic design? I don’t prefer a touch screen to a normal one for graphic design. MacBook Pro is also a great option for anyone looking to run Adobe CC applications like Photoshop or Illustrator.
The 16 MacBook Pro is a very powerful laptop thanks to the perfect combination of the 8 Core processor and a ton of RAM to run graphic design software smoothly.
This specific MacBook comes with a larger screen than its previous models, giving you more room to work.
2. Dell XPS 15 9500 Best Laptop for Graphic Design Beginners
If you are not an Apple fan but don’t mind spending more on a quality laptop, then Dell XPS is your best option. The most decent laptop for creatives who value quality and design.
This Dell laptop is perfect for graphic design, combining powerful components into a slim, light and very stylish design, making it a great choice for all creatives.
Dell XPS most decent laptop for creatives who value quality and design. This Dell marks everything a designer would look for in a laptop.
With a 15.6-inch screen and a discrete Nvidia graphics card, it is a perfect choice for graphic designers doing intensive creative work.
The latest Intel technology makes this laptop slick with images, video editing software, and some games as well. Looking for the best laptop for graphic design beginners? Look no further.
Solid performance in a beautiful design for those who don’t mind spending over $ 2000 on a quality machine. Overall, the Dell XPS 15 9500 is a powerful machine that is affordable and efficient.
3. HP Envy X360 Best Hp Laptop for Graphic Design
If you’re a designer who needs a laptop that looks and feels premium but doesn’t go broke, the HP Envy X360 is a great choice. The best versatile and affordable laptop for graphic designers.
As the name suggests, other designers will envy the new 2-in-1 laptop that you can flip over and use as a tablet too.
Thanks to its great design and excellent performance, it is the perfect choice for creatives who cannot afford to spend more than $ 2000 on a Macbook.
The 15 touchscreen is very bright with a wide color spectrum, making the HP Envy X360 a perfect choice if you are looking for a laptop for drawing.
You can also buy a ballpoint pen from HP that allows you to easily create beautiful illustrations. But The most exciting aspect of this laptop is probably what’s inside for this price
AMD’s Ryzen 4000 series, which can multitask quickly and easily. And if you also love games, here you will also get performance.
Is the gaming laptop good for graphic design? It is, and the HP Envy X360 is a great example. Overall, the HP Envy X360 is the best budget laptop for graphic design you can buy in 2021.
4. Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 Budget Laptop for Graphic Design
If you are not a fan of Apple, then you might consider Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 as the best laptop for graphic design beginners. This laptop from Microsoft is not only a great budget option, but it also comes with a very beautiful design.
Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 For creatives who aren’t Apple fans, think of Microsoft’s Macbook. In terms of design, it looks like a Macbook and does so in many ways.
The apple-like aluminum body gives this laptop a premium, familiar feel and protects what’s inside well at the same time.
As with the Macbook, you can choose from a variety of sophisticated-looking colors: Cobalt Blue, Matte Black, Platinum, and Sandstone.
Inside you’ll find a powerful processor that renders graphics and ensures minimal lag when using Adobe CC products.
What is very interesting about this laptop is the new fast-charge function that allows an 80% charge in less than an hour!
5. Gigabyte Aero 17 laptop for graphic designers
If you’re looking for one of the latest pieces of high configuration laptops for graphic designers with a powerful engine and a great display, consider the new Gigabyte Aero 17 just released in 2021.
The most powerful laptop for 3D designers and video editors. This laptop offers you everything you need when it comes to portable computing.
Gigabyte Aero 17 is the most powerful laptop for 3D designers and video editors. This laptop has ultra-light but offers you the power and speed optimized for high-resolution playback of your creative projects.
It also offers excellent refresh rates for playing your favorite AAA games. This uncompromising laptop is a versatile workhorse designed for modern professionals on the go.
You can get up to 1TB of disk storage, which is useful for heavy video or 3D model renderings. And the 17.3 inches of space it can use, what more would a graphic designer need in a laptop?
This laptop comes with Average battery life of 10.5 hours is extremely attractive to graphic designers who need a mobile version of their powerful desktop computer.
6. Razer Blade 15 Laptop for Graphic Design and Gaming
If you are a designer who also likes games, the Razer Blade 15 is a wonderful choice. The best laptop for gamers and designers.
This is a well-built, stylish, and compact laptop with great performance and an affordable price. With a beautiful Full HD display that provides an immersive and incredibly fast visual experience for gaming and design.
Play or create with the colorful and accurate images on the slim bezel, factory calibrated 15.6 ”screen, with support for up to 100% sRGB color!
Probably the only downside to the Razer Blade 15 is its low battery life of 5-6 hours. However, it has exceptionally better hardware than the much more expensive Macbook Pro.
And hardware optimization is a very important element to consider when choosing a laptop for your graphic design work.
This laptop is fully equipped with Wi-Fi 6, Gigabit Ethernet, Thunderbolt 3, USB Type-A and Type-C ports, and HDMI, all of which give you a desktop-like experience.
And a cool feature is that you can customize the keyboard backlight color, making the Razer Blade 15 uniquely yours.
7. Lenovo ThinkPad E15 Laptop for Graphic Design
Lenovo ThinkPad P1 is another great for high-end laptop graphic designers who need a powerful and portable machine. Best for professional designers and content creators.
If you prefer Windows, this laptop is a stylish choice: powerful processors and great battery life in a unique and sophisticated design.
The combination of professional-grade graphics, up to 32GB of RAM, and options for Intel Xeon processors make this Lenovo ThinkPad an extremely powerful laptop.
And yet, despite its attractive looks and impressive performance, it remains affordable and represents a real value for any discerning graphic designer.
The Lenovo ThinkPad E15 offers the same kind of performance that you would expect from a powerful desktop workstation.
But unlike a desktop computer, it is portable, allowing you to work on the road or travel with it. Best of all, this laptop is built to withstand just about anything you can throw at it, even water.
It has been shown to work in almost any environment, from cold to dry heat. So even accidental bumps drop, and spills don’t impede its operation.
What’s more, it also offers a range of ports so you don’t have to buy any additional accessories to connect your other devices like hard drives, cameras, etc.
Overall, Lenovo ThinkPad E15 is perfect for working with multimedia. Is Lenovo good at graphic design? It certainly is and the ThinkPad E15 serves as a great example. low-power FHD display option to improve battery life.
8. MacBook Air Budget Laptop for Graphic Design
MacBook Air is an inexpensive version of Apple products and could be a good option for the best laptops for graphic design as Beginners who do not need a super-powerful Macbook Pro. The most affordable laptop for everyday graphic design jobs.
Previous versions of the MacBook Air weren’t powerful enough to handle advanced graphic design software like Adobe CC.
But this latest model comes with the same Apple M1 chip that’s in the more expensive 13.3-inch MacBook Pro, which I mentioned earlier on this list.
Having the same M1 chip means that this Apple MacBook Air is just as powerful as the MacBook Pro but much cheaper.
In addition, it has a fanless design, which guarantees total silence during use, without overheating.
This Macbook also has a wider color palette on display, up to 25% more colors than sRGB, which matters to graphic designers.
However, don’t expect it to be a good choice if you’re into heavy design work like video editing or 3D rendering.
MacBook Air is a good option for those who do simple graphic design work, such as branding, logo, or web design.
It comes packed with a ton of features that Apple is known for: Touch ID, Truetone technology, Force Touch trackpad, WI-FI 6, USB 4, and many more.
What to Look for Before Buying Best Laptop for Graphic Design Beginners?
The screen is an important part of the graphic design notebook and, in the case of photography, it is the highest priority and the most significant aspect.
Most of the laptops on the market are equipped with inexpensive TN matrices, which is fine if you need a good gaming laptop under $ 2000, but completely unsuitable for graphics work.
Artistic photo post-processing requires accurate color reproduction, which only an IPS matrix can provide. Let’s take a closer look at the features of such technology.
Viewing angles are increased up to 178 degrees both vertically and horizontally with a negligible drop in contrast. The extended color gamut corresponds to sRGB and Adobe RGB schemes.
The color depth reaches 8 bits per channel and more, which corresponds to 16.7 million colors. The high brightness and contrast of the screen are also important for the best graphic design notebooks.
The size of the laptop screen for working in Photoshop is selected individually. The 14-inch models and notebooks with a diagonal of up to 15.6 inches inclusive are compact and lightweight.
But it is not always convenient to work on a small screen; Laptops with 17-inch screens are preferable. However, the size of the matrix is not a critical parameter and does not affect the amount of content that can fit on the screen.
More important is the physical resolution that determines the number of items displayed. Screen resolution is the density of pixels (dots) per inch. The higher the index, the more information will be located on the screen.
In addition, the high resolution provides better image quality, offers smooth color transitions, and contributes to the clear display of graphic elements.
These characteristics should be considered when selecting the best laptop under $ 2000 for graphic design. Despite the smaller size of the screen, the screen with a diagonal of 15.6 inches and a resolution of 1920 × 1080
Pixels can accommodate a larger image with all graphic elements than the 17.3-inch model with a 1650 × 1080 resolution capability.
Processor. To process graphics in Adobe Photoshop CC programs, you will need a 2-core processor, optimally 4-core or more, with a memory clock of not less than 2 Hz.
A series of Pentium processors is an inexpensive variant that meets the requirements of minimal Photoshop and will be suitable for laptops for graphic design.
AMD’s are modern chips that have sufficient performance but are inferior to competing Intel analogs. Its weak point is energy efficiency.
Intel chips are of the latest generation, created according to a modern technological process. They have decent performance and moderate power consumption. The range includes the high-performance i3, i5, and i7 chips.
Graphics card. Photoshop and design programs are demanding on a laptop’s GPU core. If you use an outdated integrated video chip or do not have enough video memory, some image processing functions will not be available in graphics programs.
For a complete job in Photoshop, a powerful graphics engine compatible with game models is required. The perfect variant of the best hybrid laptop for designers is a discrete graphics card with 521MB of memory.
Also, 2GB for Full HD resolution, 4GB for HD, and 4K UHD are recommended.
Storage space. Before choosing the best laptop for drawing, it is worth clarifying the type and size of memory. The indicator determines the space available to install graphical programs, plug-ins, and add-ons.
RAM. The RAM is intended to download temporary information when the program is running. To work with graphics programs, a minimum of 4 GB is recommended, preferably 8 GB or more.
Disk space. HDD and SSD are permanent storage media for applications and photo files, as well as for operating system installation. For Photoshop, it is preferable to choose discs with a volume of at least 256 GB.
When choosing the best touchscreen laptop for graphics, go for solid-state SSDs that are reliable and have fast charging speed.
Connection interface. You can make the photo editing process even more interesting and expand the opportunities by connecting a graphic design laptop to an external monitor.
A connection is made in several ways. HDMI and VGA are the most common connections, as they are compatible with most models.
DVI-D is different in its support for high-definition images with a sync frequency of up to 240 Hz. DisplayPort is characterized by high-speed data transmission.
USB Type-C or USB-C are used to connect both peripheral devices and laptops, replacing various Type A and B cables and connectors from previous USB standards and providing future expansion opportunities.
People often asked these Questions
Which Processor is best for Graphic Designing
The graphics designer needs a 2-core processor and therefore best started with CPUs that offer higher clock speeds for the single-core and even support overclocking. Therefore, an 8-core processor might not be the most profitable bet for a graphic designer and would not offer any additional benefits compared to a Hexa-Core i7 processor.
How much Ram do I need for Graphic Design?
When it comes to graphic design, it’s the CPU that does most of the heavy lifting. However, in case you are working with applications like Photoshop and Illustrator at the same time, the complexity of multitasking could consume the memory of the system. Therefore, additional RAM is always recommended for a more professional setup, just to make sure the system doesn’t lag or freeze.
You Should Invest in a Good Screen?
A good display helps you understand the color contrast and saturation levels of the design. Therefore, while a Full HD panel is a bare minimum to at least verify the brightness of vector and raster designs, it is necessary to have at least a 72 percent NTSC color gamut or a 100 percent sRGB color gamut. cent for best results.
Is it a must-Have SSD for Graphic Design?
A good laptop for graphic design should have a fast solid-state drive, although it can also work with a hard disk drive. SSDs, especially those with NVMe technology, load data, files, and application programs faster than a conventional HDD. This feature is useful if you are constantly traveling and looking to save charging times.
Conclusion
According to experts, graphic design is not a very demanding process and can be carried out professionally if the laptop has a powerful processor.
However, depending on aligned preferences, additional skill sets, and budget, you can always focus on the best possible laptop by carefully analyzing the above-mentioned laptops.
If you are looking for a complete laptop that can even double as a leisure gaming machine, the Razer Blade 15 is the best option to look at.
If you think the 16GB RAM could easily be depleted based on your multitasking preferences, Lenovo’s Legion Y540 is a better option.
If you’re still looking for decent gaming performance without overdoing it in the GPU department, the MSI GF63 Thin is a preferred choice.
If screen size isn’t a factor, Microsoft’s Surface Laptop 3 is one of the best-looking laptops for professional graphic designers.
In case you are looking for a professional device to work from your home office, you should consider purchasing the Dell XPS 15 9500.