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    Best Chromebooks Under $300

    Need a basic laptop at home or on the go? These inexpensive models from Asus, HP, Lenovo, and Samsung will get the job done.

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    Collection of Chromebooks
    A Chromebook can be a great, inexpensive laptop option, especially for a student.
    Photo: Consumer Reports

    If you’re in need of a no-frills laptop—a device for surfing the web, checking email, and doing homework or word processing—a Chromebook is a great way to save money.

    While a new Mac or Windows laptop can easily cost $1,000, a well-made Chromebook—one that can tackle everyday tasks, including video calls—can be purchased for $300 or less. 

    Compared with a pricier counterpart, a Chromebook may have lower-end components, such as a slower processor and less storage. But that’s not as big a problem as you might think, in part because Chromebooks use less-demanding cloud-based apps and you don’t need a ton of oomph to run, say, Gmail or Google Docs.

    More on Laptops

    Chrome OS, the operating system that powers a Chromebook, greatly resembles Google Chrome, the world’s most popular web browser. So if you’re a Chrome user, getting up and running on Chrome OS isn’t hard.

    Chromebooks can also run Android apps, unlocking the ability to use an even greater variety of software, including popular options like Adobe Lightroom for editing photos. These apps can be downloaded from the Google Play store, just like you’d do on an Android smartphone.

    Our Chromebook tests are similar to those for Windows and Mac laptops. We look at how well the processor performs under different workloads, how comfortable the keyboard is to type on, and how long the battery lasts. We also take display quality into account, evaluating how accurately the screen represents colors and how wide the viewing angle is. The goal is to give you an accurate, easy-to-understand idea of what it would be like to own the device.

    Right now there are 55 Chromebooks in our ratings (available to CR members), all of which are made by well-known companies such as Acer, Asus, and HP. As with everything we test, CR buys Chromebooks at retail, so we’re getting the same product you would.

    The following list features some of the best low-cost options ranked in order of Overall Score.

    Become a member to read the full article and get access to digital ratings.

    We investigate, research, and test so you can choose with confidence.