Not sure if you want a computer or a tablet? The best 2-in-1 laptops, aka hybrid laptops, offer the benefits of both. To work in tablet mode, you can either detach or rotate the screen to the laptop's back. Then when you prefer to use a physical keyboard you can switch back to laptop mode. So if you're a digital creative who's on the go a lot, you'll only have to pack one device rather than two.
To compile this article, we've put Creative Bloq's tech experts to work to hunt down the best 2-in-1 laptops. They've hand-tested all the devices on our list personally, paying attention to the effectiveness of its transition mechanism, the quality of the display, the speed of the processor, and overall value for money.
So whether you're looking for the best laptops for drawing or the best laptops for graphic design, you'll find our selection of 2-in-1 laptops essential reading. We've linked to the full reviews below should you want to learn more about a particular laptop.
Quick list
The Surface Laptop Studio 2 has a premium look, a gorgeous screen, a sleek finish and feel, and the way it converts from a laptop to a tablet and back again is one of the smoothest and most flexible we've experienced.
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If you're a creative on a strict budget but still want to enjoy the flexibility of a 2-in-1, Chromebooks can now deliver everything you need for artworking, photo-editing and more. The Acer Chromebook Spin 714 offers the perfect balance of performance and value.
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It's a 2-in-1 like no other. The ASUS Zenbook Duo OLED brings two full-size OLED touchscreens to the game, with a detachable keyboard and a wild variety of usage modes. For those looking for cutting-edge innovation and top useability, look no further.
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One of the common limitations of 2-in-1 laptops is connectivity. So you'll be pleased to know this hybrid laptop comes with two Thunderbolt USB-C ports with PD charging, two USB 3.2 Type-A ports, a direct HDMI port and a Micro SD card reader.
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Looking for a 2-in-1 laptop that will slip nicely into a small bag? Sitting at 11.50 inches x 7.90 inches x 0.29 inches in size, the Dell XPS 13 9315 is very portable. And more broadly, it offers a great balance of performance, price, and design.
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If you're looking for a 2-in-1 device with AI smarts, we reccommend the HP Spectre x360 14. It features the latest Intel Core Ultra processors with AI acceleration capabilities, making it nicely future-proof as new AI features come online.
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The best 2-in-1 laptops for creatives
The best 2-in-1 laptop overall
The Surface Laptop Studio 2 is simply the best laptop Microsoft has made. It has a premium look, a gorgeous screen and the kind of sleek finish and feel that even Mac devotees might be impressed by.
The way it converts from a laptop to a tablet and back again is one of the smoothest and most flexible we've experienced. The screen doesn't fold back on itself as many do but instead slips forward over the keyboard. This gives you an additional position – easel mode, with the screen at a nice angle for watching films or working on digital art.
The 14.4-inch screen's 3:2 ratio is noticeably taller than the usual widescreen format, allowing extra vertical space that can improve productively whether you're drawing, editing photos or even just writing and reading documents. And with a refresh rate of 120Hz, it could even serve as a reasonable gaming laptop.
And there's plenty of power, too, takes to the latest 13th Gen CPUs from Intel and a choice of Intel Xe graphics or an Nvidia RTX 4060 and RTX 2000 Ada professional GPUs – though it does mean the build is a little bulky, and our reviewer found the battery life isn't great in practice.
Best 2-in-1 on a budget
Chromebooks are serious propositions for creatives on a budget now, and the Acer Chromebook Spin 714 offers premium features in a well-priced 2-in-1 package. The display is fantastic, so you'll enjoy watching and working on it in equal measure, and it sports Acer's by-now well-known sturdy build quality.
You can get the Intel Core i5-powered model for around $700 at the time of writing, which for what you get is a deal indeed. The touchscreen is spacious and responds well to pen input, which makes it a good proposition for artists and graphic designers who prefer to work directly on the screen.
Read our full Acer Chromebook Spin 714 review for more details.
The best premium 2-in-1 laptop
This one's a bit different to all the other 2-in-1s on this list. The ASUS Zenbook Duo doesn't have a screen you can flip or turn into tablet mode. Instead, it has two full-size 14-inch screens which you can lay out in just about any way you can imagine, with a magnetically attached keyboard that can either lay over one screen or sit separate from the screens with its wireless connection.
Yes, it costs almost £/$2,000, but our reviewer was so impressed by it that we say it's definitely worth the outlay. With the latest AI-boosted 14th-gen Intel Core Ultra CPU and NPU onboard, it launches and runs creative software like Photoshop, Premiere Pro, digital artworking and content-creation software faster than before. Also, the Intel Arc Graphics card is much, much better than the previous Iris Xe Graphics, although it can't quite match NVIDIA or AMD's top cards' grunt.
See our full ASUS Zenbook Duo OLED review.
The best 2-in-1 laptop for connectivity
One of the common limitations of 2-in-1 laptops is connectivity. So in our hands-on MSI Summit E16 review, we found one particular feature we love – and that's the fact this laptop is packed full with every port you'd ever need.
This includes two Thunderbolt USB-C ports with PD charging, two USB3.2 Type-A ports, a direct HDMI port and even a Micro SD card reader, which will come in particularly handy for photographers and video creators.
It's also packed with power, if that's what you're looking for. That makes this sturdy laptop a great option for those wanting to run more high-intensity programmes for things like 3D modelling and video editing. The 165Hz Full HD screen is great for lighter gaming, too, although it does lack slightly in vibrancy and brightness.
The best compact 2-in-1 laptop
Looking for a 2-in-1 laptop that will slip nicely into a small bag? Sitting at 11.50 inches x 7.90 inches x 0.29 inches in size, the Dell XPS 13 9315 is beautifully portable. And more broadly, it offers a great balance of performance, price and design.
This lovely hybrid laptop features a sleek and stylish chassis, a powerful processor and a stunning 13-inch touchscreen display.In terms of performance, the XPS 13 9315 is powered by an Intel Core i7-1250U processor, 16GB of RAM, and a 512GB SSD. That means it's powerful enough for most creative tasks.
On the downside, with below-average battery life, a fiddly folio design and a super flat keyboard that not everyone will get along with, it's not totally perfect. But overall, if you’re looking for something that will let you bridge the gap between work and play and offers a stunning screen in a compact package, it's certainly one to consider.
See our complete Dell XPS 13 review for the full results of our testing.
The best 2-in-1 laptop with AI smarts
If you're looking for a 2-in-1 device that's also one of the best AI laptops, we reccommend the HP Spectre x360 14. It features the latest Intel Core Ultra processors with AI acceleration capabilities, making it nicely future-proof as more and more AI-enabled features come online. And this, teamed with 32GB RAM, and a 2TB SSD, means it will zip along at high speeds, even when running demanding software.
This touchscreen laptop has a well-designed hinge that allows it to fold back on itself and become a pseudo-tablet. You also get a responsive OLED touchscreen, powerful internal components, thoughtful port placements, and a stylus, making it a strong contender for productivity tasks. We found battery life reaches about eight and a half hours under typical use.
On the downside, our reviewer found the fan a little noisy, while the lack of a discrete GPU means it's not a great choice for gaming or graphics-heavy tasks. Overall, at a mid-range price, this is a good choice for creative professionals whose laptop use leans towards productivity task and/or entertainment.
Check out our full HP Spectre x360 14 (2024) review here.
The best 2-in-1 laptop for drawing
The Surface Pro 9 is sold as a tablet rather than a laptop. But it can become the latter if you buy the optional Type Cover. And it runs Windows 11, allowing you to use fully fledged desktop software. In other words, you get the possibilities of a PC, but as a very thin, light device, which we found just perfect for slipping in a bag, or simply using on the sofa and in bed.
Excellent Surface Pen stylus support (the pen is sold separately) and the super convenient size and portability make it a good option for drawing, illustration and photo editing. Windows 11 runs smoothly, the screen has a snappy 120Hz refresh rate, and you can configure the device up to some pretty powerful specs. If you're going to be using programs that can easily get bogged down, like Lightroom for example, you'll want to go for at least 16GB RAM.
Also tested
FAQs
How do you use a 2-in-1 laptop?
The best 2-in-1 laptops allow you to switch between laptop and tablet modes, and pick which setup is best for the creative task at hand. Sat at a desk needing to write emails? That may be more comfortable when the 2-in-1 is in laptop mode. Watching a film, doing some digital doodling on a train journey? That might be better suited to the tablet mode, or alternatively, you could look for the best drawing tablets for animation.
How do I use a 2-in-1 laptop for drawing?
In most cases, when you want to use a stylus on the touchscreen, be it for drawing or photo editing, you're going to want to use the 2-in-1 laptop in tablet mode because when in laptop mode the screens aren't usually fixed enough and will move at least a little when you apply pressure with the styus.
That said, Microsoft's Surface Laptop Studio offers a neat middle option – easel mode – that allows you to prop the screen up fairly firmly in a vertical position over the keyboard. If you need a capable laptop for Photoshop, we have a dedicated guide for that, but many on here will be ideal too.
Are 2-in-1 laptops expensive?
2-in-1 laptops can be more expensive than traditional laptops, due to their convertible design and touchscreen capabilities. However, the price range varies between models, and there are many affordable options available.
How to choose the best 2-in-1 laptop
What type of 2-in-1 laptop is best for you? There are 2-in-1 laptops that turn from a laptop into a tablet by physically removing the keyboard. These are usually much thinner and lighter devices when used in tablet mode, but it does mean you need to store the keyboard carefully when it's not being used.
Some 2-in-1 laptops with detachable keyboards have two batteries – one behind the screen and another in the keyboard. This offers longer battery life when in laptop mode. (If battery life is a particular worry of yours, you may want to check our list of the best power banks.)
Other 2-in-1 laptops feature a hinge that can flip the keyboard 360 degrees so that it is behind the screen. As the keyboard remains attached, these 2-in-1 laptops are usually a bit thicker and heavier than models with removable keyboards. However, you don't have to worry about stashing an unused keyboard anywhere, and the hinge allows you to use the laptop in a variety of different ways. For example, you can flip the keyboard 90 degrees and use it as a stand, which makes it useful for watching media or presentations.
Many of the best 2-in-1 laptops also come with styluses that can be used with the touchscreen. This turns them into excellent digital drawing pads – again, making them ideal devices for digital creatives. (Should your desired convertible laptop not include a drawing apparatus, you can save some money by learning how to make a stylus using household items; seriously!).
How we test the best 2-in-1 laptops
Creative Bloq's team of hardware experts bring with them many years of experience using, testing and benchmarking laptops with a focus on running creative applications. All the laptops in this guide have been tested by either using creative software or benchmarked to make sure the CPU and GPU are capable of running professional creative software without problems, including popular tools you'll use such as Adobe Creative Cloud applications and more. We run different benchmark tests on each laptop depending on its intended use by its maker, but the benchmarks we've run all the laptops in this guide through include the following:
• Cinebench R23/2024 - this assesses the performance of a computer's CPU and GPU using real-world 3D rendering tasks
• Handbrake - we use this free and open-source transcoder for digital video files to render a short 4K animated film, using the same file for all our tests
• Geekbench 5/6 - this tests the CPU's processing power, both by using a single core for a single task at a time as well as all the CPU's core to see its ability to multitask
• 3DMark - this assesses a laptop's ability to run 3D graphic rendering tasks
But perhaps more importantly than benchmarking, we evaluate machines in real-world scenarios, pushing them to the limit with multiple applications running to see how they perform in project-like conditions. Power, speed, flexibility, and what a laptop looks and feels like to use are all criteria in our reviewing process. We do much more than simply unpack a test unit, run some benchmarks and then pack it up again; we have lived and worked with all of the above laptops, running them in real-life scenarios and done projects relevant to this guide, otherwise, we wouldn't recommend these models to you.
