The best laptops for Photoshop need to be able to power through the more power-hungry GPU-accelerate features in Adobe's software while providing colour-accurate displays that allow you to see your photos, designs or digital art as they really look. However, different users will have varying priorities in terms of portability, screen size and budget.
As a regular Photoshop user myself, I've used the software on a wide range of laptops, and our team of reviewers has tested even more, from budget laptops to MacBooks and some of the most powerful Windows laptops. We've put them all through benchmark tests and hands-on real-world use with Photoshop itself. We've evaluated display size and quality, performance, build and battery life to identify the best Photoshop laptop for different needs. The result is the handpicked selection below.
I think the new M3 MacBook Air is perfect for Photoshop. It's beautifully built, the M3 chip provides excellent performance, and battery life blows most other laptops away.Read more below
Our reviewer found this laptop could handle almost anything. This laptop has a fantastic OLED screen, clever 2-in-1 functionality, and manages to squeeze a respectable running time out of its battery. Read more below
For Photoshop users who work with many layers or also dabble in video editing or 3D, the M3 Pro is plenty for you – and the M3 Max laptop has all the power you could need and a lot more. Battery life is outstanding, and the screen is wonderfully bright. Totally overkill for most. Read more below
For a cheaper option, it's hard to go wrong with this. The dedicated GPU provides solid performance and the screen size and colour accuracy make it a good choice for working in Photoshop. Read more below
This thin laptop weighs just 1kg and has the most colour-accurate screen we've tested on such a small laptop, making it a great option if often you need to use Photoshop on the go. Read more below
Thanks to a versatile screen that can be placed in three positions, I think this is a great option for those who want to use Photoshop with a touchscreen and direct stylus input. Read more below
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✅ You want a balance between size and portability: A large screen is more comfortable to work on, but a large laptop is a pain to carry. We think the Air 15 strikes a good balance.
✅ You like Apple products: The latest MacBook Air has the sleek aesthetics we expect from Apple.
✅ You want to balance price and power: There are more powerful MacBooks, they're likely to be overkill if you're workflow doesn't also involve more demanding software.
Don't buy it if:
❌ You want a touchscreen: Apple has yet to make a tablet with a touchscreen, so if you want to use Photoshop with a stylus directly on your laptop, you'll need to opt for Windows.
❌ You need more powerful performance for other tasks: The MacBook Air 15 makes light work of Photoshop, but if you also do video editing to a pro or semi-pro level, you'll probably benefit from the performance of a MacBook Pro.
❌ You want a more portable laptop for travel: The Air 15 is slim and light, but there are smaller laptops, which may suit you better if you work a lot on the road.
The bottom line
🔎 Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3) further refines the MacBook Air formula. It's thin and light for its size and provides more than enough power for photo editing in Photoshop at a price point below that of a MacBook Pro. ★★★★½
What you need to know
The MacBook Air isn't the most powerful laptop in Apple's lineup, but it's more than capable of running even the most demanding Photoshop workflows. The more powerful MacBook Pros are really overkill for most people for using Photoshop alone, and they're much more expensive. This laptop provides the specs you need at a more accessible price.
Design and build: The 2024 MacBook Airs don't change things from recent years' models, but then they didn't need too. They're slim and light, look sleek and have a premium feel. Those who use a lot of peripherals should bear in mind that there are only two ports (Thunderbolt 4), so you may need a dock if your need demand more than this.
The Air now comes in two sizes, 13in and 15in, and we're recommending the latter at the top of our list for Photoshop since we think the larger screen is more comfortable for photo editing and design work, while the device is still a little lighter and more compact than a 16-inch MacBook Pro. That said, if portability is a priority, the smaller laptop provides almost identical performance.
Performance: Speaking of performance, MacBooks don't have dedicated graphics cards, but we found the integrated GPUs in Apple's own silicon to be powerful and efficient, and the M3 chip was easily capable of handling GPU-accelerated tools in Photoshop. It can get warm under pressure since it doesn't have a fan (partly what allows Apple to make it so slim), but you should only need more power if you're also doing more demanding tasks, such as video editing, in other software. As for battery life, we measured over 16 hours in our tests, which makes this a great option if you like to work in places where where you might not have a power source.
Display: We found the LED-backlit display to be a delight for working in Photoshop. It's bright enough for most situations at 500 nits (those working in HDR might want to jump down the MacBook Pro further down our list) and it's a good size for working across multiple panels.
Pricing: The MacBook Air is a 'midrange' laptop as far as Apple goes: not it's cheapest or nor its most expensive. In terms of specs, there are Windows laptops that can offer a bit more power for the price, but I think the MacBook Air 15 strikes a great balance of price, performance, screen size and portability to make it the optimum choice for Photoshop. See below for prices in your region.
Ports: 2x USB 4.0, 1x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A, HDMI 2.1, 3.5mm audio, microSD card reader
Weight: 1.38kg
Reasons to buy
+
GPU and NPU
+
Compact 2-in-1 convenience
+
OLED screen
Reasons to avoid
-
Display only 60 Hz
-
Finicky touchpad
-
Battery life could be better
Buy it if
✅ You want a versatile laptop for Photoshop and more: The 2-in-1 design and powerful specs make it great for various creative tasks.
✅ You're interested in AI-enhanced workflows: The AMD Ryzen AI processor with NPU is ready for the latest AI features in creative apps.
✅ You value portability: At just 1.38kg with a 13.3-inch screen, it's more travel-friendly than many creative powerhouses.
Don't buy it if:
❌ You're on a tight budget: This high-end machine comes with a premium price tag.
❌ You need all-day battery life: Our reviewer found the battery life to be shorter than expected in testing.
❌ You prefer a larger screen for detailed work: The 13.3-inch display, while excellent, might feel cramped for some users.
The bottom line
🔎 The ASUS ProArt PX13 packs serious power into a compact, versatile package. It's an excellent choice for Photoshop users who need portability and the flexibility of a 2-in-1 design, but be prepared for the premium price. ★★★★½
What you need to know: The ASUS ProArt PX13 is a compact powerhouse that brings together high performance and versatility in a 13.3-inch package. Our reviewer found it to be an impressive machine for creative work, including Photoshop, thanks to its powerful specs and thoughtful design features.
Design and build: Despite its small size, the ProArt PX13 feels solidly built. The 2-in-1 design allows it to transform from a laptop to a tablet, making it versatile for different types of creative work. The included stylus enhances its usefulness for digital artists. Our reviewer noted that the ASUS Dial on the trackpad, while not as refined as physical dials on other models, is a welcome addition for adjusting brush sizes and other parameters in creative apps.
Performance: Equipped with AMD's latest Ryzen AI 9 processor and an NVIDIA RTX 4070 GPU, the ProArt PX13 handles Photoshop tasks with ease. The dedicated NPU (Neural Processing Unit) makes it ready for AI-enhanced features in creative applications. Our reviewer found its performance comparable to, and sometimes exceeding, laptops with high-end Intel processors.
Display: The 13.3-inch OLED touchscreen offers excellent color accuracy and coverage, with our reviewer measuring 100% sRGB, 96% Adobe RGB, and 97% P3 color gamuts. The 2880 x 1800 resolution ensures sharp image quality. However, the 60Hz refresh rate might disappoint those used to smoother displays.
Pricing: At around $1,999 / £1,999, this is a premium device. However, its combination of power, portability, and versatility may justify the cost for professionals who need a capable machine on the go.
✅ You want one of the most powerful laptops: The M3 Max MacBook Pro is hugely powerful and can easily handle a lot more than Photoshop, making light work of heavy video editing and 3D animation.
✅ You want a large screen: The 16.2-inch Liquid Retina XDR display provides plenty of space for multiple panels in Photoshop and it delivered high peak brightness and excellent colour and contrast in our tests.
✅ You have a large budget: This is one of the most expensive laptops on our list.
Don't buy it if:
❌ You're a casual Photoshop user: If you only use the more basic tools in Photoshop and you don't use other more demanding software, you'll really have no need for the power of even the base version.
❌ You want a compact portable laptop: It's slim for its size, but this 16-incher weighs 2.1kg and isn't ideal for travel.
❌ You're on a budget: The price is more than most Photoshop users need to pay.
The bottom line
🔎 Apple MacBook Pro 16 (M3 Pro) is a super powerful laptop that can make light work of tasks much more demanding than Photoshop. It's a great option for power uses, particularly professionals who also work in video or motion design, but it's likely to be overkill for anyone else. ★★★★★
What you need to know
The MacBook Pro 16 sits at the top of Apple's range of MacBooks, both in size and performance. It's available with either the M3 Pro or M3 Max chip, which are designed to provide more efficient graphics performance for video and 3D work.
Design and build: The MacBook Pro looks good and it feels good to use. The smooth matte-like finish on the Space Black model feels very premium and wipes down easily. There are plenty of ports, including HDMI and an SDXC card slot for those who transfer photos that way. We love the size of this 16-inch model, but for a more compact option, the 14-inch version provides comparable specs.
Performance: We found the newest MacBook Pro to be a beast for pretty much anything in terms of performance. In our tests, the M3 Pro chip could easily handle complex video editing workflows, let alone photo editing. Even the M3 Pro-powered configuration is more than you need for Photoshop alone: the base M3 version of the 14-inch device will also handle the software with ease, and it's cheaper. But if you want a large screen to edit on, this the MacBook for you.
Display: We loved the Liquid Retina XDR display, which reached the claimed 1,600 nits of peak brightness (the average is 500 nits) in our own tests. That makes this a great option for digital artists doing HDR work. With mini-LED tech and a 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio, it achieves deep blacks and bright whites. We also tested excellent colour accuracy and the 120Hz refresh rate can be locked, which we found allowed smooth performance for video work.
Pricing: This is the most expensive MacBook by some way, and the base model is $200 / £200 more expensive than the Asus ProArt Studiobook above too. There are sometimes discounts about, which can shave up to around $300 off the price of higher-spec configurations.
