Best Ultrabooks 2024: The top 7 thin-and-light devices

Intel Core Ultra is here and it’s apt that the pioneer of the “Ultrabook” term has produced an excellent one that dons its new chip with a similarly “Ultra”-flavoured moniker. The Asus Zenbook 14 OLED is our pick for the best overall ultrabook.

The Zenbook range has been on a tear over the last couple of years, with the 13-inch “S” model gaining plenty of praise. But, over the last year, the 14-incher has come to the fore. This model sports the new Core Ultra range, it’s Intel’s attempt at adding some graphical grunt to its premium thin-and-light options, taking on the MacBook Air. The Zenbook 14 OLED is a stunning showcase for it, absolutely ripping through productivity tasking and letting you dabble in both gaming and creative work.

Of course, this is an ultrabook so being thin and light is a key factor. Despite its solid power, the Asus weighs just 1.29kg and comes in at 15mm thin. It is stunningly sleek and portable. In the thin lid, another gem of a feature is hiding, a 14-inch 2.8K 120Hz OLED. The combination of specifications means you get lush visuals across games, movies and your day-to-day tasking. While the OLED technology means its tremedously colour accurate for creatives too.

Ultrabook stands for strong battery life too, and the new Core Ultra chips have boosted the offerings from Intel’s flagship Window laptop devices. The Zenbook 14 OLED comes in at around 13 hours, which is up there with the best of them on Windows, and comes within a few hours of touching distance with the wondrous MacBook Air’s battery life.

Reviewer: Stuart Andrews
Full Review: Asus Zenbook 14 OLED Review

Ultrabook may be an Intel invention, and Team Blue is now no longer part of the Apple family, but not many devices ooze the ultrabook sentiment quite like the 13-inch MacBook Air M3.

The previous M2 Air model was already one of the very best thin-and-light laptops you can buy but the iterative boost offered by the M3 takes it to an even higher level, even if it isn’t a huge one. It’s portable chops come in the form of a sleek 11.3mm and 1.24kg weight, that’s enhanced by just how premium this all-metal machine feels.

The new model of the MacBook Air continues to be awe-inspiring in terms of the power it can offer without a fan, achieving something Windows machines still struggle to compete with, especially when the Air can run extremely well off power, unlike significantly reduced Windows picks. Our 16GB unified memory model is able to absolutely dominate productivity tasks without blinking while its stunningly capable for creative tasks, topping many key rivals comfortably in our benchmark testing.

No devices meet the ultrabook sentiment of top-tier battery life in a thin and light form factor quite like the MacBook Air. The M3 manages to offer around 15 hours of web browsing and 18 hours of video streaming.

Reviewer: Max Parker
Full Review: Apple MacBook Air (M3) Review

The Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 is a tiny laptop, with a screen size of just 12 inches. This arguably makes it the most portable laptop on this best ultrabook list, even if it isn’t quite the lightest or thinnest. 

But the most appealing factor of the Surface Laptop Go 2 is its price, making it the most affordable laptop on this list by a considerable margin. With a similar price to a Chromebook, this is an excellent choice for both students and those on a budget. 

Why is this laptop so cheap? Well, our benchmark results show it’s the slowest laptop on this list (but still fine enough for productivity tasks) while the low screen resolution makes it a poor choice for those who like to watch the likes of Netflix and Disney Plus on their laptop.

But considering the low price and its superb portability prowess, the Surface Laptop Go 2 is still a fantastic option for those looking for one of the best ultrabooks laptops available. 

Reviewer: Ryan Jones
Full Review: Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 Review

The term “16-inch ultrabook” feels like an odd one but we think the Acer Swift Edge 16 falls firmly into that bracket. It’s a device that comfortably fills the thin and light brief despite its huge display.

Like the LG Gram range, the Acer Swift Edge 16 aims to offer something breathtakingly light. This 16-inch laptop comes in at just 1.23kg and a 12.95mm thickness. Yup, those numbers are absolutely correct. Holding this device and carrying it around in a bag is truly something else. It’s hard to believe but this is an impressively thin and light machine for its size.

The large size enables a glorious 3.2K 120Hz OLED display. The OLED tech means you get popping colours and the high resolution brings bags of detail. It’s also impressively colour accurate for those who like to dabble in creative work.

We’re defying Intel’s ultrabook heritage once again by including this AMD offering on this list. The Ryzen 7 7840U inside enables comfortable productivity tasking while it provides surprisingly strong performance in multi-core testing. So, you can use this for light creative work and a smidgen of gaming too. Battery life is a bit short of traditional ultrabook standards, coming in at an average eight hours.

Reviewer: Adam Speight
Full Review: Acer Swift Edge 16 Review

The Samsung Galaxy Book 3 360 unfortunately lives in the shadow of the flagship Galaxy Book 3 Pro and Galaxy 3 Book 3 Ultra models, and it really shouldn’t. Its supremely thin, metal design is very high-quality, with the larger 15-inch model coming in at a reasonable 1.46kg and 13.7mm thin, while the smaller 13.3-inch offers a 1.16kg weight with a thickness of just 12.9mm. 

Being a 360 model, this laptop can be flipped around and used as a makeshift tablet. Pop it up in the tent position and watch media content, or flip it around completely and use the bundled S Pen to doodle or browse the web. We found that the S Pen offered accurate writing and drawing, with a nigh-flawless absence of lag, making it a great option for those who want to switch between productivity work to creative tasks. 

If you are creative then you will be very pleased to know that the Galaxy Book 3 360 managed to score 100%, 96% and 100% in our sRGB, Adobe RGB and DCI-P3 tests, respectively, making it more than serviceable for colour-sensitive workloads. Samsung opted for a Full HD (1920×1080) resolution, but that is massively enhanced by the underlying AMOLED technology, which made media content look sharp and vibrant. 

That being said, the internals of the Galaxy Book 3 360 do limit it slightly, but you should still be able to delve into some light creative tasks. The inclusion of the Raptor Lake Intel Core i5 processor makes it a fantastic productivity pick, though, with our reviewer noting that it ate up these tasks with ease. It had no trouble getting up to 20 browser tabs alongside multitasking without any hiccups, meaning that you will have no trouble taking it into your school or workplace. 

If you’re after a lightweight, hybrid laptop that won’t break the bank then the Samsung Galaxy Book 3 360 is one of the best recommendations you can find. It offers almost everything you could ask for when it comes to productivity and can handle smaller creative tasks thanks to its colour-accurate screen, with all the benefits of a two-in-one design.

Reviewer: Adam Speight
Full Review: Samsung Galaxy Book 3 360

While Windows may be the default operating system that we all turn to, the HP Dragonfly Pro Chromebook (2023) is still a fantastic ultrabook that should not be passed over. It runs on ChromeOS and comes with the Intel Evo certification, meaning that it has passed a number of tests set by Intel and is deemed to be the cream of the crop of lightweight laptops. 

In our tests, we found that the 12th-gen Intel Core i5 processor was more than powerful enough for a Chromebook. Unless you’re planning to do some serious multitasking and take on AAA games at a high frame rate, the Dragonfly Pro Chromebook has you covered, putting it quite far beyond the Chromebook’s traditional remit. 

The 14-inch touchscreen housed on the Dragonfly Pro Chromebook is seriously bright, at 1200 nits. It also packs a Quad HD+ resolution (2560×1600) that makes for a crisp and vibrant media experience. The multi-touch capabilities of the display worked very well for zooming in on photos, scrolling through web content and even playing touchscreen games from the Google Play Store, giving it a lot of versatility. 

Another interesting feature of the Dragonfly Pro Chromebook is the inclusion of RGB backlighting. Even though it’s not inherently geared towards gamers, it’s the first “non-gaming” Chromebook to have an RGB keyboard, adding an extra layer of customisation. The keyboard is lined with a pair of Bang & Olufsen speakers on either side of the keys, which we found had a great level of separation. The sound was very detailed and nuanced with plenty of discernable bass, meaning that you shouldn’t have to splurge on any external audio devices. 

As far as high-end Chromebooks go, the HP Dragonfly Pro Chromebook ticks almost every box. The reliable performance, great display and excellent audio quality make it a solid choice for productivity workers and one of the best Chromebooks on the market. 

Reviewer: Chris Smith
Full Review: HP Dragonfly Pro Chromebook (2023)

Not everyone can afford to splash out on the most expensive productivity laptop, which is why we’ve made sure to include one of the best budget ultrabooks on the market right now; the HP Chromebook x2 11. 

At just £499, it comes with a two-in-one design, allowing it to be used as both a tablet and a laptop. The tablet portion of the Chromebook x2 11 felt very solid to use and the detachable keyboard and rear cover attach via magnets, allowing for a secure connection during use.

The keyboard itself offered solid travel and a decent level of tactility, unlike some more affordable Chromebooks that we have tried. The downside is that it has been squished down to fit into an eleven-inch tablet chassis, so it might be an adjustment for those currently using a larger laptop. Thankfully, the touchpad offered excellent real estate for your fingers and provided some tactile feedback, even if it did feel a little hollow on occasion. 

The 11-inch display comes with an impressive Quad HD (1440p) resolution and a quoted 400 nits of brightness. It managed to produce some excellent detail with generally vibrant images and solid colours while streaming video content. 

Inside of the Chromebook x2 11 is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 7c processor. This chip is a couple of years old but it provides enough power for day-to-day tasks that Chromebooks are designed for; the laptop didn’t falter with multiple tabs open or during our industry-standard benchmark tests. 

Overall, if you’re looking for something that can handle intensive graphical workloads then the Apple MacBook Air 15-inch may be the better option, but for simple productivity workers, this laptop will work a treat. The solid keyboard, vibrant display and reliable performance combine to make a very capable laptop that has an easy-to-digest price to boot. 

Reviewer: Reece Bithrey
Full Review: HP Chromebook x2 11