Best Laptop For Photo Editing Under 1000 In 2023 [Top Picks]

When you think about photography, the first thing to come to your mind is a camera. But right after that is a good laptop. Because even the top photographers need to edit their work for their audience to appreciate it.

Not to mention you also need to be able to judge your work in a laptop, see its flaws and highlights, since a camera is not well suited for that. And of course you need to store them too!

To buy the best laptop for photo editing under 1000, simply keep on reading. We know it can be confusing with so many laptops on the market today. But you need to find one that is relevant to your work.

For this you need to focus on some specifications and designs and we are here to help you with that. Our article covers all you need to know, so fret not and continue scrolling.

list of Top 10 Laptops For Photo Editing Under $1000

1. Acer Aspire 5

2. New Apple MacBook Air

3. 2020 HP 15

4. MSI GF63 Thin 9SC-066

5. Lenovo Flex 14

6. Dell Inspiron 14 5491

7. ASUS ZenBook

8. Acer Aspire 5

9. Microsoft Surface Go

10. Acer Spin 3

Comparison Chart For Top 10 Laptops For Photo Editing under $1000

Image Name Screen Size (inch) Processor Specialty Features
Acer Aspire 5, 15.6
Acer Aspire 5, 15.6" Full HD IPS Display, 10th Gen Intel Core i5-10210U, NVIDIA GeForce MX250, 8GB DDR4, 512GB PCIe NVMe SSD, Intel Wi-Fi 6 AX201 802.11ax, Backlit KB, Windows 10 Home
Acer Aspire 5 15.6

4.2 GHz Intel Core i5

Wireless Wi-Fi 6
Apple MacBook Air (13-inch Retina Display, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD Storage) - Silver (Previous Model)
Apple MacBook Air (13-inch Retina Display, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD Storage) - Silver (Previous Model)
New Apple MacBook Air 13.3

1.1GHz dual-core Intel Core i3

Up to 12 hours wireless
2020 HP 15 15.6
2020 HP 15 15.6" HD Touchscreen Premium Laptop - 10th Gen Intel Core i5-1035G1, 16GB DDR4, 512GB SSD, USB Type-C, HDMI, Windows 10 - Silver W
2020 HP 15 15.6

3.6 GHz Core i5

16 GB memory
MSI GF63 Thin 9SC-066 15.6
MSI GF63 Thin 9SC-066 15.6" Gaming Laptop, Thin Bezel, Intel Core i7-9750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX1650, 16GB, 512GB NVMe SSD
MSI GF63 Thin 9SC-066 15.6

Intel Core i7

512 GB memory
Lenovo Flex 14 2-in-1 Convertible Laptop, 14 Inch FHD Touchscreen Display, AMD Ryzen 5 3500U Processor, 12GB DDR4 RAM, 256GB NVMe SSD, Windows 10, 81SS000DUS, Black, Pen Included
Lenovo Flex 14 2-in-1 Convertible Laptop, 14 Inch FHD Touchscreen Display, AMD Ryzen 5 3500U Processor, 12GB DDR4 RAM, 256GB NVMe SSD, Windows 10, 81SS000DUS, Black, Pen Included
Lenovo Flex 14 14

AMD Ryzen 5

Digital pen
Dell Inspiron 14 5491 14 inch 2in1 Convertible Touchscreen FHD Laptop (Silver) Intel core i7-10510U, 8GB RAM, 512GB SSD, Windows 10 Home (i5491-7265SLV-PUS)
Dell Inspiron 14 5491 14 inch 2in1 Convertible Touchscreen FHD Laptop (Silver) Intel core i7-10510U, 8GB RAM, 512GB SSD, Windows 10 Home (i5491-7265SLV-PUS)
Dell Inspiron 14 5491 14

4.9 GHz Core i7 Family

Touch Display
ASUS ZenBook 13 Ultra-Slim Laptop, 13.3” Full HD WideView, 8th Gen Intel Core i5-8265U, 8GB LPDDR3, 512GB PCIe SSD, Backlit KB, Fingerprint, Slate Gray, Windows 10, UX331FA-AS51
ASUS ZenBook 13 Ultra-Slim Laptop, 13.3” Full HD WideView, 8th Gen Intel Core i5-8265U, 8GB LPDDR3, 512GB PCIe SSD, Backlit KB, Fingerprint, Slate Gray, Windows 10, UX331FA-AS51
ASUS ZenBook 13

Intel i5-8265U

512 GB memory
Acer Aspire 5 Slim Laptop, 15.6 inches Full HD IPS Display, AMD Ryzen 3 3200U, Vega 3 Graphics, 4GB DDR4, 128GB SSD, Backlit Keyboard, Windows 10 in S Mode, A515-43-R19L, Silver
Acer Aspire 5 Slim Laptop, 15.6 inches Full HD IPS Display, AMD Ryzen 3 3200U, Vega 3 Graphics, 4GB DDR4, 128GB SSD, Backlit Keyboard, Windows 10 in S Mode, A515-43-R19L, Silver
Acer Aspire 5 15.6

AMD Ryzen 3 3200U Dual-Core Processor 2.6GHz

7.5 hours battery life
Microsoft Surface Go (Intel Pentium Gold, 4GB RAM, 64GB)
Microsoft Surface Go (Intel Pentium Gold, 4GB RAM, 64GB)
Microsoft Surface Go 10

Intel Pentium Gold

64GB RAM
Acer Spin 3 Convertible Laptop, 14 inches Full HD IPS Touch, 8th Gen Intel Core i7-8565U, 16GB DDR4, 512GB PCIe NVMe SSD, Backlit KB, Fingerprint Reader, Rechargeable Active Stylus, SP314-53N-77AJ
Acer Spin 3 Convertible Laptop, 14 inches Full HD IPS Touch, 8th Gen Intel Core i7-8565U, 16GB DDR4, 512GB PCIe NVMe SSD, Backlit KB, Fingerprint Reader, Rechargeable Active Stylus, SP314-53N-77AJ
Acer Spin 3 14

8th Generation Intel Core i7 8565U

12 hours battery life

Best Laptop For Photo Editing Under 1000 Reviews

 Best Laptop For Photo Editing Under 1000 Reviews
Best Laptop For Photo Editing Under 1000 Reviews

1. Acer Aspire 5

The Acer Aspire 5 is a great choice if you want a laptop with a narrow bezel. This lets you examine your photographs in detail and works well for other activities too-such as watching movies or video chatting.

Besides having a thin bezel, you also get a 15.6 inch full HD IPS screen to make your experience all the more better. This is also very useful for photo editing since you can see them in a wider space.

The Acer Color Intelligence makes sure you see colors that match reality, giving you a piece of the real deal. And lastly there is the Blue Light Shield which protects your eyes from the long periods of staring into the screen.

This is very helpful to prevent headaches and strained eyes as you work on your photo edits. Coming with a 10th generation Intel core processor along with NVIDIA GeForce MX250 graphics, this laptop is well equipped to tackle your everyday work head on.

Sound quality on this is laptop is just as good. The TrueHarmony technology provided by Acer gives your deep bass and increased volume, a combination which we all love!

Great for when you want to listen to your favorite tunes while working on your pieces. The backlit keyboard looks pretty cool, but that's not all. It lets you work in the dark without an external light, making work simpler and easier.

Acer Aspire 5, 15.6
Acer Aspire 5, 15.6" Full HD IPS Display, 10th Gen Intel Core i5-10210U, NVIDIA GeForce MX250, 8GB DDR4, 512GB PCIe NVMe SSD, Intel Wi-Fi 6 AX201 802.11ax, Backlit KB, Windows 10 Home

Highlighted Features

  • 10th generation Intel core i5
  • Comes with a backlit keyboard
  • Holds a 9.5 hour battery life
  • Narrow bezel design for crisp images

2. New Apple MacBook Air

We all love a good MacBook, and this is simply another one of Apples brilliant designs you are sure to love. If your main priority in your laptop is portability, look to this.

Being one of the most lightweight and slim laptops out there, it also packs a bunch of features you will want. For the finest resolution, you have the Retina Display with True Tone Technology.

Hosting a whopping 4 million pixels, it shows you colors like never before. What you see on screen will seem as good as real. You get this at 13.3 inches, which isn't too bad, given its portability.

But the pictures is not just it. When it comes to texts, you also experience razor sharp text clarity. How a laptop performs also matters, and this has one of the top performances amongst most you will find today.

It has double the CPU performance, 4 core Intel i7 processor, 80% faster graphics performance. All of this is dedicated towards giving you a lag free smooth laptop.

This is very important for photo editing since all the software you will be using can slow down a laptop if it's not strong enough.

On top of all this you also get a 2TB storage to top it off. Lastly the touch ID makes for good security. This way you can leave it open and not worry about someone else getting to your work.

Apple MacBook Air (13-inch Retina Display, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD Storage) - Silver (Previous Model)
Apple MacBook Air (13-inch Retina Display, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD Storage) - Silver (Previous Model)

Highlighted Features

  • 13.3 inch retina display
  • Comes with 8 GB of memory
  • Stereo speakers give wide sound range
  • Features a backlit keyboard and touch ID

3. 2020 HP 15 Touchscreen Premium Laptop

Being one of the top most choices for students out there for being an affordable option, this laptop from HP is a great value buy for photo editing as well as other tasks.

A good choice for those who are into photography as a passion, or like to edit pictures often. First of all we must talk about the processor on this laptop, which is a 10th generation Intel core i5.

Thanks to this you will not feel any lags on this laptop and can work smoothly. This is important because when editing pictures you have to use multiple software simultaneously.

Without a strong processor like this, you work will get delayed, not to mention frustrating from all the lags. The large display of 15.6 inches is just perfect since it lets you see your work on a big screen.

This helps you point out flaws and improves your editing work as well. The large display is also touchscreen, to help further improve your experience as a whole, and a great addition for photo edits as well.

Lastly, it is worth mentioning that this laptop, regardless of how it looks, is surprisingly lightweight-something you want if you are a college student having to carry it every day.

It also has a stylish exterior with a beautiful chassis that separates it from your everyday designs.

2020 HP 15 15.6
2020 HP 15 15.6" HD Touchscreen Premium Laptop - 10th Gen Intel Core i5-1035G1, 16GB DDR4, 512GB SSD, USB Type-C, HDMI, Windows 10 - Silver W

Highlighted Features

  • Has a micro-edge WLED-backlit touchscreen display
  • Has a memory of 16 GB
  • Screen size is 15.6 inches
  • Has a graphic card RAM size of 0.01 MB

4. MSI GF63 Thin 9SC-066

The optimum choice for gamers, the MSI GF63 Thin 9SC-066 has been a prime choice for people who love to play online games. That being said, it also possesses all the qualities you would want in a laptop suitable for photo editing.

Even though it is a gaming laptop, it is lightweight and thin, and comes with an enhanced screen to body ratio and slim bezel too. It helps to give you a different experience with the screen.

You see more and see clearly-something you want from your laptop when editing pictures. The clearer you can see your work, the better the edits! The 7+ hours of battery life is designed to let one game for hours without interruption.

You can definitely use it for this purpose. Or you can also get 7+ hours of picture editing. Really depends on how you use it. Frequent use of your laptop always means it will heat up, which is more so the case for gaming laptops.

This one comes with 2 fans, 4 exhausts and 7 pipes to help prevent that. Of course photo editing does not heat up the laptop as much, but this is always good to have to keep your laptop running smooth.

Exterior wise, like any gaming laptop, this too has a cool design. A sleek brushed aluminum makes the front cover and tops it off with a logo in red.

MSI GF63 Thin 9SC-066 15.6
MSI GF63 Thin 9SC-066 15.6" Gaming Laptop, Thin Bezel, Intel Core i7-9750H, NVIDIA GeForce GTX1650, 16GB, 512GB NVMe SSD

Highlighted Features

  • Has a display of 15.6 inches
  • Thin bezel helps to make editing easier
  • Processor is Intel core i7
  • Comes with a 512 GB storage

5. Lenovo Flex 14 - Best laptop for photography under $1000

The right laptop for those accustomed to using the Ryzen processor, this Lenovo Flex 14 is truly a flexible laptop that is just right for editing photos. It can be used a variety of modes.

You obviously have the laptop mode, but you also get a tablet mode, tent mode and stand mode. The tent mode is the right one when you are using this to edit pictures as this lets you work on it efficiently.

The digital pen that comes with it, paired with this mode makes it seem like pen on paper, and makes the work just as simple. You can draw, write or edit all using the same pen.

Lastly the TrueBlock privacy shutter is a thoughtful feature. As online security becomes more prevalent today, this helps to block out unwanted views. It will close on its own after use, so even if you forget, there is no harm done.

Lenovo Flex 14 2-in-1 Convertible Laptop, 14 Inch FHD Touchscreen Display, AMD Ryzen 5 3500U Processor, 12GB DDR4 RAM, 256GB NVMe SSD, Windows 10, 81SS000DUS, Black, Pen Included
Lenovo Flex 14 2-in-1 Convertible Laptop, 14 Inch FHD Touchscreen Display, AMD Ryzen 5 3500U Processor, 12GB DDR4 RAM, 256GB NVMe SSD, Windows 10, 81SS000DUS, Black, Pen Included

Highlighted Features

  • Comes with built-in ongoing protection from Windows 10
  • Includes an active pen to take notes
  • Battery life extends up to 10 hours
  • Features a TrueBlock privacy shutter

How to choose the best Laptop For Photo Editing Under 1000

Ports

Ports are very important when you want a laptop for photo editing. You will be using multiple ports at a time and will need different ones at different times. This makes the number and type of ports available a top priority.

The more variety you have, the better, because it lets you be more flexible. The first thing here are SD card readers, which is a requirement for photo editing. Artist friendly ports also include thunderbolt 3 portsthat let you transfer files.

It also helps you optimize your editing experience, which you would enjoy as a photographer. If you want a lot of different ports, your laptop, in most cases is going to be bigger as well.

If you do not want to compromise in size, or the laptop you loved does not have your desired ports, there is an alternative. Go for an adapter, which will let you work with everything.

Size

This depends on how and where you plan on using your laptop. If you are someone who has to edit photos on the go, opt for a slim compact laptop that is easy to carry.

A large and heavy laptop can be a big burden if you are mobile. However for the home or office, size is not an issue as you can keep it in one place.

However laptops do tend to move around, hence choosing it over a desktop. So try to go for one lightweight either ways.

Storage

Downloading software and storing your raw and edited photos, all take a lot of space. This makes storage a very important feature. The higher you can go, the better.

Having low storage will also mean your laptop will start to lag and slow down during work. This is the last thing you want when using downloaded software or trying to meet a deadline.

Of course it will be more expensive opting for high storage as well, but it is usually worth it.

Brightness

While using a photo editor, you want to go as bright as possible to see clearly. Hence try to opt for those over 250 nits at the least.

Final Word

You have reached till here, so we assume you have found your laptop by now. Our article here covered some of the best laptops for photo editing under 1000.

While these can be used for a variety of reasons, the ones here have been careful selected for photographers. So if you are a photographer by profession, or simply enjoy taking nice pictures, the models mentioned here will be helpful for you.

Besides the top models in the market, we have also included some extra for comparison, which are similar. This will help you see the highlights more clearly, resulting in a well thought decision.

  1. Best Chromebook For Photo Editing 2023
  2. Best MacBook For Photo Editing 2023
  3. Best Budget Laptop For Photoshop 2023

Buy on Etsy, eBay, Walmart (quality guaranteed)

2020 Apple MacBook Air Laptop: Apple M1 Chip, 13” Retina Display, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD - Walmart, Etsy, eBay

Lenovo Legion 5 15.6" Gaming Laptop 120Hz AMD Ryzen 7-4800H 8GB RAM 512GB SSD GTX 1650 - Walmart, Etsy, eBay

Dell XPS 9370 Laptop, 13.3" UHD (3840 x 2160) InfinityEdge Touch Display, 8th Gen Intel - Walmart, Etsy, Ebay

Yoga C930 2-in-1 13.9" Touch-Screen Laptop - Intel Core i7 - 12GB Memory - 256GB Solid - Walmart, Etsy, Ebay

ASUS VivoBook K571 Laptop, 15.6” FHD, Intel Core i7-9750H CPU, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650, - Walmart, Etsy, eBay

HP Envy 13 Ultra Thin Laptop 13.3" Full-HD, Intel Core i5-8250U, Intel UHD Graphics 620, - Walmart, Etsy, eBay

Dell Inspiron 14 5406 2 in 1 Convertible Laptop, 14-inch FHD Touchscreen Laptop - Intel - Walmart, Etsy, eBay

1. Acer Aspire 5 - Walmart, Etsy, eBay

2. New Apple MacBook Air - Walmart, Etsy, eBay

3. 2020 HP 15 - Walmart, Etsy, Ebay

4. MSI GF63 Thin 9SC-066 - Walmart, Etsy, eBay

5. Lenovo Flex 14 - Walmart, Etsy, eBay

6. Dell Inspiron 14 5491 - Walmart, Etsy, Ebay

8. Acer Aspire 5 - Walmart, Etsy, eBay

9. Microsoft Surface Go - Walmart, Etsy, Ebay

10. Acer Spin 3 - Walmart, Etsy, eBay

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