Shopping for PCs is a little stressful right now, as market forces are making component costs shoot through the roof. The thing about Chromebooks, though, is that they don’t need the latest chips to deliver the goods. Google’s ChromeOS is amazing at extracting peak performance out of less powerful hardware, making it a top choice for shopping on a budget, looking for a homework laptop for school-age children, or in need of a lightweight PC for work on the go. If your PC needs are mostly confined to email and Web browsing, there’s no reason to look at anything else.
We do a lot of testing laptops in the PC Labs, and we’ve been very impressed with how Google has continually refined ChromeOS to make it a real competitor in the portable PC space. It’s power-efficient, fast, resistant to malware and viruses, does great with cloud applications, and offers ultra-long battery life. No matter what you need a laptop for, there’s an on-sale Chromebook that can get it done, and we’ve got deep price drops on some of the best.
Spending more than a few hundred dollars on a Chromebook is already a challenge, but with the discounts we’ve rounded up here, you could buy laptops for a whole baseball team without breaking the bank. We’ve got models in a wide variety of form factors and loadouts, with touch-screen models, convertibles and more at low prices.
Acer Chromebook Plus 515
15.6-inch FHD display, Intel Core i3-1305U CPU, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD
$379.99
at Amazon
$429.99
Save $50.00
The Chromebook Plus platform is Google’s set of standards for ChromeOS laptops that push performance beyond the everyday, and this Acer model got an “Excellent” rating in our review for doing just that. With a peppy Intel Core i3 processor and a generous 8GB of RAM, it handles productivity and education tasks with ease, and the MIL-STD 810H certified chassis is tough enough to take a beating. You won’t get a ton of bells and whistles here, as the keyboard isn’t backlit and the screen brightness clocks in at just 250 nits, but for an everyday carry it’s a reliable option. Amazon has a 12% price drop right now, and you even get a free carrying case.
Acer Chromebook 315
15.6-inch FHD display, Intel Celeron N4500 CPU, 4GB RAM, 64GB eMMC storage
$149.00
at Best Buy
$299.00
Save $150.00
For a budget option, we’ve got a few choices depending on your brand loyalty. The Acer Chromebook 315 is a solid option at retail, but for 50% off it’s a big bargain, with a decent silicon loadout and good port selection. In our review, we noted that it was more than good enough for everyday tasks, although it didn’t blow us away with battery life. The full-sized keyboard has a dedicated number pad, which isn’t common, and we were impressed by the smooth, responsive OceanGlass touchpad. This bundle comes with a carrying case as well, which is a nice perk.
Lenovo Flex 5i Chromebook Plus
10.95-inch WUXGA display, MediaTek Kompanio 838 CPU, 4GB RAM, 64GB eMMC storage
$265.55
at Amazon
$319.99
Save $54.44
Here’s another Chromebook Plus option that can compete on price with much weaker machines. We gave an Editors’ Choice award to the Lenovo Flex 5i Chromebook Plus, with writer Brian Westover saying that it was “one of the best performing ChromeOS laptops we’ve seen” in our review. Although its screen isn’t the biggest, it’s clear, bright, and colorful, with excellent touch and stylus responsiveness. A backlit keyboard at this price point is unexpected, and the port selection is also very good, with plenty of USB-C ports along with USB-A and microSD. Of course, that traditional high Lenovo build quality is also in attendance, with the all-plastic chassis feeling sturdy but lightweight.
HP 14″ Chromebook
14″ HD display, Intel Celeron N4500 CPU, 4GB RAM. 64GB eMMC storage
$149.00
at Best Buy
$329.00
Save $180.00
Right now you can snag a deep 55% discount on HP’s baseline ChromeOS portable at Best Buy, giving it a sale price of $164. We gave it a solid review in 2019, praising its nice-feeling keyboard and good assortment of both USB-A and USB-C ports. It’s not designed for any processor-hungry tasks, but for basic Web browsing and productivity, it’ll do the job. This configuration has been upgraded with an Intel Celeron processor (moving away from AMD), which also boosts its performance a bit.
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Asus CX15 Chromebook
15.6″ FHD display, Intel Celeron N4500 CPU, 4GB RAM. 128GB eMMC storage + 512GB SD card
$249.00
at Best Buy
$499.00
Save $250.00
A 50% price cut on a Chromebook that comes with some additional external storage? Sign us up. The Asus CX15 is a solid midrange Chromebook, with a larger-than-normal screen, decent Celeron processor, and ridiculously long battery life. Asus says that it’ll go for as long as 12 hours of constant use on a single charge, which is a school or work day plus commutes with time to spare. This bundle remedies the common storage complaint by including a USB hub along with a 512GB SD card, giving you way more room for files than any other machine in this rundown.
Asus CR11 Ruggedized Chromebook
11.6″ WXGA display, Intel Celeron N100 CPU, 4GB RAM. 64GB eMMC storage
$212.00
at Amazon
$299.99
Save $87.99
Chromebooks are popular choices for students because of their low cost, but if you have a person in your life who is unusually rough on their electronics, you might want to opt for something a little more durable. The Asus CR11 wraps its entry-level but still effective components inside a sturdy military-grade chassis with rubberized corners, spill-proof keyboard, 180-degree hinge, and easy modular design for simple part replacement. You can see how it stacks up on our list of the best Chromebooks, but at this price it’s a fine choice.
Recommended by Our Editors
HP Chromebook x360 14
Intel N100 CPU, 4 GB RAM, 64 GB storage
$219.00
at Walmart
$299.00
Save $80.00
At retail price, we’d think twice about recommending the HP Chromebook x360 14, but with this big discount courtesy of Walmart, it becomes a much more attractive proposition. In our review, we noted that it had fairly snappy performance and a nice-looking design, but the FHD display wasn’t as bright and crisp as we’d like. The 360-degree hinge makes it an adaptable option for presentations, watching media, light creative apps, and everyday activities.
Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i Chromebook
MediaTek Kompanio 520 CPU, 4GB RAM, 64GB eMMC storage
$197.99
at Best Buy
$319.00
Save $121.01
Another budget-minded Chromebook at a serious price drop, the IdeaPad Slim 3i is lightweight and features epic battery life, clocking in at over 15 hours. The ARM-based processor works well with Chrome OS, and although the component loadout is pretty skimpy, for an ultra-budget laptop it’s more that capable of getting the job done. Lenovo also always overdelivers when it comes to build quality, and the all-plastic case feels sturdy and durable. See how it compares on our list of the best Chromebooks we’ve reviewed.
If you ever wondered how we test laptops, wonder no more! We wrote a deep dive into our extensive process.
More Chromebook Deals To Explore
*Deals are selected by our commerce team
Why Are Google Chromebooks So Cheap?
If you’re a little suspicious, thanks to the low prices on most Chromebooks, you might be wondering why they are so affordable. We go deep into the differences in our “Laptop Vs. Chromebook” feature, but in short, Chromebooks run the much more limited Google ChromeOS, which prioritizes the Chrome web browser, Google Drive cloud storage, and extensions from the Chrome Web Store and Google Play Store. They’re significantly less flexible and customizable than your basic Windows laptop.
How Much Should I Pay for a Chromebook?
With low pricing still one of the most popular reasons to pick up a Chromebook, you should be able to get a capable model for $350 at the absolute maximum. The more advanced Chromebook Plus models can go up to four figures, but for most users, those aren’t necessary, and you’d be better suited with a traditional Windows laptop. You can get a reliable HP, Acer, or Lenovo Chromebook for $250-to-$300.
What Is the Cheapest But Best Chromebook?
Chromebooks, in general, come in lower on the price scale than Windows or Mac laptops, but the trade-off is that they’re often lower-powered in terms of processor speed, memory, and internal storage. Buying a decent one is all about finding the best value for money. In our roundup of the best Chromebooks, we recommend the Acer Chromebook Plus 514 for budget shoppers for its lengthy battery life, decent touch screen, AI enhancements, and a broad array of ports for the price.
What to Look for in a Chromebook Deal?
Our Chromebook buying guide has some key metrics to consider when buying one of these inexpensive laptops. Chromebooks typically have less hardware variability than Windows laptops, but we recommend an Intel Core processor and 8GB of memory for today’s web apps and decent multitasking. If you need more punch, look for an Intel Core Ultra chip. ChromeOS is optimized for touch-screen use, so it’s worth getting a model that supports that.
Best Chromebook Deals Under $300?
$300 is the sweet spot for Chromebook pricing, and in our rundown of the best budget laptops, we spotlight the impressive Lenovo Chromebook Duet Gen 9. This detachable touch-screen model is pixel-dense and high in build quality for $329.99. It’s tough to find a 2-in-1 Chromebook for much cheaper than this, and this price is likely to come down during sales events.
What Are the Biggest Chromebook Discounts This Year, and How Much Can I Save?
The aforementioned Lenovo Chromebook Duet is one of the best deals in Chromebooks this year, even at its list price, but we haven’t seen that many extreme price cuts on Chromebooks so far in 2025.
Are Chromebooks Cheaper During Amazon Prime Day or Cyber Monday?
Of course! Expect to see Chromebooks dip below these list prices during those shopping holidays, getting back to the sub-$300 prices we’ve been used to. However, be sure to focus on specs and stats when buying your next Chromebook to get the features and capabilities you want.
Are Chromebooks Discounted During Back-to-School Sales?
Yes! Back-to-school sales generally begin as the school year ends in June in the US and kick into high gear through July. They start to simmer down in August and fall off by the end of September. Throughout that time, retailers carry Chromebook discounts across subcategories.
Which Retailers Have the Biggest Chromebook Discounts?
Generally speaking, Amazon carries the largest and most frequent discounts on Chromebooks, with Walmart following closely behind or in lockstep. Best Buy and other electronics retailers also have deals on Chromebooks.
About Our Experts
K. Thor Jensen
Contributing Writer
Experience
K. Thor Jensen is a writer and cartoonist living in the Pacific Northwest. He has contributed to dozens of prestigious outlets, including PCMag, Tested, Clickhole, and Newsweek. His second graphic novel, Cloud Stories, was released in 2017.
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Joe Osborne
Deputy Managing Editor, Hardware
Experience
After starting my career at PCMag as an intern more than a decade ago, I’m back as one of its editors, focused on managing laptops, desktops, and components coverage. With 15 years of experience, I have been on staff and published in technology review publications, including PCMag (of course!), Laptop Magazine, Tom’s Guide, TechRadar, and IGN. Along the way, I’ve tested and reviewed hundreds of laptops and helped develop testing protocols. I have expertise in testing all forms of laptops and desktops using the latest tools. I’m also well-versed in video game hardware and software coverage.
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