It’s worth investing in the best laptop for video editing if you’re serious about making good content. You may argue that nothing beats a home workstation more than a PC.
But with a laptop, you get the added benefit of taking your workstation wherever you go. And most importantly, a laptop will make your setup look cleaner and clutter-free.
That said, getting a video editing laptop worth every penny can be pretty hard, considering how saturated the market is. Most will either come with a good CPU and an average GPU or a great GPU and a lackluster CPU. These kinds of setups have severe bottlenecking issues. Also, many skimps on the other crucial factors too.
So, what does a laptop need to have to be a powerhouse for video editing? Needless to say, the CPU and GPU do most of the heavy lifting. But as mentioned earlier, the combo needs to be perfect. You need at least six cores for proper video editing for the CPU. The cores need to have a decent clock speed too.
You’ll make a mistake by choosing anything below the Nvidia 3000 or AMD RX 6000 series GPU. Of course, ensure the GPU comes with at least 4 GB of VRAM. Otherwise, you’ll need to wait for hours for the video to export and render.
Moving on, you need to consider the RAM. No matter what, LPDDR5 or DDR5 should be on your priority list. These are the latest generation of RAM and offer the best possible speed and performance. And when it comes to capacity, 16 GB is the minimum requirement for smooth video editing.
Storage is a pretty essential factor for video editors. You might’ve already worked with tons of 4K videos. And if you did, you already know how they are demanding when it comes to space. Therefore, pick a laptop with at least 1TB of storage.
It goes without saying that the storage should be SSD, not HDD! HDDs (Hard Disk Drives) are mechanical and slow. It can take ages just to import a high-resolution video.
And let’s not talk about how much time it could take to export it after editing that video. SSDs (Solid State Drives) don’t have any mechanical parts inside. That alone makes them more reliable and faster.
Another important consideration is the screen. You’d want to see every little detail of your video, right? So, choose something that’s large enough for a comfortable viewing experience and has high resolution. A high refresh rate screen is also better for video editing as you get a smooth and responsive experience.
Last but not least, the battery life needs to be great. Don’t forget that you’re getting a video editing laptop to edit videos while being away from the wall outlet. So, ensure that the internal battery can offer at least 5 hours of runtime.
Want some specific recommendations for laptops that check all the factors mentioned above? You’d want to keep on reading as there are curated picks below!
Best Laptop for Video Editing – Top 3 Picks
Razer Blade 16
TL:DR;
If you’re hunting for the best laptop for video editing, it doesn’t get better than the Razer Blade 16. It’s packed with all the latest and greatest hardware, which will accelerate your video editing and get things done faster.
Regarding specifics, the Razer Blade 16 rocks a 13th Gen Intel Core i9 processor. The CPU has 24 cores and 32 threads. In other words, the CPU is fully ready to take all your advanced video editing tasks. You can basically throw anything at it, and the laptop will do it without even throttling.
Of course, a good CPU without a good GPU means nothing regarding video editing. Razer has that taken care of, as the Blade 16 has Nvidia RTX 4090 GPU, one of Nvidia’s flagship GPUs. It has 24GB of GDDR6X VRAM, enough to handle high-resolution effects on your videos.
Moreover, the Razer Blade 16 has 32GB of DDR5 RAM, which is clocked at 5600MHz. It’s plenty for running resource-intensive video editing software. Also, it’s more than enough to let you multitask while editing videos. To be exact, it comes with a multi-display mode just to let you multitask with full efficiency!
The display is great too. It’s an IPS panel with 3840 x 2400 pixels resolution, which can display stunning and highly accurate images. As a matter of fact, the display has 93% of DCI-P3 color gamut coverage. And its average brightness is 466 nits. Also, a fully charged battery gets you 5 hours of run time.
The Specs
- CPU: Intel Core i9-13950Hx
- GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090
- Storage: 2TB SSD
- RAM: 32 GB
- Screen Size: 16 Inches
- Screen Resolution: 3840 x 2400 pixels (240Hz)
- Weight: 5.4 pounds
What’s in the Box?
- 330W charger
Stuff I like
- Packed with high-end hardware
- Great battery life
- Superb display
- Sleek outlooks
- Strong overall performance
Stuff I like less
- A bit too expensive
Where to get it
Asus Vivobook Pro 14 OLED
TL:DR;
Looking for the best laptop for video editing that doesn’t cost a fortune? In that case, you should consider the Asus Vivobook Pro 14 OLED. It’s a competent laptop with everything you want to get a smooth video editing experience.
One of the main highlights of the Asus Vivobook Pro 14 OLED is that it comes with an OLED screen. As you might already know, OLED screens are far better than IPS displays. On OLED, you get vibrant colors, inky black, bright whites, and lively overall images. This’ll allow you to make your videos come to life.
Even though the Vivobook Pro 14 OLED is cheaper than most other offerings, its performance won’t disappoint you. The laptop features a Ryzen 7 6800H. This CPU features eight cores and 16 threads. With that many cores, you can multitask and run resource-heavy video editing apps without noticing any hiccups.
On the note of running resource-heavy editing apps, there’s plenty of RAM for them. The Vivobook Pro 14 OLED has 16GB of DDR5 RAM. You also have the option to upgrade the RAM in the future. This upgradability will let you further enhance the capabilities of the laptop.
In terms of GPU, the Vivobook Pro 14 OLED has a budget-friendly unit. It’s the RTX 3050 from Nvidia, which is a last-gen GPU. But it still has what it takes to run video editing apps. In fact, if you’re not doing too advanced editing on the laptop, you won’t notice any performance issues.
Finally, there’s 1TB of NVME SSD in the laptop. That should give you enough space to store all your high-res videos. And as it’s NVME, you can expect to see superfast transfer speeds. Also, the battery life is excellent too. You get up to 14 hours of runtime when using the laptop with regular apps.
The Specs
- CPU: Ryzen 7 6800H
- GPU: Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050
- Storage: 1TB SSD
- RAM: 16 GB
- Screen Size: 14 inches
- Screen Resolution: 2880 x 1620 pixels (90Hz)
- Weight: 3.31 pounds
What’s in the Box?
- Power Supply Adapter Cord
Stuff I like
- Affordable yet comes with good hardware
- Super reliable battery life
- Great OLED display
- Lightweight and easy to carry
- Sleek and elegant design
Stuff I like less
- The GPU mightn’t be sufficient for advanced video editors
Where to get it
Apple MacBook Pro 16 M2 Max
TL:DR;
Truth be told, the Apple MacBook Pro 16 M2 Max is a true powerhouse. It’s backed by the latest chipset Apple has to offer, the M2 Max. With this chipset, you can finish all your exporting and importing in pretty much minutes, no matter how demanding the video is.
Aside from the 12-core CPU, the M2 Max features a beastly 38-core GPU. This GPU makes the Apple MacBook Pro 16 a perfect pick for video editors who want the very best laptop for video editing. It can handle all your video editing tasks without dropping a single drop of sweat.
The display is another factor that makes the Apple M2 Max great for editing videos. It’s large and spacious enough to let you view most of the timeline area on the video editing app. And as it’s a Liquid Retina XDR display, you get superb colors and bright images.
Apple has also populated the laptop with 32 GB of RAM. This makes the laptop great for all the video editing apps out there, regardless of how resource-intensive they are. Also, you get 1 TB of blazing-fast SSD, letting you quickly transfer files, export, and import videos.
Let’s not forget to mention that the battery life is impressive too. The average total time is around 19 hours. That’s more than enough for prolonged video editing sessions.
The Specs
- CPU: Apple M2 Max
- GPU: Integrated 38-core Apple GPU
- Storage: 1 TB SSD
- RAM: 32 GB
- Screen Size: 16.2 inches
- Screen Resolution: 3024 x 1964 pixels (120Hz)
- Weight: 4.48 pounds
What’s in the Box?
- 140W USB-C Power Adapter
- USB-C to MagSafe 3 Cable
Stuff I like
- Superb high-res and high-accuracy display
- Speedy storage and RAM
- Powerful CPU
- Highly capable GPU
- Extremely reliable battery life
Stuff I like less
- Premium price tag
Where to get it
Quick Summary of the Best Laptop for Video Editing
Overall, the best picks for laptops that are great for video editing are Razer Blade 16, Asus Vivobook Pro 14 OLED, and Apple Macbook Pro 16 M2 Max. But both the Razer Blade 16 and Apple Macbook Pro 16 are on the expensive side. So, if your budget is a bit tight, the Vivobook Pro 14 OLED is the best option.
Slava is a man of mystery and no-one seems to know exactly where he is at any point in time. When he isn't enjoying writing about all things audio and technical he can be found researching his next project of interest. The man never rests.
This post was last updated on 2025-01-18 / Some images from Amazon Product API & some links may be affiliate links which may earn us a commission from purchases.