Top 7 Best Battery Life Laptops for Programming (April Updated)

No one wants their computer to shut down unexpectedly, especially when fixing code errors or streaming media on the go.

So, Which laptop brand is best for battery life?

Popular brands including MacBook, Dell, Hp, Asus, Acer offers laptop with more than 10 hours of life.

However, 7-10 hours of average battery life is good for a programming laptop but mind that exact timing it varies with the usage.

If you’re using your laptop for basic Python programming with limited tabs and lower brightness settings, even these best budget laptops can give you a reported battery performance of 6+ hours.

However, if you’re streaming media, the battery output will be shorter than expected, even with the most expensive machine.

Our top picks programming laptops with best battery life from top brands

• Best macbook for programmers – Apple MacBook Air (14-18h)
• Portable choice– ASUS ExpertBook B9 (16h+)
• Top Budget pick– Lenovo Flex 5 Laptop– up to 10 hours
• With 17-inch display– LG Gram 16Z90P Laptop– Up to 8 hours
• Convertible for IT student– Dell XPS 13– up to 7 hours
• Best Chromebook for programmers– Lenovo – 2022 – IdeaPad Flex– Up to 7 hours
• High quality display– Samsung Galaxy Book Ion– Up to 8 hours

Best battery life laptops for programming- Reviews

1)  Apple MacBook Air (14-18h)

Best overall but pricey.

Specs:

• Processor: Apple M1 Chip
• Display: 13” Retina Display
• RAM/ROM: 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD Storage
• Battery life: Up to 15 hours.

The Macbook Air tops the list if you are a programming student and can afford more than $1000.

It’s our top pick because this laptop has a lot to offer besides its great battery life, good performance, multitasking capabilities, and premium display and keyboard.

This device comes with an 8-core processor that makes multitasking a breeze.

With its Apple M1 chip, the device provides enough power to handle programming tasks.

Its thin and lightweight design also makes it a popular choice among programmers.

Put your laptop on your lap, coffee table, or while sitting at a park’s table, and carry on with your work.

The backlit keyboard of this laptop is also comfy to type on, as the key distance is designed to maximize comfort. Coding for hours would not be a problem.

People who prefer a larger display may find the 13.3-inch display a bit small.

Nonetheless, in exchange, you get a full day of battery life. That sounds like a good deal to me.

2)  ASUS ExpertBook B9 (16h+)

Windows laptop, thin, lightweight, and portable.

Specs:

Processor: Core i7-10th gen
Display: 14 FHD
RAM/ROM: 16GB RAM/512GB SSD 
Battery life: Up to 12 hours.

Asus ExpertBook B9 is already a go-to laptop for programmers looking for a powerful, lightweight, and of course thin laptop.

It’s one of the best windows laptops with good battery timing, according to ASUS, one charge can last battery for 20 hours. 

The exact Battery timing varies according to usage, but you should expect it to last more than 12 hours on average.

So you can code without worrying about your laptop running out of power. 

It’s also a powerful laptop with a high-end processor from intel.

The core i7 10th generation, combined with 16GB ram makes it a brilliant choice for multitasking or running multiple code editors side-by-side.

The processing power also enables it to complete thousands of lines of code extremely fast, also capable enough to run multiple VMs if that’s something you want.

A 14-inch FHD display is ideal for students and travelers. Considering its slim design and portability.

Making it ideal to use it where ever you want it to, also the 180 hinge enhances the experience of using it with no proper desk.

It has a premium keyboard, as well as RGB lights so you can use it in a dark environment.

Though it lacks a numeric keypad on the left side, its mouse can be used to type numbers.

The best thing about this laptop is the webcam and audio quality.

Both are better than the Macbook Air, with built-in Alexa support which is ready to go as you switch the laptop on.

3)  Lenovo Flex 5 Laptop– up to 10 hours

The best budget laptop with good battery life.

Specs

• Processor: AMD Ryzen 5 5500U
• Display: 14″ FHD Display
• RAM/ROM: 16GB RAM/512GB SSD 
• Battery life: Up to 10 hours.

Lenovo Flex 5 laptop offers a good battery backup and is packed with sufficient processing power that as a programming student you will find it more than enough.

One charge can easily last the battery for more than 10 hours.

Best choice for you, if you are looking for an entry-level 2-in-1 laptop, with good battery life.

The laptop ships with the processor from AMD Ryzen 5 5500U.

Obviously, it’s not that powerful but for the price point (coming under $600). That’s accepted. 

Anyway, AMD Ryzen 5 processors are capable of handling regular tasks without a problem, and IDEs such as Visual Code Studio and Pycharm will work with ease too.

Moreover, Lenovo Flex 5 is already a go-to for many students.

The dual functionality is the reason, as it just takes one flip to rotate the device to 360 degrees to use it as a tablet. A stylus pen is also included in the box.

It features an IPS screen with a 14-inch FHD resolution that provides a truly immersive viewing experience.

It’s perfect for reading, writing, and coding. Not to mention, the speakers are also of good quality, delivering sound quality second to none.

I also like the keyboard. However, it’s a bit short so the space between the keys is shorter.

This can put up some trouble for people who do better at standard keyboards.

So you will need to switch your favorite external keyboard.

4) LG Gram 16Z90P Laptop– Up to 8 hours

A large display laptop with good battery life, best for reading, writing, and programming.

• Processor: Intel Evo 11th gen Core i7
• Display: 16″ FHD Display
• RAM/ROM: 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD 
• Battery life: Up to 8 hours.

Three words are enough to define LG Gram 16’s best features: stylish, powerful, and thin.

A perfect laptop for any working professional, programmer, or office worker that lasts a battery of up to 8 hours.

Though LG is not a dominant player in the laptop market. This laptop tells a different tale, enough to change your mind.

With an IPS 16-inch display that has ultra-slim bezels around, it gives you more screen area to help you read, and write code easily, and also the full-sized keyboard includes a Numpad.

That’s ideal if typing numbers is the main part of your job.

Don’t think the big display does not reduce battery life.

A single charge of LG gram can last the whole day. It will run continuously for about 8 hours, making sure you never have to worry about switching it off when you have something important to do. 

Moreover, it got a powerful processor from Intel i7 11th gen.

A lightning-fast laptop for power users, and also for multitasking the 16GB RAM backs it up.

Although the graphics power isn’t very impressive, it features a below-entry-level integrated 620 GPU.

It is unlikely that you will be able to run GPU-intensive shooting games or software such as Adobe after effects.

5) Dell XPS 13– up to 7 hours

Best convertible laptop with good battery life.

• Processor:  Intel Core i7-1065G7
• Display: 13.4-inch FHD
• RAM/ROM:  8GB LPDDR4 RAM, 256GB SSD
• Battery life: Up to 7 hours.

The Dell XPS series has gone viral, thanks to the ultra-lightweight and compact design.

It’s the laptop 2-in-1 laptop for professional programmers working from home- or someone who is willing to set up a home office, or a CEO with a six-figure salary who travels overseas.

This laptop deserves a chance to be your companion. 

Speaking of the specs, it boasts a high-end CPU from Intel, the Intel Core i7-1065G7, and RAM options ranging from 8, 16, to 32 MB for optimal performance.

And the best part? Its battery life will make you stick to the project for continuously 8, 20 minutes hours. 

Other specs are also worth noting, the 13.4 FHD touch display, full-aluminum body and keyboard, multiple USB ports, and a solid yet thin design. 

6) Lenovo – 2022 – IdeaPad Flex– Up to 7 hours

Powerful Chromebook, best for computer science students.

Specs: 

• Processor: Intel Core i3-1115G4
• Display: 13.3″ FHD Touch Display
• RAM/ROM:  8GB Memory – 128GB Storage
• Battery life: Up to 7 hours.

Want a cheap laptop to learn to code by watching online courses, writing school assignments, or doing office work?

Introducing you to the Lenovo Idea Flex Chromebook.

One charge of it can last battery for 6 hours, that’s pretty much enough to take back-to-back classes without needing it to charge or code for a whole night without plugging it into the charge.

Though it’s not really a power-packed laptop for $300 this is to be expected.

Yet, the core-i3 11th gen is enough for basic use or practicing code.

On the plus side, it has a nice touch display, 2-in-1 functionality, a good-quality keyboard to type on, and of course good battery life.

7) Samsung Galaxy Book Ion– Up to 8 hours

A 15 inch laptop with good battery life from samsung.

Specs: 

• Processor: Intel Core i3-10th gen
• Display:  15.6” QLED Display
• RAM/ROM:  8GB Memory | 512GB SSD
• Battery life: Up to 8 hours.

The Samsung Galaxy Book Ion can be the laptop of your choice. Hitting every spot that as a programmer you will want.

Including a good quality keyboard, and a nice and vivid QLED display that’s non-reflective to work outdoors. 

This laptop is portable and weighs only 2 pounds. You can easily carry it in the backpack without feeling like you’re carrying a solid brick! 

Battery life is also excellent, I was able to use it for 8 hours on one charge.

But Samsung claims to have a battery life to last for 21 hours. Which’s not really accurate as far as my opinion is concerned.

Other features are also remarkable, a full-sized keyboard with Numpad and there is also a fingerprint scanner.

The display is also the best that you will find only on premium laptops.

How much battery is good for a laptop? – Programming 101

If you’re on the hunt for a new programming laptop, then battery backup and processing power are one of the few things you can’t turn a blind eye to.

In today’s day and age, most of us creative professionals appreciate working in a portable environment, and a laptop with a great battery life provides just like that.

Laptops such as the MacBook Air keep you on track without the need to be plugged in.

Seriously, no one wants their machine to go off while fixing their code errors suddenly.

Secondly, if you want to stream movies while traveling, the best battery-life laptops are a necessity.

In a word, portable computing has become a trend these days, and you don’t want to be left behind.

With that said, the million-dollar question is, how long should your laptop last?

It varies from person to person, but the average is still around 10 hours.

If you’re using your laptop for basic Python programming with limited tabs and brightness settings, then even the ASUS ExpertBook B9 will give you the reported battery performance (12+h).

However, if your aim is to stream media on your device, the typical battery output will be quite short than anticipated, even with the most expensive machine.

What to look for in a laptop as a programmer? How we have picked.

• The keyboard should be comfortable to type

• Laptops with long battery life should be given priority if you are a programming student.

• Nice Display quality.

• Laptops with Backlit keyboards are a plus. (See our list of touchscreen laptops with backlit keyboards. In case you like touchscreen laptops.

• Multiple types of ports, including HDMI, and DVI so you can connect more devices to it.

• Lightweight.

• Large Display. (List of 15-inch laptops)

• The CPU performance should be standard so you can run programs like visual code studio. ( i5 laptops under $500) Also read: Are Core i5 laptops good for programming?

Tips to increase battery life

Monitor Battery Usage: Windows has a built-in feature that allows you to monitor your laptop’s battery usage. To access it, click on the battery icon in the taskbar and select “Battery Usage by App.” This will show you which apps are consuming the most battery power, allowing you to close them or adjust their settings accordingly.

Adjust Power Settings: Adjusting your laptop’s power settings can significantly improve battery life. Windows 10 offers several power plans, including Power Saver, Balanced, and High Performance. Choosing the Power Saver plan reduces your laptop’s performance and power consumption, while the High Performance plan maximizes performance but drains the battery faster.

Use Battery-Saving Software: Battery-saving software can help extend your laptop’s battery life by adjusting settings and closing unnecessary apps. Some popular options include Battery Optimizer, BatteryCare, and BatteryBar.

Optimize Screen Settings: The screen is one of the biggest battery drainers on a laptop. Adjusting the screen brightness, resolution, and refresh rate can significantly improve battery life. Lowering the screen brightness to 50% or less and reducing the resolution can make a significant difference.

Keep Your Laptop Cool: Overheating can cause your laptop’s battery life to decrease rapidly. Keeping your laptop cool is essential. Consider using a laptop cooling pad, or ensure your laptop is placed on a flat surface with good airflow.

Unplug Unnecessary Peripherals: Unplugging USB devices like external hard drives, flash drives, and mice when not in use can save power and improve battery life.

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