1. The list in brief
2. Best overall
3. Best for engineering
4. Best for college
5. Best for high-school
6. Best on a budget
It's back to school season, which means you're likely looking for a new PC to accompany you through the next school year and beyond. Some of the best PCs for students on the market right now are Surface PCs, built by Microsoft, the company behind Windows, Teams, and Office, the software your school probably requires you to use.
So, why not complete the lineup and get yourself a Surface PC this back to school season. Microsoft makes all kinds of Surface PCs which comfortably fit many different kinds of students. I've done my best to roundup the best Surface PCs right now for each kind of student who might be looking for a new Windows laptop this summer.
The quick list
The Surface Laptop 5 is an excellent laptop, perhaps the best for most students looking for a new PC this year. It has Intel's powerful 12th-Gen Intel chips, one of the best keyboards and trackpads in the PC space, and is available in two sizes: 13.5-inch or 15-inch variants.
Surface Laptop Studio delivers a powerful, flexible, workstation-style PC perfect for artists, engineers, and some light gaming. No other laptop currently does everything it can do at this level. But, like all Surfaces, you pay for that experience.
Microsoft's flagship tablet runs Windows 11, offers amazing performance, and provides two USB-C ports. Combined with the detachable keyboard and Surface Pen, it can be used very similarly to a laptop.
Microsoft's latest entry into the small laptop space, the Surface Laptop Go 2 is is a great choice for high school students. For the price, you get a premium build quality, thin bezels, and one of the best keyboards on the market.
If you like the idea of a Surface Laptop Go 2, but want more versatility in the form factor department, the Surface Go 3 is Microsoft's alternative offering. It's a tablet that transforms into a great mini laptop with the (sold separately) keyboard accessory.
The best overall for most students
For me, picking the best Surface for most students is easy. You need to look no further than the Surface Laptop 5, which is essentially Microsoft's answer to the Apple MacBook Air. It's a slim, light, and portable Windows PC with a contemporary design that looks great amongst a crowd, and is perfectly capable of most student tasks and workflows.
On the inside, the Surface Laptop 5 is powered by Intel 12th-Gen Core i5 and i7 processors, up to 32GB RAM, and 1TB SSD storage. For most students, I'd say the model with 16GB RAM and 256GB SSD storage is more than enough. If your student life consists of lots of homework, writing reports or essays, creating presentations, and joining classes via Teams or Zoom, the Surface Laptop 5 is easily cut out for the task.
It also has all day battery life that should see you through the last class of the day witn no problem. Plus, the Surface Laptop 5 comes bundled with a magnetic charger that can fast charge the laptop while it's sleeping. So even if you do have a heavy day and find the battery won't last you, a quick 20 minute top up at lunch should see you through with no issues.
You can find the Surface Laptop 5 in a number of different colors and two screen sizes. The 13.5-inch model is available in Platinum, Black, Sandstone, and Sage Green, with the Platinum model featuring a special Alcantara covered keyboard deck. The 15-inch model comes in just Platinum and Black, but the Platinum model on the 15-inch variant doesn't have Alcantara.
Best for engineering students
If you're an engineering student, we know you're probably looking for something that's a little more of a workhorse. Luckily, Microsoft has you covered with the Surface Laptop Studio, a product designed to be "the most powerful Surface laptop" and boy does it achieve that task.
On the inside, we've got an Intel 11th-Gen Core i5 or i7, up to 32GB RAM, and 1TB SSD storage. It's also available with either integrated graphics or dedicated graphics in the form of the NVIDIA RTX 3050 GPU. It's available in one 14.4-inch display size with a glorious 120Hz touchscreen display, which can also be pulled forward and laid flat over the keyboard for digital drawing and writing needs if necessary.
My recommended configuration would be the one with the Intel Core i7, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD storage and NVIDIA RTX 3050 GPU. This should cover most engineering use cases with no issues, though if you know you're going to be doing some heavy multitasking switching between data crunching programs or 3D rendering software, the model with 32GB RAM and 1TB storage might be a safer bet.
The design of the Surface Laptop Studio is rather unique, with a two-stage design that makes it look thinner than it actually is. That pull forward display, paired with the Surface Slim Pen 2 (sold separately) is a combination you just can't beat as an engineering student. Plus, the Slim Pen 2 neatly tucks away under the keyboard when it's not in use, and uses magnets to stay in place and wireless charge.
Best for college students
If you're in college and need something a little more versatile than the Surface Laptop 5, I think the Surface Pro 9 is an excellent alternative. The 2-in-1 form factor provides both an excellent laptop experience and great tablet experience too, and the Surface Pro 9 can be configured with either Intel 12th-Gen or Microsoft SQ3 processors.
The Surface Pro 9 features a high-resolution 13-inch touchscreen display that's 120Hz, housed in an aluminum chassis that includes a built-in kickstand cover that seamlessly blends with the device when not in use. You can find the Surface Pro 9 in four colors, including Platinum, Black, Sage, and Sapphire.
The Surface Pro 9 is versatile thanks to its 2-in-1 design, which allows it to operate as a high-end tablet with touch and pen input, similar to an iPad Pro, but also supports Microsoft's excellent Type Cover accessory that turns it into a fully-fledged laptop when needed, and it also includes a charging bay for the Surface Slim Pen 2.
Unlike other Surface devices in this list, the Surface Pro 9 is available with two different kinds of processor. We have an Intel Core i5 or i7 without mobile data, and a Microsoft SQ3 in models with 5G connectivity. The Microsoft SQ3 is an ARM chip, which is more efficient with longer battery life, but that comes at the cost of being a little less powerful. Still great for writing essays, taking notes, creating PowerPoint presentations, and joining virtual classes.
Best for high-school students
The Surface Laptop Go 2 is Microsoft's budget-friendly laptop line, featuring a 12.5-inch touchscreen display with thin bezels, an excellent keyboard and trackpad, a premium aluminum and polycarbonate chassis, and a Windows Hello fingerprint reader for quick secure login.
The Surface Laptop Go 2 is excellent for high-school students because it's portable, light, and the price means you won't be afraid to throw it around in your backpack. It uses premium materials in all the places you're most likely to be touching, including the keyboard deck and laptop lid, but has a polycarbonate underside which means it's more durable to scuffs and bangs.
We also like this laptop because it's a great option for writing essays or reports, creating PowerPoint presentations, joining virtual classes, as well as kicking back with a movie or listening to music. Plus, it comes in three excellent colors; Platinum, Ice Blue, and Sage Green.
Best for students on a budget
The Surface Go 3 might be tiny, but it's a rather versatile laptop with enough performance from an optional Core m3 processor (CPU) to get through most productivity work. Baseline models start with an Intel Pentium Gold 6500Y CPU for $399, which is still enough power for casual use. Compared to the Surface Go 2, the Go 3 is nearly identical save for the performance upgrade. Keep in mind that Instant On capabilities, thinner bezel, and larger display have carried over from the Go 2.
This is a typical 10.5-inch Surface display with 3:2 aspect ratio, 1920x1280 resolution, touch functionality, and Surface Pen compatibility. Thanks to the 2-in-1 form, you can use the device as a tablet for drawing and writing. Attaching a Type Cover with touchpad and keyboard turns it into a notebook with the rear stand deployed.
You get front- and rear-facing cameras, Wi-Fi 6, and dual 2W stereo speakers. Ports include USB-C, 3.5mm audio, Surface Connect, and a microSD card reader. This is one of the best budget tablets under $500 for anyone who is always on the move and doesn't need a particularly powerful PC. Models ship from the factory with Windows 11.
How to pick the best Surface as a student?
Ultimately, any of the Surface PCs on our list are great for any kind of student. If you're in college but like the look of the Surface Laptop Go 2, go for it! As long as you know it'll fit your needs, there's nothing wrong with using a Surface of your choice for your type of student life.
If you're a student studying subjects that mostly consist of numbers and writing, something with a good keyboard or possibly pen input is going to be useful to you. If you're a student studying a subject that requires more powerful specs, the Surface Laptop Studio is the best Surface out there right now for that.
