Recently updated for the 2026 back-to-school shopping season!
What follows is advice for shopping for your family’s next computer, from our IT SysAdmin, Levi.
Before we talk about dollar amounts
Sales and promotions
The industry changes quickly. If a product is on sale, there is a good chance the retailer is clearing inventory because newer products are replacing it. Because of that, and because computers are often designed to last only two to four years, it is unwise to purchase something on sale without remembering the strong caveat that there is usually a reason the store is trying to clear it from its shelves. In many cases it makes more sense, both financially and logistically, to buy the model that is not on sale. This principle also applies to certified refurbished products.
Education discounts and back-to-school sales
Apple considers home-schooling parents to be teachers for the purpose of education discounts that apply to primary and secondary education staff. They place limits on purchases, but many products are discounted by roughly 10%. Apple’s education store is here, and other manufacturers run similar promotions, so if you have a specific product in mind it is worth checking whether the manufacturer offers an education discount.
In the months leading up to the school year, these discounts often become stronger and may include promotions such as “buy a laptop, get free headphones”. Although these promotions are aimed at students heading to post-secondary education, they often educators as well, just like the year-round education discounts.
A keen observer might point out that the earlier warning about sale prices applies here as well, and that is not entirely wrong. The difference is intent. A sale on an older product may exist simply to clear shelf space, whereas education discounts exist because manufacturers know that if they get a student using their brand early, that student may become a repeat customer later.
Laptop versus desktop
Beyond practical considerations, such as whether the computer needs to be portable or remain in one place for supervised use, remember that $1,000 worth of laptop buys something with different priorities than $1,000 worth of desktop. Comparing the specs between the two categories is somewhat like comparing two different fruits.
What about a tablet?
Tablets are excellent devices. They handle certain tasks in ways that make more sense than a traditional computer. Like the comparison between laptops and desktops, however, a tablet is a fundamentally different device with different priorities, primarily a large touchscreen and battery inside a slim case.
We should also remember that tablets and laptops teach different skills. Children develop different kinds of hand–eye coordination and different expectations about computer interfaces depending on which device they use. Neither device is inherently better, but the differences are worth considering.
Now, what’s your budget?
Less than $500
At this price point, the best value is usually a Chromebook. Because ChromeOS is a lightweight operating system that requires fewer resources, it can deliver good performance for the kinds of tasks students typically perform without requiring expensive hardware.
Acer, Dell, and Samsung all make solid Chromebooks, though many other brands are also decent. If possible, it is useful to see the computer in a brick-and-mortar store to evaluate build quality and durability. If you are looking for the cheapest possible computer, Costco’s lowest-priced model is often surprisingly good value.
Windows computers do exist at this price, but part of the cost is the Windows licence and the hardware resources required to run Windows smoothly. Unless you specifically need Windows to run certain software, a Chromebook will often provide better value.
$500+
At this level, many more options become available, including traditional Windows computers. HP, Acer, Dell, and MSI are brands that frequently offer decent models at this price.
Apple’s two cheapest computers, the Mac mini and the recently-announced MacBook Neo, both start at under $700 with education pricing.
Chromebooks also exist in this price range, often with more storage. Many are hybrid devices with touchscreens that fold around to function as tablets. Levi is not personally a fan of these designs, but they can be useful for users who would benefit from tablet functionality when on the go.
$1,000+
At this point, more powerful Apple computers become affordable, along with higher-end Windows devices from companies such as Dell and Microsoft (particularly the Surface line), which are often positioned as Apple-like alternatives in design and build quality.
There is generally little downside to a computer at this price, or even a thousand dollars more, so long as the buyer understands they are paying a premium price for a premium product.