The 7 Best Gaming Laptops of 2025: Check these top 10 options with advanced features for gaming, entertainment and everyday work

The gaming industry continues to expand, with an increasing number of people turning to video games for entertainment. As the industry grows, the technology behind these gaming experiences evolves as well. Laptops are becoming increasingly powerful, making them ideal for gaming on the go.

If you’re looking for a gaming laptop in 2025, there are a number of high-performance options to choose from, depending on your budget and preferences. Choosing a new gaming laptop can feel overwhelming, especially with new models featuring the latest hardware hitting the market regularly. Gaming enthusiasts will enjoy the cutting-edge graphics and seamless performance, while professionals and casual users will appreciate the versatility and portability these models offer. Whether you’re into video editing, gaming, or casual web browsing, there’s a laptop for everyone.  

Explore the 7 Best Gaming Laptops of 2025, equipped with powerful processors, advanced graphics, and long-lasting batteries. Ideal for gaming, entertainment, and productivity, these 10 standout models offer outstanding performance, stylish designs, and innovative features to satisfy the needs of all users.

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1. Alienware m18 R2

An 18-inch laptop is typically meant to stay on your desk, and the Alienware m18 R2 is well-suited for that purpose. Weighing in at 8.63 pounds, it’s quite heavy, but it offers impressive gaming performance on a large, high-resolution display.

While a gaming laptop can’t match a desktop in terms of upgradeability, the Alienware m18 R2 still impresses. Inside, we found plenty of additional slots for M.2 SSDs, slotted RAM, a replaceable Wi-Fi card, and the battery.

The laptop has a solid build with ample aluminum along the frame, which contributes to its heavier weight. One standout feature is the Cherry MX low-profile mechanical keyboard, which is excellent for both typing and gaming. The $50 upgrade is worth it, and we wish more laptops offered mechanical keyboard options. Unlike the MSI Titan, Alienware’s keyboard covers every key.

That said, there are a few downsides. The display, while functional, doesn’t reach the brightness levels of some OLED screens. Also, although most gamers will use an external mouse, the touchpad could be improved. Despite these minor issues, the overall build quality, performance, and upgradability make the Alienware m18 R2 a top contender in our eyes.

Display choices include a 480Hz FHD+ and a 165Hz QHD+ IPS panel, both offering fast response times and VRR support. It delivers performance comparable to the Blade 18, so you won’t be sacrificing power. However, its build quality feels less premium, and the displays are dimmer, which could cause glare in bright environments. Additionally, this model is bulkier and heavier than the Razer, making it less ideal for portability.

2. Lenovo Legion 9i (Gen 9)

The Legion 9i (Gen 9) currently comes equipped with the 14th Gen i9-14900HX CPU and an RTX 4090 Laptop GPU as standard. You can also upgrade the RAM and SSD post-purchase to save money at checkout.

Lenovo is known for quickly updating its premium gaming laptops, and it has now released the Legion 9i (Gen 9). The key takeaway when comparing the Gen 8 and Gen 9 versions is that the new model hasn’t changed much in terms of design. Lenovo’s main update was switching from 13th Gen to 14th Gen Intel CPUs, rather than a full redesign.

“It can easily handle demanding ultra graphics settings in the latest video games while providing smooth gameplay and a steady frame rate of around 60 FPS.”

Battery life isn’t stellar due to the laptop’s powerful components and display, but that’s typical for a gaming laptop. Speaking of the display, the 16-inch screen is one of the best for those interested in mini-LED technology. It boasts a 3200×2000 (3.2K) resolution, an anti-glare finish, a 165Hz refresh rate, Dolby Vision, DisplayHDR 1000, G-Sync, Advanced Optimus, and 1,536 local dimming zones. We recorded nearly 700 nits of brightness in SDR mode, making it one of the brightest laptop screens available.

The Legion 9i is powered by a 14th Gen Intel Core i9-14900HX CPU and up to an NVIDIA RTX 4090 Laptop GPU. Additionally, the DDR5 RAM and M.2 SSD are upgradeable, allowing you to save money at checkout and upgrade the components later when you find a good deal.

3- MSI Katana A15 AI (2024)

One of the 7 Best Gaming Laptops of 2025 is MSI Katana A15 AI (2024) is the best budget gaming laptop we’ve tested. While there’s nothing particularly standout about this 15-inch model, it effectively gets the job done. Configured with up to an AMD Ryzen 9 8945HS CPU and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Laptop GPU, it provides smooth gameplay in demanding AAA titles. However, compromises are evident in its build quality and overall user experience. The plastic chassis has some flex, particularly around the display, and the hinges feel slightly loose. The laptop also tends to get quite hot and loud under heavy load, with a noticeable hot spot in the center of the keyboard.

The display options include a 144Hz FHD or 165Hz QHD panel. The QHD option offers a better gaming experience with faster response times, resulting in a clearer image and less ghosting in fast-moving scenes. It also features better color reproduction, making colors more vibrant than the FHD panel, which tends to look dull and inaccurate. One downside is that while the laptop supports Wi-Fi 6E, it lacks an Ethernet port.

4. Gigabyte Aorus 16X

Priced at $1,599.99 as tested, the Gigabyte Aorus 16X delivers an impressive array of features in its 16-inch frame.

The laptop boasts a vibrant 2560 x 1600 display with a 165Hz refresh rate, perfect for smooth gameplay in first-person shooters and esports. Its Core i7-14650HX CPU and GeForce RTX 4070 GPU easily handle demanding games on this impressive screen, and the built-in speakers are good enough that you won’t always need headphones in a pinch.

On the practical side, the Aorus 16X offers responsive input devices, excellent connectivity (including Thunderbolt 4 and Wi-Fi 7), and biometric security via its IR webcam. Many midrange gaming laptops skip biometric features, so it’s a welcome addition here.

While you’ll still need to carry the charger, and Gigabyte’s software could be more user-friendly, if you’re looking for powerful gaming performance on a high-quality display at a reasonable price, it’s tough to beat what this laptop offers.

5- Razer Blade 18 (2024)

The best gaming laptop we’ve tested is the Razer Blade 18 (2024). If you’re ready to invest in a premium model, this is the one to choose. It features an all-aluminum chassis that feels incredibly durable, matching the build quality of Apple MacBook Pros. With an 18-inch display, it offers an incredibly immersive gaming experience, though its size makes it less portable, making it a poor choice for frequent travel. Configurable with up to an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090, this laptop has the power to deliver smooth gameplay in even the most demanding AAA titles like Cyberpunk 2077. However, the downside is that the fans get quite loud, reaching 57.0 dBA at full speed.

You can opt for either a 300Hz QHD+ Mini LED display or a 200Hz 4K+ IPS display; both offer fast response times and G-SYNC support. The 300Hz QHD+ Mini LED is the better option, as the higher refresh rate improves input responsiveness and motion smoothness, while the Mini LED backlight provides deeper blacks, enhancing gaming in darker environments. The 4K+ panel is still great but harder to drive, leading to lower frame rates, and the increased resolution isn’t immediately noticeable on an 18-inch screen. For online gaming, the laptop includes a 2.5Gbps Ethernet port and Wi-Fi 7 for a fast, low-latency connection. And, of course, it features RGB backlighting—it’s a Razer, after all.

6. Asus TUF Gaming A14

While Asus has typically positioned its TUF Gaming brand as a budget-friendly option, the A14 feels anything but. In fact, it’s our favorite 14-inch laptop we’ve tested recently, standing out in an increasingly competitive category.

Its sleek design seems to take cues from the more premium Zephyrus lineup. Despite being equipped with an RTX 4060 in our review model, the TUF A14 weighs just 3.22 pounds and measures 0.78 inches thick, making it comparable in size to some ultrabooks.

When not in gaming use, the A14 switches to Nvidia’s Advanced Optimus, utilizing integrated graphics and achieving an impressive 10 hours and 4 minutes of battery life during our test, which included web browsing, streaming, and browser-based graphics tasks.