What I look for in the best MacBook alternatives
I've used a MacBook as my daily driver for 15 years now, so I have a pretty good handle on Apple's laptop hardware and software. (Shoutout to my fellow butterfly keyboard survivors.) IMO, a Windows PC or Chromebook is doing a great MacBook impression if it has above-average performance, decently long battery life, and a sleek, polished design — basically, if it's a superb Windows laptop or Chromebook. I'll add some extra qualifiers depending on the exact Mac model:
MacBook Air alternatives should be super lightweight and portable
MacBook Neo alternatives should cost well under $1,000 and have premium build quality
MacBook Pro alternatives should have a crisp, rich 120Hz display and enough power for intensive tasks like video editing
Other Mashable staffers and I have tested nearly 100 laptops in the past two years (and counting). After combing through our database, I've landed on eight worthy MacBook alternatives for 2026 buyers — including seven PCs from Acer, Asus, Dell, and HP, plus one very nice Acer Chromebook. I've also lined up a fallback option for those who want to stay within the Apple ecosystem.
Which Windows laptops and Chromebooks can beat Apple?
As part of our review process, we quantify laptops' performance using Primate Labs' Geekbench CPU benchmark and measure their battery life with a video rundown test. All of the picks on this list beat MacBooks in one or both of those tests.
In the performance department, the M5 MacBook Air and M5 MacBook Pro earned the top single-core scores. (That tells us how snappy a laptop feels when you're just using it for basic things like sending emails and web browsing.) However, the Asus Zenbook A14, Asus Zenbook A16, Dell XPS 14, HP OmniBook Ultra 14, Acer Swift X 14, and Asus Expertbook Ultra all outpace one or both of them in heavier multi-core tasks like video editing.
When it comes to stamina, the Dell XPS 13 and Acer Chromebook Plus Spin 514 both outlast the MacBook Neo by at least three and a half hours. The OmniBook Ultra 14 and the Expertbook Ultra beat the MacBook Air on battery life by smaller margins, while the Zenbook A14 surpasses both the MacBook Air and Pro by up to nearly 10 hours. With 27 hours and 36 minutes of battery life, it's the longest-lasting MacBook alternative I recommend.
What's new
In September 2026, I added the Dell XPS 13 as the best MacBook Neo alternative after a new round of testing. (The Acer Chromebook Plus 514 Spin is now the best Neo rival for those who prefer ChromeOS.) I also checked all of our existing picks for pricing and availability changes. The Asus Zenbook A16 has gotten $300 more expensive since I last updated this guide over the summer, but I don't think its new price of $1,999 is outrageous in the current market, given its 48GB RAM capacity. Therefore, it retains its spot on this list.
Back in July, I added the HP OmniBook Ultra 14 and Asus ExpertBook Ultra as new picks.
Other contenders to consider
The special-edition Asus ProArt GoPro Edition bundles MacBook Pro-rivaling multi-core performance and 128GB of RAM in a rugged convertible design. It's expensive at $2,999.99, but fairly priced for how much memory it has. (An identically configured MacBook Pro costs $6,699.) Still, I can't recommend it as a MacBook Pro alternative because it has a blurrier 60Hz display. That feels like a glaring omission on a premium creator laptop.
The Acer Swift Edge 14 AI is a shockingly thin-and-light ultraportable with a 2.8K OLED touchscreen. It only costs $1,499.99 with 32GB of RAM and 1TB of storage. It would make a very good MacBook Air alternative if it weren't such a mediocre performer: It's 48 percent slower than the latest MacBook Air in single-core scenarios and 33 percent slower in multi-core tasks. It's a closer rival to the M2 MacBook Air from 2022 when it comes to processing power. I would only pick it over the Zenbook A14 if you can't use an ARM-based laptop (see below).
We haven't tested them yet — stay tuned — but the Acer Swift Air 14 looks like another very promising MacBook Neo alternative, and the Framework Laptop 13 Pro seems like a neat repairable MacBook Pro alternative.
A note about ARM-based Windows laptops
The Asus Zenbook A14, Zenbook A16, and HP OmniBook Ultra 14 run on Qualcomm Snapdragon X2 series chips. These are ARM-based chips, which are built differently from traditional x86-based Intel and AMD chips. As such, they're not compatible with as many video games and certain specialty software. This isn't an issue for most general users, but if you do a lot of PC gaming or you're a college student, you should avoid them. You can read more about this in my dedicated guide to the best Windows laptops.