Gaming laptop vs. desktop: Which is best for you?

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A few years back, most gaming laptops were overpriced and underpowered compared to their desktop counterparts. But these days, the gap between the best gaming laptops and best gaming PC desktops is much closer. 

Both have gone down in price, and the top gaming laptops can handle far better games and more demanding apps than they used to. For the first time, deciding between a gaming laptop and desktop is a difficult decision with strong contenders on both sides.

Here’s a rundown of the pros and cons to both laptops and desktops, looking at power, customizability, price, and more — along with some tips on which one you should buy.

Gaming laptop vs. desktop: Performance

Although gaming laptops perform better than they used to, gaming desktops still outclass them when it comes to raw power, even if that might not appear to be the case when looking at specs for different models.

This is because gaming laptop specs are deceptive. Take the Alienware R16 desktop and Alienware x16 laptop: If you just look at the specs that Dell provides, you’ll see that they’re both configurable with an Intel i9 CPU and RTX 4070 GPU. But although these processors share the same basic model names, the desktop’s parts and laptop’s parts are actually different; the laptop is using a “mobile” CPU and GPU that’s smaller and weaker than the desktop’s.

There are three major reasons for this difference. The first is space: Desktop GPUs are massive, and can’t fit inside of a small laptop frame. The second is power: Laptops have weaker power supplies than desktops, and can’t support the wattage that desktop hardware needs. And the third is temperature: Laptops need to account for heat in a smaller area, so they use hardware that won’t run as hot and damage the computer.

Mobile GPUs and CPUs can be substantially weaker than their desktop versions, especially at the higher end. Tests run by PCMag comparing the standard and mobile RTX 4090s show the mobile version performing worse than the standard model, and even worse than the standard RTX 4080. 

With all this said, for most gamers, the differences aren’t worth getting too upset about. If you need to play all your games at 4K resolution with a constant 60 frames per second, then a desktop is the best choice. But most games don’t require so much power that good mobile hardware can’t handle them — especially if you turn down graphical settings like shadows, reflections, and ray tracing, and aren’t running loads of apps at the same time.

If you’re looking for the most power possible, and the best performance value for your money, you’ll want a gaming desktop. But gaming laptops are still more than capable of supporting nearly any game or app you want.

Gaming laptop vs. desktop: Portability

The absolute biggest reason to buy a laptop is that it lets you bring your games, files, and apps wherever you go. You don’t have to worry about carrying a separate screen, keyboard, or mouse either.

But while laptops are portable, gaming laptops are less portable than normal ones. Since they have to hold bigger, more powerful hardware, gaming laptops are chunkier and heavier. That hardware also requires more power, which means heavier chargers and shorter battery life. In many cases, gaming laptops are more portable in theory than in practice.

The Acer Nitro 5, for example, is a great budget gaming laptop, but it’s so big that I rarely wanted to take it anywhere. And in contrast, the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 is one of my favorite laptops ever because of how uniquely portable it is.

In comparison, desktops are designed to stay in one place for long stretches of time — often forever. And no matter where you bring them, you’ll need a power outlet to plug them into, along with external hardware like a monitor. This means it’s pretty much impossible to use a desktop outside or in transit. Some brands, like Asus, do sell compact gaming desktop towers, but they’re still much bulkier than a laptop and don’t have built-in displays.

Gaming laptop vs. desktop: Heat and required power

Anyone who’s ever played on a gaming laptop (or even a regular laptop) is familiar with the burning sensation of a laptop chassis on their thighs. It’s easy to assume that since they’ve got less open spaces, laptops run hotter than desktops.

The reality is a little more complicated. Laptop heat is definitely easier to notice since that heat is gathered in a smaller area, and you’re usually touching the device directly. And since laptops can’t dissipate heat as effectively as a desktop, they can run hotter when under heavy load.

But desktops use more power, and more power means hotter hardware. Over time, a gaming desktop is almost always going to generate more heat than a laptop will, even if that heat is managed better.

And if you keep your desktop tower in a spot where it’s going to gather dust, like under your desk or against a wall, it’ll get even hotter. That’s why desktop towers need more ventilation and bigger fans, and why it’s vital to clean your desktop’s vents regularly. Some gaming desktops can also support “liquid cooling” systems, where a sealed block of fluid inside the case helps take heat away from the other parts.

Gaming laptop vs. desktop: Customization

The hardware inside desktop towers is far more customizable than the hardware inside laptops. 

With gaming laptops, you can generally only switch out the RAM and storage. Everything else is soldered in, which means it can’t be replaced. Additionally, the “mobile” hardware that laptops use is generally harder and more expensive to buy. There’s a reason why building a custom laptop is nigh unheard of: It’s a tedious and costly task with no real reward.

The only real ways to customize a laptop are by using the laptop manufacturer’s website before you buy it, and by attaching external accessories like a great keyboard or cool mousepad. Depending on the brand, you might also be able to buy skins and faceplates to change how the exterior looks too.

Gaming desktops, meanwhile, are essentially a giant Lego kit. As long as the pieces are compatible and you have the right power supply, you can change out a desktop’s CPU, GPU, RAM, motherboard, storage, and even the tower casing itself. You can build a desktop from scratch, and keep it running for years by gradually replacing and upgrading its parts, Ship of Theseus-style.

The ability to build a desktop PC from the ground up — a hobby that’s become increasingly popular in the last few years, as evidenced by the explosive growth of Reddit’s r/buildapc community — also reduces the cost for a top-tier gaming computer. It’s generally cheaper to buy computer parts individually than in a prebuilt machine. You’ll just need patience and steady hands.

Gaming laptop vs. desktop: Price

For the same amount of performance, gaming desktops are cheaper than gaming laptops. Take the example I brought up above, comparing the Alienware R16 desktop and x16 laptop: Despite having weaker mobile hardware, the x16 laptop is more than an R16 desktop with the same listed specs. When it comes to gaming laptops, you pay for the portability.

However, if you’re purchasing a gaming desktop, remember that you’ll need to buy the external equipment too, like your monitor, speakers, and keyboard. Some manufacturers offer deals if you buy those accessories at the same time you buy your desktop, but with a laptop you get all of these essentials built into the device.

In general, whether you buy a desktop or laptop, gaming PCs are separated into three different price brackets: Budget, midrange, and high-end. Budget ranges from about $600 to $1,300, midrange goes from $1,400 to $2,200, and high-end options will cost more than that.

Should you buy a gaming laptop or desktop?

If you’re looking at pure value — trying to get the best performance per dollar spent — then a gaming desktop is the clear choice. Purchasing a separate monitor and other accessories will ultimately add to your total costs, but from a gaming hardware perspective, you simply get more power for your money with a desktop. This is true whether you build your own PC or buy a pre-built model.

Even if two machines have the same listed specs, desktop hardware is far more powerful than mobile laptop hardware. The only way to play games at 4K or 8K resolution with high graphical settings and steady framerates is with a gaming desktop. They’re also great for intensive creative work in apps like Blender, and they’re a must for livestreaming high-end games.

If you want a portable, all-in-one gaming and work computer (whether that’s for a job or school), then gaming laptops are great. They give you easy access to all your favorite games, but also give you the freedom to take your games and files wherever you go. I like traveling with my computer, so I’ve used a gaming laptop as my sole PC for years.

Assuming you’re starting from scratch, the best way to strike a balance between value and convenience is probably to buy a great gaming desktop, and then a budget gaming laptop you can travel with and play simpler or cloud-based games on. But if you have to pick one, it’s hard to beat the value and power of a gaming desktop.