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Whether you’re a content creator or a business professional, if you’re looking for a laptop with a great touchscreen, you’ve come to the right place. In the old days, finding a laptop that had a decent touchscreen was a daunting task. Those days are gone. It can be overwhelming with so many options. If you’re not sure where to begin, don’t sweat it. PCWorld’s team compiled a list of the top touchscreen laptops available right now. How can we feel so confident about our selections? We’ve had hands-on experience with every single one of them. Continue reading to find out more.

Last updated 12/09/2022The HP Spectre x360 14 was our pick for best business display, while the Asus Zenbook Pro 14 was our pick best dual display. You can read the reviews below to learn more about these new choices.

Also, make sure to check out our most recent review of the Acer Chromebook Spin 513. The Spin 513 Chromebook is a welcome addition to our Chromebook line-up. However, its battery life and unique 3:2 aspect ratio display make it a great choice. However, audio quality and performance could be better.

1. Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9 – Best overall/best premium productivity laptop

Pros

• Display Size: 16:10
• Light and thin, yet tough
• Stellar keyboard
• Quiet operation
• Booming audio
• Two Thunderbolt 4 ports

Cons

• Limitations on webcam: 720p
• Display color is a little cooler

If you’re looking for a fantastic touchscreen for getting work done, the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9 is a good option. The 14-inch 1080p IPS display is touch-enabled—albeit only on select models, so shop carefully—and has a roomy 16:10 aspect ratio. The larger display makes it easier to scroll through lengthy documents and other items. As for visuals, the screen “boasts a crisp image” and the contrast is “excellent.” In addition to the sharp images, the display also produced “bright whites and deep blacks.” In addition to the fantastic screen, the keyboard is snappy and quiet and there’s a decent array of ports.

Check out our complete article
Review Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9

2. Dell XPS 17 9710 – Best for content creators

Pros

• Large 17-inch screen in a compact laptop
• Powerful Intel CPU and Nvidia RTX graphics
• Excellent port selection for image and video editing
• Amazing display

Cons

• There is no USB-A port, and there is no Gigabit Internet
• Hybrid charging may sacrifice some performance

The Dell XPS 17 9710 makes a great choice for content creators due to its massive 17-inch display and 16/10 aspect ratio. It is touch-enabled and has a 10-bit color depth, 3840-by-2400 resolution, and a 3-inch-by-2400 resolution. According to our review, the laptop isn’t as bulky as you’d think. It weighs about five pounds, which isn’t bad considering how much Dell managed to cram into this machine. The combination of an Intel 11-gen Core i7-11800H CPU and a Nvidia GeForce RTX3060 GPU should provide fast video and photo editing.

Check out our complete article
Review Dell XPS 17 9710

3. HP Spectre x360 14 – Best for business

Pros

• Stellar OLED display
• Unique and rugged design
• Biometrics for fingerprint and IR
• 1080p webcam and physical shutter

Cons

• Battery life not as long as last year’s model
• Three pounds is a little heavy

The HP Spectre x360 14 latest model has a lot to offer. It retains the same solid build quality as previous models, but it has also been updated to make it more attractive. The OLED display will make it impossible to go back to regular IPS LCDs. The introduction of an OLED screen does come with a drawback in terms of battery life, but it’s still respectable compared to other 2-in-1s. The Spectre x360 14 has a U-series processor, integrated Intel Iris Xe graphics, and is therefore well-suited for office and productivity tasks.

Check out our complete article
Review HP Spectre x360 14

4. HP Chromebook x2 11 da0023dx – Best convertible Chromebook

Pros

• Gorgeous 2K touchscreen
• Solid performance
• Excellent battery life
• Robust design

Cons

• Trackpad can be too sensitive at times
• Ports are light

If you’re looking for an affordable 2-in-1, the HP Chromebook x2 11 tics all the right boxes. It’s lightweight and portable, and the detachable keyboard and kickstand connect cleanly to the aluminum tablet. The 11-inch 1440p touchscreen is the real star of this tablet. In our review, the tester said the display was “just plain lovely.” Colors really pop and the touchscreen is super responsive and fluid. A wireless USI pen is included in the box. This is a great choice for people who like to draw or take notes.

Check out our complete article
Review HP Chromebook x2 11

5. Lenovo Yoga 9i – Best 2-in-1

Pros

• All-metal chassis with a sleek, sturdy design
• Battery life is long
• Impressive audio output
• Comfortable keyboard

Cons

• 16:9 screen feels cramped 
• Too skinny for the included stylus
• Touchpads too small
• All ports are on the left side

The Lenovo Yoga 9i offers a lot. It boasts a vibrant display and an all-metal frame. The battery lasts for a long time. The 14-inch 1080p touch display is bright at 400 nits and, according to our review, “colors appeared accurate and vibrant.” However, the tester disliked the 16:9 aspect ratio, as he felt it was too wide for productivity work. For general use and working with long documents, taller displays are better. The 16:9 aspect ratio is perfect for watching your favorite movies. If the aspect ratio doesn’t bother you too much, the Yoga 9i is a solid option.

Check out our complete article
Review Lenovo Yoga 9i

6. Dell Inspiron 16 – Best battery life

Pros

• Displays 16 inches (16:10)
• Battery life is long
• Competitive application performance
• Comfortable keyboard with large touchpad
• Quad speakers crank up the jams

Cons

• One GPU upgrade is lackingluster
• Can’t go bigger than 512GB SSD
• Tablet mode can feel awkward with a large screen

Need a touchscreen laptop that’ll run as long as the Energizer Bunny? The Dell Inspiron 16 is the perfect touchscreen laptop. The Inspiron 16 lasts for 16.5 hours when we ran the battery benchmark. This is a test that runs a laptop through a series video clips until it dies. That’s almost two full work days—or a really long Netflix binge. It is heavier than other 2-in-1s, at 4.7 lbs. The specs aren’t bad either, sporting an Intel Core i7-1260P CPU, Intel Iris Xe graphics, 16GB of RAM, and 512GB of SSD storage. That’s powerful enough for multitasking, media editing, and more. The 16-inch display has a resolution of 1920×1080 and it also comes with a surprisingly robust quad speaker system. For ports, you’re getting two USB Type-C, one USB-A 3.2 Gen 1, 1 HDMI, one SD card reader, and one 3.5mm audio jack.

Check out our complete article
Review Dell Inspiron 16 2-in-1

7. Asus Zenbook Pro 14 Duo OLED – Best dual display

Pros

• Beautiful primary display with easy-to-see secondary display
• Wireless connectivity and excellent I/O options
• The CPU and GPU power are sufficient to meet the needs of content creators

Cons

• A productivity laptop’s battery life is short.
• The trackpad is small, and it is awkwardly placed.
• It can be difficult to reach rear-orientated ports

If you’re look for something a bit different, look no further than the Asus Zenbook Pro 14. It has a Core i7 processor, RTX3050 graphics, 16GB DDR5 RAM, and a fast 1TB NVMe SSD. It also features a 14.5-inch 4K touch OLED main panel. But the truly intriguing feature is the secondary 12.7-inch 2880×864 screen located right above the keyboard. It can be used as a second monitor, and you can use it for a variety of useful tasks such as setting it up to act as a trackpad, or displaying touch controls for Adobe apps. The only real drawback is the mediocre battery life, which means you’ll likely need to carry around a charging cable while on the go. The Zenbook Pro 14 DuoOLED is a productive machine that offers two high-quality, useful displays.

Check out our complete article
Review Asus Zenbook Pro 14 Duo OLED

How we tested

Each Windows laptop is subject to a series benchmarks by the PCWorld team that tests its GPU and CPU performance, as well as battery life. The idea is to push the laptop to its limits and then compare it against others we’ve tested. Chromebooks go through a series web-based tests. It wouldn’t be fair or possible to run the same kinds of tests on a Chromebook, as they’re Chrome OS-based machines. Below, you’ll find a breakdown of each test and the reasons why we run them.

Windows laptops

• PCMark 10PCMark 10 is a method of evaluating how well a laptop can handle lighter tasks such as web browsing, word processing, spreadsheets, etc.
• HandBrakeHandBrake is less intensive than PCMark 10. It basically measures how long a laptop’s CPU takes to encode a beefy 30GB file.
• CinebenchCinebench is a quick stress test of the CPU cores. Cinebench renders a 2D scene in a very short time.
• 3DMark3DMark runs graphic-intensive clips to check if 3D performance is consistent over time.
• Video rundown test: To gauge battery life, we loop a 4K video using Windows 10’s Movies & TV app until the laptop dies.

Chromebooks

• CrXPRT 2.: The CrXPRT 2 benchmark tests a Chromebook’s battery life.
• Speedometer 2.0: This test determines a Chromebook’s web browser performance. It simulates this by adding to, completing, or removing from a list.
• Basemark Web 3.0This benchmark measures how well a Chromebook handles web-based applications.
• Kraken 1.1Kraken 1.1 is a JavaScript performance benchmark.
• Jetstream 2Jetstream 2 is a combination WebAssembly benchmarks and JavaScript benchmarks. This is a way of evaluating how well a Chromebook can run advanced workloads.

What to look for when buying a touchscreen laptop

Here we are at the billion-dollar question. Do you go for a basic Chromebook, or a Windows 10 laptop with more features? It all depends on your lifestyle and the purpose of your laptop. Chromebooks, for example, are a great budget option for those who only require the basics. A Chromebook is my primary laptop for work. It has everything I need to edit and write. If you travel a bunch for work, it’s probably a good idea to invest in a laptop with solid battery life. If you’re still unsure, don’t sweat it. I’ve put together a list of quick tips below.

• Type of laptop: The first question you should ask yourself is what kind of laptop you’re looking for. There’s traditional clamshells, 2-in-1’s, Chromebooks, and much more. The displays on convertible laptops (aka 2-in-1’s), for example, can swing around 360 degrees. You can use the laptop as a tablet by doing this. They can be set up as a tent and used to view movies and take part in video chats. Chromebooks, on the other hand, exclusively run Google’s web-focused Chrome OS and are generally used for everyday tasks. All you need is a Gmail account and boom, you’re in. Each one has its pros and cons. Convertibles, on the other hand, are more expensive and last longer than chromebooks.
• CPU: Core i3, Core i5, Core i7, Core i9 and Core i9 Intel processors are all available. The more powerful the CPU, the higher the number. (AMD’s rival Ryzen processors use a similar naming scheme.) If you don’t need a ton of power, Intel Core i5 processors are your best bet, as they offer good performance at a decent price. Core i3 processors are good for basic office and web work. The Core i7 is better suited for gaming and more intensive work than daily tasks.
• Graphics: You’ll want a discrete graphics card for hardcore gaming or editing videos. It’s separate from the processor, so you can expect higher performance out of it. Integrated graphics, however, are attached to your CPU and use less power. This is perfectly fine for everyday tasks, especially if you’re not doing anything that’s graphics-intensive.
• Display size If you’re a video editor or someone who does a lot of multimedia work, you’ll want a display that’s anywhere from 15- to 17-inches. The perfect size is 13-to-14 inches. The larger your display is, the heavier your laptop will be. A 13-inch or 14-inch display is the best choice in terms of portability, value, and usability.
• Battery lifeA laptop that can lasts 10 to 12 hours should be sufficient to take with you anywhere you go. That’s more than a full work day, so it should theoretically get you through long flights or a day of classes. Of course, more is better. Keep in mind that the heavier the battery, so the laptop is heavier.
• Price:Your budget will determine the price. If you’re strapped for cash (been there, trust me), go for a Chromebook or an entry-level business laptop. These laptops are great choices for students and young professionals. If you have the budget to spend more, the versatility and portability of a 2-in-1 notebook is worth it.
• Ports: A variety of ports is always a plus, as it eliminates need for an adapter. I’d recommend a laptop that has both USB-C and USB-A. A HDMI port is a great option. This port is particularly useful when you need to connect to an external monitor.