Microsoft’s Surface lineup offers devices for a wide range of needs and budgets, from traditional laptops to flexible 2‑in‑1 tablet‑laptops. The company recently introduced updated versions of its Surface Laptop and Surface Pro as successors to the 2024 models, which makes choosing the right one even more complicated.
When the 2024 Surface devices were released, they quickly became some of my favorite gadgets of the year. Over the last two years they have continued to perform well, making them solid purchases, especially when they are discounted. The newest releases – the Surface Laptop 8th Edition and the Surface Pro 12th Edition (not to be confused with the older Surface Pro 12) – finally pair the hardware with next‑generation silicon. The new Snapdragon X2 processors, however, carry a much higher price tag, which raises questions about overall value.
I weighed those considerations, among others, when deciding which Microsoft Surface device suits each type of user. You may also want to consult our other buying guides, such as Best Laptops, Best Cheap Laptops, Best 2‑in‑1 Laptops, Best MacBooks, and our laptop‑selection tips.
Updated October 2026: This guide has been rewritten with notes from my testing of the Microsoft Surface Laptop Ultra and updated pricing for the other models.
**Best for Most People**
The 13.8‑inch Surface Laptop (7th Edition) is currently on sale for $989 on Amazon, a 13 percent discount from its regular $1,139 price. It also appears for $1,250 at Best Buy after a 17 percent cut from $1,500, and for $1,388 on Amazon with a 13 percent discount from $1,600 for the 15‑inch version.
Recommending a 2024 laptop as my top pick may feel a little embarrassing, but it reflects more on Microsoft than on me. I love this laptop and still find myself returning to it over newer, flashier options. The 3:2 aspect‑ratio screen is my favorite feature, and it is rare to see that format elsewhere right now. The taller display works well for anyone who spends most of their day looking at documents, spreadsheets, or websites. In addition, the device offers excellent battery life, solid performance in almost all tasks except gaming, and a sharp, high‑resolution panel.
You might wonder why not choose the 2026 model, also called the 8th Edition. Microsoft refreshed the line this year with Snapdragon X2 chips. I have tested those processors in other laptops such as the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 5x and found that they provide noticeable speed improvements, especially for graphics. Unfortunately, Microsoft did not send any of the new units to reviewers for independent testing, so I have not been able to try one myself.
The bigger issue is price. Like many manufacturers this year, Microsoft has raised its prices dramatically, partly because of the ongoing memory shortage. The 2024 Surface Laptop with 512 GB of storage is still available for $999 on Amazon, but only in the Dune color; the Black and Silver versions cost $50 more. These prices are higher than they were in 2025, yet they remain a good deal, especially compared with the 2026 version, which can cost more than $1,600 for an otherwise identical configuration. That price jump of over $400 does not seem justified by the performance gain. If the 2024 model were unavailable, the newer version might make sense, but for now I cannot recommend it.
The Surface Laptop comes in two main sizes: 13.8 inch and 15 inch. Both are excellent, but the 13.8‑inch model provides ample screen real estate for most users, thanks to its 3:2 aspect ratio.
**Specs**
Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite or Plus
Memory: 16 GB, 32 GB, or 64 GB
Storage: 512 GB or 1 TB
Display: 13.8‑inch at 2304 × 1536, 120 Hz IPS, or 15‑inch at 2496 × 1664, 120 Hz IPS
**The Most Powerful Surface**
The Surface Laptop Ultra is listed for $2,600 on both Amazon and Microsoft’s store.
While it shares a name with the standard Surface Laptop, the Ultra is a completely different machine under the hood. It is no thicker than the 15‑inch Surface Laptop, yet it delivers far more performance thanks to the Nvidia RTX Spark N1X chip, which offers GPU capabilities usually found only in discrete graphics cards used by gaming laptops. In many ways, this is Microsoft’s answer to the MacBook Pro – a laptop aimed at content creators, media professionals, and a growing group of AI enthusiasts.
The Ultra can be configured with up to 128 GB of unified RAM, allowing the GPU to access large amounts of memory for on‑device AI models. I tested the 32‑GB version, which limits the ability to run the largest models (those with 70 billion parameters or more). For truly demanding AI workloads you still need a more powerful GPU, but the Surface Laptop Ultra lets users experiment with local AI processing.
It can also handle games, but the “Nvidia” branding should not be taken as a guarantee of performance comparable to a full‑size discrete graphics card in a gaming laptop. Some popular multiplayer titles, such as PUBG and League of Legends, are still not compatible, although Nvidia says it is working on support. The Surface Laptop Ultra is for someone who want