Best Gaming Laptop Under $500: HP 14, Lenovo IdeaPad 3, Acer Aspire 5

This article will help you find the best gaming laptop under 500 USD to meet your needs. Each of the five budget gaming laptops listed has different strengths and weaknesses, as well as different retail prices. Our reviews focus on specifications such as GPU, CPU, memory, and display to help you decide between them. The Best Gaming Laptop Under $500

The Best Gaming Laptop Under $500

HP 14

This HP 14 is our pick for the best gaming laptop under $500 currently available. The laptop comes with an AMD Ryzen 5 5500U processor with Vega 7 integrated graphics, 8GB of DDR4 memory, and a 256GB SSD. It also comes with a 14-inch 1080P display and Windows 11. And, it weighs in at just under 3.5 pounds.

A case could be made for our Runner-Up pick listed below, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3, as it essentially offers the same specs as this HP laptop, with the only difference being that the IdeaPad 3 has an Intel Core i3-1115G4 processor and a 15.6-inch screen.

So, if you prefer a bigger screen and/or an Intel processor, the IdeaPad listed below might be the better option for you. However, the better GPU on the Ryzen 5 5500U and the lower pricetag help make the HP 14 the best option under $500 as of right now.

Lenovo IdeaPad 3 Laptop

Our Runner-Up pick is as about as good of a sub-$500 gaming laptop as you’ll find. As we pointed out above, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 has essentially the same specs as the HP 14. It comes with an Intel Core i3-1115G4 CPU that has Intel UHD integrated graphics on it. It also has a 15.6″ 1080P display, too. Like the HP 14, it also comes with a 256GB SSD and 8GB of RAM.

However, if gaming is your primary concern, the integrated graphics that the Ryzen 5 5500U in the HP 14 will be more powerful than the integrated graphics found on the Intel processor in this Lenovo laptop. And, since the HP 14 comes in at ~$50 cheaper, we felt it was the better option right now for gamers.

Ultimately, this Lenovo IdeaPad 3 is a solid sub-$500 laptop that will work well for playing non-demanding games. However, if you’re looking for a better overall option for gaming, the HP 14 is probably your best bet.

Acer Aspire 5 A515-46-R3UB

If you’re looking for an even more affordable laptop, the Acer Aspire 5 is an option worth considering. The Aspire 5 comes with an AMD Ryzen 3 3350U processor that has Vega 6 integrated graphics on it. It also comes with a 128GB SSD and 4GB of DDR4 RAM.

While the performance on this Acer laptop will lag behind the options listed above, it does come with a significantly lower price tag. In fact, you can grab this laptop for a little over ~$350.

Of course, the downside of this option is the fact that it only has 4GB of RAM. This will hurt it quite a bit, even in non-demanding titles. However, with settings turned down, this laptop should still be able to handle games like League of Legends. And, if you are willing to install an additional 4GB of RAM (~$20), you can help mitigate that performance loss.

Dell Inspiron 3000

Dell’s Inspiron 3000 is probably the best option on this list if you require a lot of storage. The Inspiron comes with 8GB of DDR4 memory, a 2TB hard drive, and Windows 10 Home.

And, its Intel Core i5-7200U and integrated Intel HD 620 graphics are good enough to push most games on at least lower-to-medium settings on its 1366×768 screen.

However, in terms of in-game performance, the Vega 8 integrated graphics on the Ryzen 5 2500U that is found on our top two picks on this list will offer similar-or-better performance on a 1080P display. So, whereas this Dell Inspiron 3000 might serve well for running non-demanding games on a 1366 x 768 laptop, the Lenovo Ideapad and Dell Inspiron 15 will be able to run most games on a higher resolution display.

Intel i3-7100U

Another ultra-cheap sub-$400 laptop that could work for light gaming is the HP 14-CF0014DX. Like the Acer Aspire 3, the HP 14-CF0014DX comes in at ~$460. However, unlike the Acer Aspire 3, this HP laptop opts for an Intel Core processor (an i3-7100U) instead of an AMD processor.

The i3-7100U comes with Intel HD 620 integrated graphics which are on par with the Vega 3 integrated graphics that come on the Ryzen 3 2200U processor found in the Acer Aspire 3.

And, since this HP laptop also comes with a 1366 x 768 display, both this laptop and the Acer Aspire 3 should perform fairly similarly in games. This laptop does come with a 128GB SSD, though, whereas the Aspire 3 comes with a 1TB hard drive. So, if you need more storage, this HP laptop might be the better option.

HP Pavilion Gaming 15

Although every laptop on this list can very much be categorized as a budget gaming laptop, the HP Pavilion is one of the more expensive in the price range. It has a 15.6” FHD IPS screen. It has one of the more interesting designs, it is black with a green HP logo. The keyboard is backlit and features green edges on the keys.

This uses the Windows 10 operating system and has an average battery life of six hours. It uses an Intel Core i5-9300H processor and an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 GPU, both of which are great for gaming.

This cheap gaming laptop has a backlit keyboard, which also features a numeric keypad. Its Hard disk size is 256GB and it is a particularly lightweight gaming laptop.

ASUS F512DA EB51 VivoBook

The Asus F512DA-EB51 VivoBook is a reasonably priced budget gaming laptop that has a Windows 10 Home operating system. Asus is a popular laptop brand, this model has a 15.6” full HD display.

It features an AMD CPU and AMD Radeon Vega 8 GPU. With a backlit keyboard and slate gray design, this is a sleek and modern laptop. Its ErgoLift design improves typing position, which will make long gaming sessions more comfortable.

It is lightweight and easy to transport. With 8GB RAM and speed, and storage of 256GB, it is a great choice overall.

Asus TUF FX505DT

The Asus TUF FX505DT is the most expensive gaming laptop we have featured in this article, however, it is certainly great value for money. It is all black and uses a backlit keyboard.

The Asus runs on a Windows 10 Home operating system and features an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 GPU. The CPU is an AMD Quad-Core Ryzen 5 3550H.

It has a computer memory size of 8GB, and the screen size is 15.6”, with FHD Display. The Asus TUF uses DTS surround sound and has a hard disk size of 256GB.

Lenovo IdeaPad L340

The Lenovo IdeaPad L340 gaming laptop has a 15.6” Full HD display, with a 1920 x 1080 resolution. It is all black and the keyboard buttons have blue edges which add a pop of color.

It features a windows 10 operating system and has a computer memory side of 8GB. The Lenovo uses a 9th Gen Intel Core i5-9300HF mobile processor. The graphics card is an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650.

Weighing only 6.93 pounds it is fairly lightweight. It has a 256GB solid-state drive and is created by a popular laptop brand.

What is the #1 gaming laptop?

Whatever config you pick, we think the Razer Blade 15 is the overall best gaming laptop on the market right now, though you will be paying a premium for the now-classic design. Read our full Razer Blade 15 Advanced Edition (2020) review.

Can a 500 dollar laptop run fortnite?

Despite the recommended specs, to play Fortnite at 60 fps on Medium settings at 1080p, you need at least an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 with 2GB of VRAM, which is where the trouble with the pricing comes in. If you’re tied to a $500 price range, you can get the Asus VivoBook F510UA for $509 on Amazon right now.

Is 8GB RAM enough for gaming?

8GB of RAM is the minimum amount of RAM for any gaming PC. With 8GB RAM, you will be able to play most released games without many problems, but some games might not play at the highest quality, and you might have to shut down other applications.

Are Chromebooks good for gaming?

However, just about any existing Chromebook can serve as a gaming laptop if you know a few cheat codes. For instance, Chromebooks run Android games — some of which are optimized for Chrome OS. There’s also Google Stadia and GeForce NOW cloud gaming for those who want to game beyond the Play Store.