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I get why shopping for a student laptop feels worse this year. The Windows laptops that sold for $400 to $650 last Black Friday now cost 2 to 2.5 times that, because memory chips got far more expensive in 2026.
So a 30% off sticker this year can still mean paying more than last November’s full price. Dell’s 16 Plus with 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage sold for $549.99 on Cyber Monday last year, and today it lists at $1,399.99.
My advice is simple. For most students I’d start with Apple’s MacBook Neo, which is $699, or $599 with education pricing, because it’s the one laptop here that didn’t double in price. For Windows, I’d only buy at a price close to the targets below, and I’d skip 8GB laptops unless the budget is under $400.
Each expected price on this page is last year’s Black Friday discount applied to today’s price. Black Friday lands on November 27 this year, and last year’s best laptop prices came in the days around it and on Cyber Monday.
Black Friday Student Laptop Deals at a Glance
Here are the 10 laptops I’d look at, with the price that would make each one a real deal:
| Laptop | Best for | Price now | Black Friday 2025 | Expected 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MacBook Neo | Most students | $699, or $599 for education | Not out yet | Under $599 is a deal |
| MacBook Air M5 13-inch | All 4 years of college | $1,299, or $1,199 for education | M4 model $749 (25% off) | About $975 |
| Dell 16 Plus | Windows, big screen | $1,399.99 | $549.99 (52% off) | About $670 |
| HP OmniBook X Flip 14 | Handwritten notes | $1,299.99 list | $619.99 | $620 to $700 |
| Acer Aspire Go 15 | Tight budgets | $499.99 list | $199.99 (33% off) | About $335 |
| Acer Chromebook Plus Spin 514 | Browser-based study | $635 | $549 | $430 to $585 |
| Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 5i 16 | Typing and multitasking | $929.99 | $399.99 | Under $700 |
| ASUS Vivobook 16 | Big screen for STEM | About $700 to $1,000 | $399.99 | Under $550 |
| Surface Laptop 13-inch | Light Windows laptop | $1,199 | 1st edition $549.99 | About $730 |
| Dell XPS 13 (2026) | Premium on a budget | $799 | Earlier model $699.99 | About $510 |
The Apple prices are Apple’s own, and the others are the manufacturer or Best Buy price. Retailers will move all of them during sale week.
Why Student Laptops Cost More This Year
Memory prices jumped in 2026, and laptop makers passed the cost on to buyers. These are the changes that matter most for a student budget:
- Windows laptops roughly doubled. Lenovo’s IdeaPad Slim 5i 16 sold for $399.99 last Black Friday and costs $929.99 now. The ASUS Vivobook 16 that hit $399.99 now sells for around $800 to $1,000.
- 8GB is back on cheap laptops. Every Acer Aspire Go 15 under $630 has 8GB, and so does the cheapest 2026 Vivobook 16. That’s below the 16GB Microsoft requires for a Copilot+ PC.
- Apple raised prices too, but less. MacBook Air went from $1,099 to $1,299 in June and MacBook Neo from $599 to $699.
- New models launched higher. The 2nd-edition Surface Laptop 13-inch costs $1,199, while the 1st edition sold for $549.99 last Black Friday.
So I’d judge every deal against last year’s price and this year’s expected price, and ignore the struck-through number on the listing.
Best Black Friday Student Laptop Deals
Each card has today’s price, last Black Friday’s price and the price I’d wait for, plus who should pick something else. Where Amazon India sells the same laptop or its closest version, there’s a second button for it.
MacBook Neo
MacBook Neo is Apple’s cheapest MacBook, with the A18 Pro chip from the iPhone and a 13-inch screen. For papers, research, the course portal and streaming, it’s the student laptop I’d buy first.
- Price now: $699 for 8GB/256GB, $799 for 512GB with Touch ID
- Education price: $599 and $699
- Black Friday 2025: not on sale yet, since it launched in March 2026
- Expected 2026: anything under $599 beats education pricing
- Skip it if: you need Windows-only software or plan to edit video, since 8GB of RAM can’t be upgraded
MacBook Air M5 13-inch
If the budget reaches it, I’d pick the Air. It now comes with 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage as standard, and it will still feel fast in senior year.
- Price now: $1,299, or $1,199 with education pricing
- Black Friday 2025: the M4 model dropped to $749 from $999, 25% off
- Expected 2026: about $975 if the same 25% returns; retailers already cut it to $1,099 in October
- Skip it if: the MacBook Neo covers your coursework, since it costs about half
My MacBook Black Friday deals page tracks every Air and Pro model through the sale.
Dell 16 Plus
Dell 16 Plus is the Windows laptop I’d buy a student who needs a big screen and 16GB of RAM, but only at a sale price. At its current price, it’s hard to recommend.
- Configuration: Core Ultra 7 256V with 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage on a 16-inch 2.5K screen
- Price now: $1,399.99 on Dell.com
- Black Friday 2025: $549.99 on Cyber Monday, 52% off
- Expected 2026: about $670 at the same 52%
- Student extra: up to 10% more off on Dell.com, though it skips limited-quantity deals
If you want a smaller Dell, the 14 Plus sold for $499.99 to $649 last year and now starts at $1,379.99. My Dell Black Friday deals page covers both.
HP OmniBook X Flip 14
HP OmniBook X Flip 14 is the 2-in-1 I’d pick for handwritten notes, because it folds into a tablet for marking up slides and PDFs with a pen. It replaced HP’s Envy x360, which HP no longer sells.
- Configuration: Ryzen AI 5 430, 16GB, 512GB, 14-inch 2K OLED touchscreen
- Price now: $1,299.99 list; Best Buy sold the OLED model for $699.99 in its October sale
- Black Friday 2025: $619.99 for the 24GB/1TB model at Best Buy
- Expected 2026: $620 to $700
- Skip it if: you only type, since a regular laptop is lighter and cheaper
The India button goes to the OmniBook X Flip sold there, which uses an Intel chip instead of AMD.
Acer Aspire Go 15
Acer Aspire Go 15 is the cheapest Windows laptop I’d consider, and only for a tight budget. It handles documents, the browser and video calls, and it slows down once you stack many tabs.
- Configuration: Core 3 N355, 8GB, 128GB, 15.6-inch Full HD
- Price now: $499.99 list, $469.99 on Acer’s store
- Black Friday 2025: $199.99, 33% under its usual price then
- Expected 2026: about $335 at the same 33%
- Skip it if: you can stretch to 16GB, or your work runs in a browser, where a Chromebook Plus does more for the money
It ships in Windows 11 S Mode, which only runs Microsoft Store apps. Switching out of S Mode is free, but it’s a one-way change.
Acer Chromebook Plus Spin 514
Acer Chromebook Plus Spin 514 is the Chromebook I’d buy a student whose work lives in Google Docs, the course portal and the browser. It folds into a tablet and gets updates until June 2035.
- Configuration: MediaTek Kompanio Ultra 910, 12GB, 256GB, 14-inch touchscreen
- Price now: $635 at Best Buy
- Black Friday 2025: $549 at Best Buy
- Expected 2026: $430 to $585, since Chromebook Plus models fell 8% to 32% last year
- Bonus: 12 months of Google AI Pro with Chromebook Plus purchases, redeemable until January 31, 2027
- Skip it if: a course needs Windows or Mac desktop software
For 10 more Chromebooks and the new Googlebooks, see my Chromebook Black Friday deals.
Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 5i 16
Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 5i 16 is the Windows laptop I’d pick for a student who types a lot. Its keyboard is one of the best at this price, and 16GB of RAM comes standard.
- Configuration: Intel Core 5 210H, 16GB, 512GB to 1TB, 16-inch touchscreen
- Price now: $929.99 on Lenovo.com, against a $1,249.99 list price
- Black Friday 2025: $399.99 for the 1TB model at B&H
- Expected 2026: I found no reliable 2025 discount for this exact model, so I’d wait for under $700
- Student extra: another 5% off on Lenovo.com with a school email
The India button goes to the IdeaPad Slim 5 16-inch sold there, which uses an earlier Intel chip.
ASUS Vivobook 16
ASUS Vivobook 16 is the big-screen Windows pick for STEM students, with a 16-inch 16:10 screen that fits more code, spreadsheet rows and PDF pages than a 14-inch laptop.
- Configuration: AMD Ryzen AI 5 330, 16GB, 512GB, 16-inch 1920×1200
- Price now: about $700 to $1,000, depending on the store
- Black Friday 2025: $399.99 at Best Buy in a one-day deal
- Expected 2026: under $550 would be a good price this year
- Skip it if: you carry the laptop all day, since it’s bigger and heavier than a 14-inch model
Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch
Surface Laptop 13-inch is the light Windows laptop I’d consider for a student who wants Mac-like battery life on Windows. The new 2nd edition is hard to justify at full price.
- Configuration: Snapdragon X2 Plus, 16GB, 256GB, 13-inch touchscreen
- Price now: $1,199 for the 2nd edition, released October 13, 2026
- Black Friday 2025: the 1st edition sold for $549.99 at Best Buy, 39% off $899.99
- Expected 2026: about $730 at the same 39%, though a laptop this new rarely gets that cut
- Skip it if: you need older Windows apps that don’t run on Snapdragon chips
Dell XPS 13 (2026)
Dell XPS 13 is the most premium laptop here at a mid-range price, with a 13.4-inch 2.5K touchscreen in a 2.2-pound body. The catch is 8GB of RAM on the base model.
- Configuration: Intel Core 5 320, 8GB, 512GB, 13.4-inch 2.5K touchscreen
- Price now: $799 list, and Dell has sold it to verified students for $699
- Black Friday 2025: the earlier XPS 13 sold for $699.99, 36% off $1,099.99
- Expected 2026: about $510 at the same 36%
- Skip it if: you’ll run heavy apps for 4 years, since 8GB can’t be upgraded
Student Discounts That Stack With Black Friday
Student pricing and Black Friday rarely add up, so I’d check which one is bigger before checking out:
- Apple Education cuts $100 off MacBook Neo and MacBook Air. Last year’s Black Friday gift card couldn’t be combined with education pricing, so you pick one.
- Dell gives students up to 10% extra after a SheerID check. It works with some offers but not with other Dell coupons or limited-quantity deals.
- HP Education advertises up to 40% off, but it doesn’t combine with other offers unless HP says so.
- Lenovo takes another 5% off with a school email or ID.me. Its page doesn’t say whether that applies to Black Friday deals.
- Microsoft gives 10% off some Surface models and applies only whichever discount is deeper.
- Samsung gives 10% to 30% off with a school email or ID.me, and it seems to apply on top of Samsung’s listed savings.
- Prime for Young Adults, the new name for Prime Student, costs $7.49 a month or $69 a year. Its trial length varies by account, from a few days to 6 months.
How I’d Choose a Student Laptop
I’d let the major decide before the discount does, and I’d run these checks first:
- Required software. If a course needs Windows-only apps such as SPSS or SolidWorks, rule out the MacBook Neo and every Chromebook first.
- RAM. 16GB is the safe choice for 4 years. 8GB is fine for writing and research, and it’s the first thing to feel slow in a heavy semester.
- Weight and battery. A student carries this laptop all day, so a light 13 or 14-inch model with all-day battery beats a faster 16-inch one for most majors.
- Chromebook update date. Buy a Chromebook Plus that gets updates until June 2035. Google has promised Chromebooks with updates past 2034 a path to its new Googlebook software, though it hasn’t named the models yet.
If your current laptop still works, Windows 10 keeps getting free security updates until October 12, 2027 for home users. Waiting a year for prices to cool is a fair choice.
For the full year-round list, my guide to the best laptops for college students and my Chromebooks for students picks go deeper.
Student Laptop Prices to Expect
Going by last year and what has happened to prices since, this is what I expect:
- Likely: Windows laptops back at 30% to 50% off, landing well above last year’s prices because the starting prices are higher.
- Possible: MacBook Air M5 near $999 at Amazon and Best Buy, while Apple itself offers gift cards instead of price cuts.
- Possible: the first real discount on MacBook Neo, which would make it the best student deal of the sale.
- Possible: deeper cuts on 8GB Windows laptops than on 16GB ones, which makes the cheapest deals the easiest to regret.
- Unlikely: 16GB Windows laptops back at last year’s $400 to $550, while memory stays expensive.
FAQs on Black Friday Student Laptop Deals
What is the best Black Friday laptop for students?
For most students it’s the MacBook Neo, at $699 or $599 with education pricing. Students who need Windows should wait for the Dell 16 Plus near $670, and students who work in the browser should look at the Acer Chromebook Plus Spin 514.
Are laptops cheaper on Black Friday than with student discounts?
For Windows laptops, usually yes. Dell’s student discount is up to 10% and skips limited-quantity deals, while last year’s sale cut the Dell 16 Plus by 52%. On Apple, education pricing takes $100 off and can’t be combined with Apple’s Black Friday gift card, so retailer sales are often the better deal.
Why are student laptops more expensive in 2026?
Memory chips cost far more in 2026, and laptop makers raised prices to match. The Dell 16 Plus sold for $549.99 last Black Friday and lists at $1,399.99 now, and Apple raised MacBook Air from $1,099 to $1,299.
Is 8GB of RAM enough for a student laptop?
It’s enough for writing, research and video calls, and it’s the minimum for a Chromebook Plus. For 4 years of college or any coding, data or design work, 16GB is the safer buy.
Should a student buy a Chromebook this Black Friday?
Yes, if the work runs in a browser. Pick a Chromebook Plus with updates until June 2035, since Google has promised Chromebooks supported past 2034 a path to its new Googlebook software.
When do Black Friday student laptop deals start?
Black Friday falls on November 27 this year. Last year Dell’s Black Friday deals went live on November 28, and Cyber Monday brought its lowest Dell 16 Plus price.
Before You Buy
If you’re worried this year’s prices will look silly next November, I’d worry less about the year and more about the laptop. A machine that runs every required app and lasts 4 years is the deal, even if it costs more than it did last year.
So I’d pick the laptop now, write down its target price from the table above and buy only when it gets there. If you’re shopping for more than a laptop, my roundup of Black Friday deals for students covers the rest.