Top 10 Best Gaming Laptops Under $800 of 2021 [Newest Models]

You don’t have to spend thousands of dollars on a laptop for gaming because even the best gaming laptops under $800 are capable enough to run all the latest games. Gaming laptops in this price range offer the newest Nvidia RTX GPUs and powerful Intel and AMD CPUs, along with a high refresh rate display, RGB keyboard, and more.

But, buying a laptop for gaming is not an easy task, and it gets really arduous under $800. The sub-$800 price segment is still considered “budget” when it comes to gaming laptops, so you’ll have to make a few compromises here and there if you want your new gaming laptop to run all the latest games for the next few years.

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The key here is to make the right compromises. Letting go of aesthetic features like flashy RGB lights and focusing on getting more powerful hardware will land you a better gaming laptop overall in this price range.

If you are looking to purchase a good budget gaming laptop for yourself, then in this guide, we have rounded up the 10 of the best gaming laptops under $800 with the newest and most powerful specs you can get for the price.

We bet you won’t be disappointed settling with any one of them.

Let’s proceed with the list of best gaming laptops now…

Best Gaming Laptops Under $800 – Top Picks

1. Dell G15 Ryzen Edition – The Best Gaming Laptop Under $800

Key Features:

• Powerful specs
• Very well built
• Full size backlit keyboard
• Excellent thermal management

The Dell G15 Ryzen Edition is the best gaming laptop you can buy for under $800 right now because it boasts the most powerful specs you’ll find in a gaming laptop in this price range, and it also has many impressive gamer-centric features that further enhance the gaming on this laptop.

It’s one of the most prevalent gaming notebooks in the $800 price range because it features design that’s very synonymous with the premium Alienware gaming laptops from Dell. Accordingly, it also has a hunch on the back that houses the two big exhaust vents and most of the I/O of the laptop. Although this design increases the overall bulk of this gaming notebook, it helps to efficiently cool the powerful hardware inside and reduce the wire clutter if you plan to use this laptop docked.

Inside, it has the most powerful CPU and GPU you can get in a gaming laptop under $800—a highly efficient six-core AMD Ryzen 5 processor and a mighty Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 GPU. So, you’ll be able to enjoy all the latest games on this laptop, and it will also be able to handle demanding workloads like high-resolution photo video editing and more.

However, its 15.6-inch Full HD anti-glare display isn’t the most color-accurate of panels, but it’s decent enough for gaming with a 120Hz refresh rate. It also features a 4-zone customizable RGB keyboard and 3D Nahimic audio system and Alienware Command Center to tweak its performance.

So, the Dell G15 offers excellent performing hardware in a good-looking and very well-built chassis along with features that would please even professional gamers. Hence, it is our most recommended gaming laptop under $800 right now.

Hardware Specifications of Dell G15 Ryzen Edition Gaming Laptop:

2. Acer Nitro 5 – Runner-up

Key Features:

• Power packed performance
• Fast 144Hz display
• Decent amount of ports
• Easy to upgrade

• Boring red & black color scheme

A staple in the gaming laptop industry, the Acer Nitro 5 is a capable mid-range gaming laptop that offers excellent value with the newest Nvidia RTX GPU. It is designed for passionate gamers on the budget and accordingly houses the requisite power of a quad-core Intel Core i5 processor, a decent 8GB of RAM, and 256GB SSD for multi-tasking and endured performance.

Where the Acer Nitro 5 truly shines though is, it has the latest Nvidia RTX 3050 GPU inside, which means you will be able to play all the latest AAA titles on this gaming laptop. The new RTX GPUs from Nvidia come with advanced Ray Tracing and Tensor Cores to deliver the most immersive gaming experience possible with life-like reflections and visuals in RTX-supported games. A welcome addition for seasoned gamers looking to improve the graphical fidelity in their favorite games.

Apart from that, it features a 15.6-inch 144Hz display which is also the highest refresh rate display you’ll find in a gaming laptop under $800. It further smooths out the gaming experience on this laptop and gives you an edge over your opponents, especially in first-person shooter games.

All these aforementioned powerful specs and features like a backlit keyboard, powerful cooling system, and latest Wi-Fi 6 support for an affordable price make the Acer Nitro 5 a perfect buy for all the PC gaming lovers looking for a budget gaming laptop in their $800 budget.

Hardware Specifications of Acer Nitro 5 Gaming Laptop:

3. Lenovo Legion 5 15″ – The Most Premium Option

Key Features:

• Very well designed and built
• Good performance
• 120Hz screen
• Lot of storage space
• Long battery life with fast charging support

The Lenovo Legion series laptops have long been regarded as stellar budget gaming laptops and this Lenovo Legion 5 is no different. It is one of the most premium gaming laptops under $800 with a svelte design and very well put together chassis, and it also rocks powerful hardware that can run all the latest games.

It is powered by a very potent AMD Ryzen CPU, which can handle demanding programs and all the latest games at medium settings. The graphics on the device are backed by an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 Ti with a dedicated graphics memory of 4GB which is one of the best GPUs you can get in this price range. It has 8GB of RAM, and there’s ample storage on this gaming laptop to keep all your games installed on the device as it has a 1TB HDD and 256GB of solid state drive. So, if you are looking for a gaming laptop with the most storage, then this is the one.

The eye-catchy aspect of the Legion 5 is its classy looks and sleek design. Moreover, it also provides a decent battery backup and adequately serves the purpose of gaming and other essentials. One can say it is an all-purpose laptop, but gaming is what it is meant for, and it indeed excels at that by offering one of the most powerful CPU and GPU you can get in a laptop in this price range.

Read our full Lenovo Legion 5 Review

Hardware Specifications of Lenovo Legion 5 15 Gaming Laptop:

4. Lenovo IdeaPad 3 – Best Value Option

Key Features:

• Great performance for the price
• Decent quality 120Hz display
• Design suited for work and gaming both
• Full-size backlit keyboard
• Good value for money

If you are looking for a gaming laptop on a budget, then Lenovo IdeaPad 3 is the cheapest gaming laptop that’s worth buying. Being a budget device, it isn’t as powerful as the other gaming laptops under $800, but it offers pretty decent performing hardware for the price that’s less than $700!

It is powered by an AMD Ryzen 5 5600H processor with the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 and 8GB of RAM and 256GB SSD storage. The AMD CPU inside is the newest, and it’s the most powerful you can get in a gaming laptop under $800, but it has an entry-level Nvidia GPU.

That does not mean it is a weak performer, though. You’ll still be able to play all the latest games on this gaming laptop, but you’ll have to scale down a few settings to achieve smooth frame rates. However, if you mostly play E-sports games like CS:GO or Overwatch, those games will run smoothly at high settings on this gaming laptop. Moreover, it also has a 120Hz 15.6-inch display, which aids in making gaming on this laptop even smoother and better.

Apart from good performance, it offers all the standard ports, and its keyboard also feels nice. You do not get the RGB customization, but it is a full-size backlit keyboard, and its keys light up in white color. It features a large trackpad too, which uses the Windows Precision drivers, and its cooling system is also quite effective.

Overall, the Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3 is an excellent option if you don’t want to spend much on a gaming laptop. For under $700, it is quite a capable performer with a design that looks more like a standard notebook than a gaming laptop. All that paired with the battery backup of up to 8 hours makes the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 a perfect combination of work and play.

Hardware Specifications of Lenovo IdeaPad 3 Gaming Laptop:

5. HP Victus 16-inch Gaming Laptop

Key Features:

• 16 inch 144Hz display
• Premium design
• Comfortable backlit keyboard & large trackpad
• Good ports selection

The 16-inch laptops have been gaining a lot of popularity lately, and for a good reason, they offer users an extra screen real estate without losing much of the portability. The HP Victus 16 is a recently launched gaming laptop with a large and immersive 16-inch display, but its weight and overall footprint are similar to most 15-inch gaming laptops.

For under $800, you can get it with the latest 11th Gen Intel Core i5 processor and Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 GPU. You’ll be able to play all the latest games on this laptop, but you’ll have to scale down settings a bit for graphics-intensive titles to achieve smooth frame rates. Overall, the gaming performance of this laptop is right in line with other gaming laptops under $800, and if you need more power, then there are options to get it with the more powerful CPU and GPU by spending up to $1000.

Apart from good performance, the Victus 16 also has a very comfortable backlit keyboard, smooth trackpad, and a very good selection of ports and slots. The design of this gaming laptop also looks premium, and it isn’t as flashy as most gaming laptops, so it will pass in the office setting.

Overall, the HP Victus 16 is one of the best budget 16-inch gaming laptops you can buy right now. It offers good performance along with all the essential features for a price that’s easy on your pocket.

Hardware Specifications of HP Victus 16″ Gaming Laptop:

6. Asus TUF Gaming F17 17-inch Gaming Laptop

Key Features:

• Large 17-inch 144Hz display
• Durable MIL-STD build quality
• Adequate storage space
• Customizable RGB keyboard

With a bigger screen comes even bigger entertainment. The above maxim comes true with the Asus TUF F17 gaming laptop, which sports a massive 17.3-inch display. Styled in a durable black chassis, the laptop possesses a Full HD IPS type screen with a fast 144Hz refresh rate for smooth gameplay.

It is powered by a quad-core Intel Core i5 processor, coupled with 8GB of RAM. The laptop’s processor has a 2.5 GHz base frequency, and it can turbo boost up to 4.5 GHz, which clearly translates to better and optimal performance.

The dedicated Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 Ti GPU isn’t the best in the segment, but it provides decent performance to play games at medium graphics settings. It also comes with an ample 512GB of SSD storage, which will allow you to keep multiple games installed on the laptop. If you need more RAM or storage, then the Asus TUF Gaming F17 has empty slots that are easily accessible for down-the-line upgradeability. The battery life is also decent, with up to 6 hours for non-intensive productivity usage and 2.5 hours while gaming.

Overall, the Asus TUF F17 is an excellent 17-inch gaming laptop under $800, which could also be a good replacement for your home or office desktop since it offers a 17-inch display paired with great performing hardware in an easy to upgrade design.

Hardware Specifications of Asus TUF F17 17-inch Gaming Laptop:

7. Dell Inspiron 15 5510

Key Features:

• Lightweight & sleek design
• Powerful CPU with integrated graphics
• Excellent keyboard & trackpad
• Good amount of ports
• Long battery life

The Dell Inspiron 15 5510 is more of a casual laptop than a dedicated gaming machine. Accordingly, it isn’t as powerful as the other ‘proper’ gaming laptops on the list, but it’s capable enough to run most games at medium graphic settings. We think this would be a perfect choice for students or those looking for a low-key work-centric, high-performance laptop rather than a gaming-focused device.

So, it comes with a standard 15.6-inch Full HD anti-glare WVA display with narrow borders all around. Note that it is a 60Hz panel, unlike other gaming laptops on the list that come with a high refresh rate, but it has good color accuracy and brightness, and tiny bezels around the screen make it immersive.

Inside, the Dell Inspiron 15 5510 comes packed with the latest 11th Gen Intel Core i5-11300H processor with up to 4.4 GHz max turbo frequency. The powerful CPU is paired with 8GB RAM, a sizable 512GB SSD, and an Integrated Intel Iris Xe Graphics. This means that the integrated GPU will share resources with your CPU and RAM rather than a dedicated GPU like some of the other gaming laptops we’ve seen so far. Not powerful enough to run the most demanding games, but good enough for less graphic intensive games like Minecraft, Roblox, CS:GO, etc. 

In return, what you get is a good battery backup. The Dell Inspiron 15 lasts for up to 9 hours while doing everyday work and up to 5 hours while gaming, making it a lot more efficient device than gaming laptops with power-hungry discrete GPU.

To top it all off, the Dell Inspiron 15 5510 comes packed with some great extras too. Some of these include the latest Wi-Fi 6 support, an excellent full-size backlit keyboard, a full array of ports, and it weighs in at a slim and trim of just 3.6 pounds!

Hardware Specifications of Dell Inspiron 15 5510 Laptop:

8. HP Pavilion 15 High Performance Laptop

Key Features:

• Quick 144Hz display
• Relatively lightweight
• Well-specced for the price
• Good battery life

• Most ports are on the right side (wires can come in a way when using mouse)

The recently refreshed HP Pavilion 15 is a beastly performer when it comes to gaming and content creation. This mid-range gaming laptop has an updated design with sharp edges, and it comes in two different color options, the Acid Green and Shadow White, which mainly changes the backlit keyboard and logo on the rear panel.

It comes with a 15.6-inch 1080p display with a quick 144Hz refresh rate and features slim bezels on both sides and top with a slightly noticeable chin at the bottom. The display is also anti-glare that reduces eye-straining because of reflections even after a prolonged gaming session.

Under the hood, the HP Pavilion Gaming 15 is built to impress with the AMD Ryzen 7 5800H mobile processor, an 8-core chip that beats the newest 11th Gen Core i7 laptops. Accompanying the mighty processor is an 8GB memory with a 256GB fast SSD storage and powerful Nvidia GTX 1650 GPU with 4GB dedicated VRAM to handle gaming and other graphics-intensive tasks.

Overall, considering its starting price of under $700, it offers a formidable spec sheet. It scores respectably in all the benchmarks that judge the graphics performance of a laptop, so it is undoubtedly one of the best gaming laptops you can get at this price point. Plus, it lasts for 7 hours on a single charge when you are doing basic productivity tasks! That makes it a great multipurpose laptop. Thus, HP Pavilion 15 is one of our most recommended gaming laptops under $800 right now.

Hardware Specifications of HP Pavilion 15 Gaming Laptop:

9. Dell G5 15 Gaming Laptop

Key Features:

• Good design and tough build quality
• Fast refresh rate display
• Easy to upgrade
• Great value for money

Here’s another Dell G15 gaming laptop variant that we recommend for under $800. Unlike the last one, this is powered by an Intel processor and comes with a less powerful GTX 1650 GPU, but it also costs less, and for the price, it offers a lot of value.

For a price tag of less than $700, it gets you a powerful six-core Intel Core i5 processor paired with an adequate 8GB RAM and 256GB SSD, and as mentioned earlier, it has an Nvidia GTX 1650 GPU to handle games. Moreover, it also offers a 120Hz 15.6 inch full HD display and other features such as a backlit keyboard, the latest Wi-Fi 6, and all the required ports & slots. 

If you don’t mind playing games in medium settings, this Dell G15 is genuinely an excellent value for money machine. It is well-built, and its battery lasts for 5 hours on a single charge, which is rather great for a budget gaming laptop.

Hardware Specifications of Dell G15 5510 15-inch Gaming Laptop:

10. MSI GF63 15-inch Gaming Laptop

Key Features:

• Affordable pricing
• Decent performing hardware
• Lightweight
• Easy to upgrade

• No fast refresh rate display

MSI, as we all know, is one of the most renowned brands in the gaming industry. MSI’s gaming laptops are bolstered with the newest and most potent range of CPUs and GPUs to deliver the best gaming experience to pro-gamers. This MSI GF63 is actually last year’s model, but it offers a powerful Intel CPU and Nvidia GPU for about $600, making it a good option for budget-conscious buyers.

It comes with the standard ‘gamer’ look with a sleek metallic black color and red backlit keyboard. Nothing too fancy, but it covers its bases well. It comes with a 15.6-inch FHD anti-glare IPS display with micro-edge bezels for a better screen-to-body ratio. 

Where the MSI GF63 truly shines, though, is the performance that it delivers. It comes with a 10th Gen Intel Core i5 processor, 8GB of RAM, and a humble 256GB SSD. Nothing too overwhelming, but it’s a bargain considering the price tag. Even with the lower price tag, you’re still getting an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 GPU, making it equally capable as the other much costly options on the list. It should be more than enough to play games in medium graphic settings or do light video editing and other similar tasks.

A few more gamer-centric features you’ll find on the MSI GF63 include the MSI Dragon Center, which helps manage your system and optimize performance, high-res audio with dual-speakers, and it is relatively lightweight at 4.1 pounds. 

Hardware Specifications of MSI GF63 15 inch Gaming Laptop:

We’ve gone through a whole host of options to choose these absolute 10 best gaming laptops available under $800 right now. We hope that you find something that really speaks to you from our list. There’s no right or wrong option here, and it really is based on the type of games you want to play and how much money you’re willing to spend for it.

Most of the laptops on our list will be able to run the latest games in medium settings, so you really shouldn’t worry too much on that front. But if you are looking for the best performance in this price range, consider the Nvidia GeForce RTX options.

Otherwise, pick basically any laptop from our top picks, and you’ll be having a good time in no time at all.

Check out other gaming laptop buying guides and reviews on our website to explore more options in different price segments.

Happy shopping!

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