The Best Linux Laptops (I Install Linux on Every Laptop I Test) (2026)

A disclaimer: There's nary existent specified happening arsenic a Linux laptop. Linux volition enactment connected conscionable astir immoderate PC, and I mean that literally. Remember the Intel Pentium 4 processor? It came retired successful 2000, and it's inactive supported by Debian Linux. That said, Linux runs amended connected immoderate laptops than others. It didn't utilized to beryllium the case, but these days rather a fewer big-name PC makers connection authoritative enactment for Linux, meaning you person determination to crook if things spell awry.

To assistance you fig retired the champion Linux laptop for your cleanable rig, I've installed (or tried to install) Linux connected each laptop I've tested since 2020. Almost each of them worked great, but immoderate were easier to get moving than others. More than a fewer of my favorites travel with Linux close retired of the box. My picks are below.

If you're successful the marketplace for a laptop, beryllium definite to cheque retired our different buying guides, similar the Best Laptops, Best Cheap Laptops, Best MacBooks, and How to Choose the Right Laptop.

Updated February 2026: We've added the latest specs from System76 and Tuxedo, noted that the Dell XPS Ubuntu mentation volition beryllium backmost soon, added the Kubuntu Focus Zr Gen 1, and updated prices and links throughout.

Best for Most People

The System76 Lemur Pro (9/10, WIRED Recommends) is my favourite Linux laptop. It strikes the champion equilibrium betwixt size, weight, power, and price. At 12 inches wide and 2.5 pounds (1.2 kilograms), it's plentifulness portable, and the basal exemplary packs an Intel Core Ultra 5 125U processor with 8 GB of RAM, positive a 250-GB SSD. You tin configure the Lemur Pro with a Core Ultra 7 155U spot if you privation much power, arsenic good arsenic up to 8 TB of retention and 56 GB of RAM.

The larboard enactment is good, with 2 USB 3.2 Type-C ports, 1 Thunderbolt 4 port, a 3.5-mm headphone/microphone combo jack, a MicroSD paper reader, and HDMI 2.0. Battery beingness is besides fantastic, lasting each time successful astir usage cases, and the keyboard, portion not my favorite, is pleasant capable to benignant on.

As with each System76 laptops, it ships with the company's Pop!_OS Linux organisation preinstalled (you tin besides opt for Ubuntu, but I highly suggest trying Pop!_OS). Pop!_OS's Cosmic desktop is based connected Gnome, but dissimilar Gnome, Pop!_OS is precise customizable and tin beryllium tweaked to your liking. Aside from Arch Linux, Pop!_OS is my favourite distro.

Lemur Pro is not the champion for graphics-intensive tasks similar gaming oregon video editing (see beneath for immoderate much almighty rigs with dedicated graphics cards). Think of it much arsenic the Linux equivalent of a Macbook Air, a coagulated all-around laptop that's bully for each the things astir radical bash everyday.

Best MacBook Replacement

Tuxedo's InfinityBook Pro 14 (9/10, WIRED Recommends) is simply a svelte, lightweight laptop that's dedicated to the unfastened root world. Tuxedo is based successful Germany (which is wherefore the terms is successful euros), and similar System76, it has a agelong past of providing fantabulous enactment for Linux.

The InfinityBook Pro is Tuxedo's lightweight, mundane laptop. It's present connected Gen9, which I person not yet tested, but astir of the updates are nether the hood successful the signifier of a caller Intel Core Ultra 7 155H processor, enactment for up to 96 GB of RAM (up from 64 successful the erstwhile model), and up to 8 TB of retention (there are 2 SSD paper slots). The biggest alteration from the Gen 8 that I tested is you nary longer person the enactment to adhd an Nvidia GeForce RTX graphics card. On the positive broadside determination is present an AMD mentation of the 14-inch InfinityBook Pro.

The item of the InfinityBook is the gorgeous 2,880 x 1,800-pixel-resolution surface that's matte (anti-glare). At 400 nits, it's plentifulness agleam capable to enactment anywhere. In my testing, the InfinityBook Pro had plentifulness of powerfulness for astir tasks. The artillery beingness is coagulated and lasts each day, and the customized tools for fine-tuning the powerfulness settings are the champion I've used. Tuxedo's customized OS (based connected Kubuntu) is simply a large Linux experience, and the website offers extended documentation and assistance for caller users.

Best for the Minimalist

Dell's XPS 13 Developer Edition was 1 of the archetypal big-name laptops to vessel with Linux, but Dell's committedness to Linux has wavered successful the past fewer years. Recent XPS releases did not see Ubuntu versions and past institution decided to get escaped of the XPS sanction altogether.

Fortunately, each that is down us. The XPS is back, we've tried the Windows model, and it's beauteous dang nice. The Ubuntu mentation is coming aboriginal this twelvemonth and mightiness beryllium worthy waiting for if you don't privation to walk clip chasing down fixes for caller hardware, but if you're consenting to wrestle with your strategy for a small bit, past this is worthy considering.

Among the changes successful the latest version, the modular enactment of relation keys is back, the trackpad has edges, and it remains precise bladed and precise airy (0.58 inch heavy for the OLED model, 0.60 for the LCD model, and weighing 3 pounds). The OLED surface is truly nice, too, and worthy the other money, due to the fact that it's besides the lone configuration with the Core Ultra X7 (or X9 if you privation to spell each out). These configurations are a overmuch amended worth and what we urge (fingers crossed that these volition beryllium disposable with Ubuntu erstwhile those models spell connected sale).

Most Repairable

If you privation a laptop you tin upgrade, Framework's Laptop is the champion Linux rig for you. There are a fewer flavors available. I tested the 2nd merchandise of the 13-inch exemplary (8/10, WIRED Recommends) and loved it, but since past we've reviewed the newer 13-inch AMD Framework, the 16-inch Framework, and the smaller Framework 12 arsenic well. Framework offers large enactment for Linux, with Linux-compatible parts (at slightest arsenic acold arsenic I've tested) and a adjuvant forum of users. I americium successful information typing this connected a Framework laptop moving Arch Linux.

The existent enactment of DIY Framework Laptop 13 tin beryllium configured with either an AMD oregon Intel processor. The AMD Ryzen exemplary ships with the AI 300 Series chips, starting wtih the Ryzen 5 model, but with respective upgrade options to the Ryzen AI 7 and adjacent the Ryzen AI 9 HX 370. On the Intel broadside the specs commencement with the Core Ultra 5 125H, with upgrades to the Core Ultra 7 155 oregon adjacent 165H available. Whichever process you opt for you tin upgrade the RAM to arsenic precocious arsenic 96 GB of DDR5-5600 RAM and opt for a thrust up the 8 TB successful size.

I've tested Framework laptops with Ubuntu, which Framework supports, and Arch Linux, which is assemblage supported, and some worked great. My lone gripe astir utilizing the Framework is my gripe astir about immoderate Linux laptop, which is that artillery beingness could beryllium better. I negociate astir 7-8 hours erstwhile doing the accustomed benignant of bureau enactment that AI volition beryllium replacing soon, overmuch little erstwhile editing video oregon doing different much intensive tasks.

A Sysadmin Favorite

If the Dell's deficiency of ports leaves you wanting, this is the laptop for you. System76's Pangolin (8/10, WIRED Recommends) is simply a 16-inch, AMD-powered monster of a laptop with each larboard a sysadmin could anticipation for. This config ships with an AMD Ryzen 9 8945HS processor with integrated Radeon 780M graphics. The basal exemplary starts with 16 gigs of RAM, but you battalion successful up to 96 GB if your checkbook allows. You tin configure the Pangolin with up to 16 TB of retention dispersed crossed 2 drives (both are max 8 TB).

The artillery beingness is bully for the size—it lasted each time successful astir of my testing—but it's not arsenic bully arsenic the Dell. The keyboard, connected the different hand, is fantastic and a existent pleasance to benignant on. The 1 downside is the fig pad, which forces the trackpad off-center.

Here's a database of its ports: 1 × USB 4.0 Type-C, 1 × USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C, 3 × USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A, micro SD Card Reader, HDMI 2.0, 2 x Type-C w/ DisplayPort 1.4, and a headphone/Microphone Combo. The webcam is simply a 2MP 1080p, which gets the occupation done, but is looking a small agelong successful the bony astatine this point. Otherwise, though, this is simply a large enactment for AMD fans.

Best for Performance

The Kubuntu Focus Zr 1 (8/10, WIRED Recommends) is simply a powerhouse, but astatine 15 inches by 12 inches, implicit an inch thick, and weighing successful astatine 8 pounds, it's not a laptop you casually cart around. But if your enactment requires superior computing powerfulness though, beryllium it instrumentality learning (running TensorFlow), section LLMs, large information crunching workflows, oregon precocious extremity video editing, the Zr Gen 1 delivers powerfulness successful spades.

Inside, the Zr Gen 1 features an Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX with 24 cores, an RTX 5090 graphics card, 24 GB GDDR7 RAM (expandable up to 192 GB), 2 SSDs, 1 1TB, 1 2TB (you tin person up to 4 drives, 1 of them being a PCIe GEN 5x4 NVMe). Along with the discrete GPU there's an integrated 1 arsenic well, which means you tin crook disconnected the discrete paper to maximize artillery life. I spent astir 90 percent of the clip with the discrete paper disconnected and conscionable turned it connected erstwhile editing photos and video.

The surface is simply a gloriously ample 18-inch LCD show (2560 x 1600 pixels, 168 DPI density) with a max brightness of implicit 500 nits and matte decorativeness that makes it casual to usage adjacent successful agleam light. It's 1 of the amended LCD panels I've utilized lately, and gamers volition beryllium blessed to spot the 240 Hz refresh rate. You tin besides plug successful up to 4 outer displays. Thanks to the size of the Zr, there's plentifulness of country for a afloat size keyboard with a numeric pad. The keyboard is user-configurable and features a 65,536-color LED backlight strategy that you tin tweak to your liking with the Focus tool.

Kubuntu Focus delivers a precise unchangeable Linux experience. Every update is tested and validated connected the hardware earlier it ships to you. Kubuntu Focus hardware is tested for a minimum of 3 years aft past sale. If an contented is found, the institution works with the developers of the halfway components, similar KDE, Kubuntu, Ubuntu, and the Linux Kernel to hole it earlier it ever gets passed connected to you. The past known-stable mentation of bundle remains unchanged until the adjacent mentation passes each the tests and determination are nary issues. Kubuntu Focus does this adjacent astatine the exertion level, investigating everything from dev tools similar JetBrains, to user bundle similar Dropbox, Steam, Zoom, Slack, and much to guarantee everything works earlier it ships retired to you. The effect is simply a level of Linux stableness you're not apt to execute connected your own.

If Your Budget Is Tight

One of the beauties of Linux is that it requires less resources and maintains enactment for older hardware for acold longer than Windows oregon MacOS. That means you don't request to walk a luck connected a caller laptop; you tin respire beingness into an aged 1 oregon drawback a utilized laptop disconnected eBay. I person successful information ne'er purchased a caller laptop for Linux. I person been buying utilized for years, moving my mode done Lenovo's X-series laptops (starting with an X220, up done a T14 astatine which constituent I jumped vessel for the Framework), but aged Dell and Asus laptops are besides large for Linux. If you opt to bargain used, person a look astatine our usher to buying utilized connected eBay to marque definite you get a bully deal.

The specs to look for beryllium connected what you're going to beryllium doing. If you're editing video oregon gaming, you should astir apt instrumentality with 1 of our picks above. If you conscionable request to bash emblematic bureau work, edit immoderate photos, and ticker 4K video, you tin get by with a 10th procreation Intel i5 oregon newer processor, 8 GB of RAM (the much the merrier), and an SSD ample capable to store your data. If you privation an AMD system, instrumentality with a Ryzen 5 4000 bid oregon better.

If you'd similar immoderate much assistance speccing retired a coagulated Linux system, spot our step-by-step usher to choosing the close laptop.

What to Look For successful a Linux Laptop

Buying a Linux laptop involves a small much probe than Windows oregon MacOS. In summation to the specs, you request to marque definite the hardware successful question works with Linux. These days astir everything works beauteous good with Linux, but determination are immoderate exceptions.

Expect to wrestle with Nvidia graphics cards. The institution has ne'er been supportive of Linux and astir apt ne'er volition be. I've ever steered clear, but if you privation a dedicated GPU from Nvidia, bash your research. The Arch Linux Wiki is simply a bully spot to start.

Intel enjoys amended Linux enactment than AMD successful general, though that is changing. I personally person utilized Linux connected AMD for rather a portion without immoderate issues (though I bash person a somewhat older system, which helps).

The different happening to see is which Linux distro you're going to use. If you don't already person a favourite oregon don't adjacent cognize what a distro is, I suggest going with Pop_OS!, by System76, a institution that besides makes 3 of the laptops successful this guide. Pop_OS provides (by far) the champion idiosyncratic acquisition I've seen connected a Linux laptop. It strikes a large equilibrium betwixt being casual to usage for Linux newcomers and being well-stocked with power-user features. It has large documentation and should person you up and moving without immoderate trouble. I've utilized it connected each laptop successful this guide.

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