When looking for a laptop, the first thing to consider is your budget. If you just want a basic laptop to browse the internet, then you can find something usable for even less than £200.
Whilst the majority of laptops will be more expensive than this, there are a few that fit into this price bracket. Sure, they’re not going to have much RAM (memory) and they won’t be great for people who use a lot of programs. But for casuals, a cheap laptop can be all you need on a daily basis.
But which laptops should you be considering if you’re looking to keep costs as low as possible? Well, here I’ll take a quick look at some of the best laptops under £200.
Best Laptop under £200
| Product | Image | Get More Info | Screen Size | Specs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lenovo IdeaPad 1 |  | Check Price at Amazon | 11.6 inch | 4GB/64GB |
| ASUS Chromebook C223NA |  | Check Price at Amazon | 11.6 inch | 4GB/32GB |
| HP 11a-nb0002na Chromebook |  | Check Price at Amazon | 11.6 inch | 4GB/32GB |
| ASUS VivoBook E402YA |  | Check Price at Amazon | 14 inch | 4GB/64GB |
| Lenovo Chromebook S345 |  | Check Price at Amazon | 14 inch | 4GB/32GB |
| Jumper FHD 13.3 inch laptop |  | Check Price at Amazon | 13.3 inch | 6GB/64GB |
Lenovo IdeaPad 1
Operating System: Windows | Screen size: 11.6 inch | RAM: 4GB | Storage: 64GB eMMC | Processor: AMD Athlon Silver | Average Battery Life: 6.5 hours
The Lenovo Ideapad series has long been one of the best places for you to find a budget laptop. The Ideapad 1 is their lowest costing model, and it is designed to be very simple yet enough for a casual laptop user.
This model comes with 4GB of RAM and a powerful enough AMD processor that work well together. Generally, their processors are considered to be equivalent to Intel nowadays, though they’re just cheaper to manufacture. Going for AMD is actually a great way to keep the costs down a bit.
It only has minimal storage space, but this is pretty typical when looking at laptops within this price range. There will be enough space for a limited amount of programs and files, and you should feel comfortable using Google Drive or an alternative if you want a cheap laptop.
It does have a relatively small 11 inch display, which may not quite be enough for some people. However, the quality is pretty good value for a small laptop like this one. It also has an above average battery life which is always nice to have.
Within this sort of price range, it’s really difficult to find anything better than the Ideapad 1. Backed up by a strong brand, it’s one of the most effective models out there right now.
Pros
Cons
Overall Verdict – One of the top options for anyone searching for a competent laptop that can cope with most activities.
ASUS Chromebook C223NA
Operating System: Chrome OS | Screen size: 11.6 inch | RAM: 4GB | Storage: 32GB eMMC | Processor: Intel Celeron | Average Battery Life: 6 hours
Another good Chromebook to take into consideration is this cheap ASUS option. Whilst it’s not the best about, it can certainly do a job if you’re just looking for something to browse the internet with.
In uses an Intel Celeron processor, with a good 4GB of RAM. This gives the laptop enough power to do most things very easily, and as long as you’re not doing anything too intensive on it, then you won’t have any issues at all.
The screen is actually pretty decent quality too, and it has an anti-glare coating to help prevent any sort of reflection coming back off its surface. It has a very narrow bezel edge, which means that the small display takes up most of the screen space, making the laptop itself very lightweight (less than a KG).
For the price, the overall build and layout of this laptop is very good. You can fell that it’s made to a fairly high standard, with the keyboard and touchpad both being very responsive. The keyboard particularly stands out, as it provides enough feedback and minimal travel too.
The main drawback of this laptop is the lack of storage space, but this is quite typical with Chromebooks, as the intention is for you to use Google Drive anyways. But in pretty much every other aspect, it does reasonably well and holds up as a solid Chromebook under £200.
Pros
Cons
Overall Verdict – As usual, the combination of Intel Celeron processor and 4GB RAM make this ASUS laptop a perfect budget buy if you’re after a lightweight laptop. Of course, you need to be okay with a smaller 11 inch display.
HP 11a-nb0002na Chromebook
Operating System: Chrome | Screen size: 11.6 inch | RAM: 4GB | Storage: 32GB eMMC | Processor: Intel Celeron | Average Battery Life: 6.5 hours
Let’s face it – when you’re on this kind of budget, there isn’t a great selection of laptops out there for you to choose from. However, one that you’ll definitely want to look at is this HP Chromebook, which you can find for a good price and offers excellent value for money.
One of the better things about this laptop is the full HD display, which is hard to beat for the price. It’s 768 pixels in total, so although it’s nowhere near a 4k model or anything like that, it’s good enough for this kind of size.
Another area where it’s particularly impressive is in its battery life, which is very respectable. This HP Chromebook has a fully integrated graphics card too, as well as an Intel processor and 4GB of RAM to back this all up. It only has 32GB of storage, so you’ll need to make the most of cloud storage with this laptop.
It doesn’t quite have a solid state disk, and you’ll have to make do with a small amount of storage. But, it’s a nippy little laptop that’s one of the top options out there if you consider its price.
Pros
Cons
Overall Verdict – This is definitely one of the best budget laptops you can find right now. It has a reasonable build quality and is perfect for web browsing.
ASUS VivoBook E402YA
Operating System: Windows | Screen size: 14 inch | RAM: 4GB | Storage: 64GB eMMC | Processor: AMD | Average Battery Life: 6 hours
When you’re trying to get a laptop for less than £200, there isn’t an abundance of options out there. However, I think I’ve found one of the best possible options out there in this ASUS Vivobook.
ASUS are pretty great for finding deals, as many of their laptops are cheap yet powerful enough to do a good job. This laptop has 4GB of RAM, which is enough for the large majority of people who will be using a laptop casually.
It also has 64GB of storage and an AMD processor which work together to give you a good user experience.
Another positive about this laptop is that it actually comes with Microsoft Office installed, with a licence for an entire year. For those who know how much a Microsoft licence costs, you’ll be pleased and probably a little bit surprised to find out that it’s included in the price.
It also uses the standard Windows 10 operating system, so you won’t get any surprises there. Actually, it’ll come installed with Windows 10 S, so you’ll need to switch this over to the full operating system. It only takes a few minutes to do this.
It has a 14 inch 768p display, which you can’t really argue for at this low price. For those looking for the best value for money, I’m pretty sure you won’t find anything better than this ASUS Vivobook.
Pros
Cons
Overall Verdict – Even though it’s within a cheap price range, it’s still a good budget laptop to opt for.
Lenovo Chromebook S345
Operating System: Chrome OS | Screen size: 14 inch | RAM: 4GB | Storage: 32GB eMMC | Processor: AMD A4 | Average Battery Life: 7 hours
For those looking for a simple every laptop, then it might be worth looking at the Lenovo Chromebook S345. It can do pretty much everything you would need it do quite easily, especially for people who want something lightweight and very easy to use.
This laptop has all of the ports that you’ll need – several USB ports, an audio jack, an SD reader and an audio jack should give you the ability to connect any of your devices. If not, then the Bluetooth capability will allow you to hook things up quite simply.
As well as these simple functionality, it also has all the necessary components of any decent laptop. 4GB of RAM is enough power to get things done, and combining this with the Chrome operating system makes for a seamless scrolling experience.
Although this is a cheap laptop, it actually feels like a more premium one with a slim design and a light 1.48KG weight. As well as this, the IPS display will give you a high-definition view of the screen. So all in all, this is one of the better choices if you’re looking for a low cost laptop for daily use.
Pros
Cons
Overall Verdict – If you’re looking for a cheap laptop that runs on the Chrome Operating System, this is a great option.
Jumper FHD 13.3 inch laptop
Operating System: Windows | Screen size: 13.3 inch | RAM: 6GB | Storage: 64GB eMMC | Processor: Intel | Average Battery Life: 4.5 hours
If you think that you might need a little bit more power, then it’s worth looking at a lesser known brand. A good choice for people who would like more than 4GB of RAM is this Jumper EZBook.
This 13 inch laptop has an extra 2GB of RAM in comparison to the other laptops mentioned, giving it a total of 6GB of RAM. This extra memory gives the laptop more ability to run higher intensity programs, or numerous programs at the same time.
Along with the increased RAM, it has a 128GB of storage space, however this can easily be increased up to 1TB later down the line if you do need to. You could also consider getting some external storage to use with it if necessary, though the amount it has should be okay for the average person.
It comes running on the Windows 10 operating system, which is what is probably best for the majority of people. And, it comes with a dual-core processor which will enable the laptop to deliver information quickly. It also uses an Intel dual core processor too.
Whilst this laptop might have a little lower battery life (with the most being around 6-7 hours from a full charge), it does make up for this in other areas. Along with the impressive specs, its slim design and lightweight build make it a great option for anyone looking for a cheap laptop less than £200.
Pros
Cons
Overall Verdict – This Jumper laptop is a safe buy if you’re looking for something good enough to use daily, even if you’re on a tight budget. It’s perfect for browsing the web.
Laptop Purchasing Guide – FAQs
How much RAM do I need on my laptop?
Generally for most people, I try to advise that you probably want a minimum of 4GB of RAM on your laptop. Whilst there are still 2GB RAM laptops out there, they’re really going to struggle to run larger programs. For some people who like to have a lot of programs open on their laptop or use files that take up a lot of RAM, an 8GB laptop would be a better choice.
How much should I spend on a laptop?
Really, you should always spend as much as you can afford. If you’re only going to be using your laptop for writing documents and browsing the internet, then you can opt for a cheap one that is less than £200. The issue comes where you either need a lot of storage space, or you need something with more power. Then, you might need a more expensive laptop.
Does it matter if I leave my laptop plugged in all the time?
One of the most common concerns with leaving your laptop on charge all the time is that it’s going to deteriorate your battery in the long term. Fortunately, this actually isn’t too much of an issue, and it shouldn’t have any effect on the life of your laptops battery. However, it does have the potential to cause your laptop to overheat, which isn’t good and should be avoided when possible.
What size laptop should I opt for?
When you’re looking for a budget laptop, you might think you’d be restricted to a 10 inch screen or even smaller. But, you should still be able to get a 13 inch or 15 inch laptop for this price. The right answer is that everyone is different, and finds different screen sizes better for different things. If you aren’t sure, then starting with a 13 inch screen is standard for the majority of people.
Are cheap laptops any good?
A lot of people think that unless you’re willing to spend in excess of £1000 on a decent laptop, it isn’t worth getting one. Well, this isn’t necessarily true, and just because a laptop is expensive, it doesn’t guarantee that you won’t have problems with it later down the line. I’ll admit that most people will probably want to spend a little more than £200 if they can, but if you can’t and you have other priorities, then there’s no problems getting a cheap laptop.
Conclusion
For those looking for a super cheap laptop, I hope you can see that there are still options out there for you. Although many people might want to invest a little more than this, you don’t have to if you only want the basics. If you do want to invest more, then check out our list of £300 laptops.
Most people don’t need a super powerful laptop that can play games and has a ton of power – it can be overkill. So, if this is you, then getting a cheap £200 laptop might be the best idea. If you’ve picked up any bargains, then let me know in the comments below!
