Best MSI Laptop 2026: Powerful laptops for gamers and creatives

There’s no getting around it, the MSI Stealth A18 AI+ is an absolute beast. With an 18-inch display, this isn’t the kind of laptop that you’ll want to bring to your local cafe as it’ll likely take up an entire table, but if you mostly work 0from home and have a few days per week at the office then you’ll get on very well with this laptop and its luxurious big screen experience.

Before we dive into what the screen brings to the table, just know that the core performance here is practically flawless. Our review unit featured a winning combination of the Ryzen AI 9 HX CPU and the RTX 5070 Ti which, as you can probably imagine, paves the way for a true high-end experience in pretty much any game you care to throw at it.

When playing Cyberpunk 2077 and Returnal at 1080p, those games were able to run at an average 106.15fps and 115fps respectively, so you won’t have any issues with really pushing the hardware. Plus, with a 240Hz refresh rate, we were able to reach 207fps at 1080p when playing Rainbow Six Extraction, which just draws you into the action and keeps you locked in with every step.

Back to the display, the 18-inch panel is very bright, and with 100% sRGB colour accuracy, everything looks great too. If you do need a laptop for work as well as play then the larger-than-average screen size makes the process of multitasking much easier as there’s more room for windows to spread out. However, the laptop only uses an IPS panel instead of OLED, which would have been nice given the higher price point, and it does mean that you miss out on the level of contrast that’s available elsewhere.

Still, what really surprised us about the MSI Stealth A18 AI+ is that in spite of its aims of being a gaming powerhouse, the laptop still manages to be quite efficient when it comes to battery life. The laptop ran for seven hours and 27 minutes in our battery test which is a great deal better than a lot of gaming laptops we’ve tested.

As much as we love the MSI Stealth A18 AI+, if you decide that you’re not that fussed about having an 18-inch display and would prefer a laptop that’s a lot more portable and easier to carry around, then the MSI Stealth A16 AI+ (2025) is easily the best option for you. Even with a lighter build, this laptop doesn’t skimp on power so you can really push it to the max if you so please.

Our review unit boasted the Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 and the RTX 5070 Ti under the hood, the latter of which is the same graphics card that came with our MSI Stealth A18 AI+ model, so you’re not really missing anything in terms of graphical fidelity. Just like with its larger counterpart, the RTX and Ryzen pairing paves the way for triple-A games to run without ever breaking a sweat.

When diving into our go-to titles of Cyberpunk 2077 and Returnal, returning both of those games at 1080p gave us performance at 102.87fps and 97fps respectively which, for a gaming laptop that only weighs 2.1kg, is incredible. If you’re someone who regularly travels for work but loves to spend their downtime diving into the latest games then this is the laptop to have on hand.

One area where the A16 goes even further than its larger sibling is in the display department, as it boasts a stunning OLED panel. Having the more premium lighting tech to hand means that the laptop is capable of producing stunning levels of contrast which, unfortunately, just isn’t possible with the IPS alternative on the A18. If you do want a larger display for multitasking then the A18 certainly gets the job done, but the overall visual experience is superior here.

Even though it’s a more compact laptop by gaming standards, MSI has still gone out of its way to include an almost full-size keyboard on the A16, with a dedicated number pad and row of function keys, ideal for more involved RTS titles or MMORPGs. We would have liked to see the battery perform to a higher degree than the four hours and 46 minutes we reached during our test, but this won’t be an issue if you prefer playing at a desk where you’re likely to have a readily available power outlet.

Although the MSI Stealth A16 AI+ is easily the option to go for if you want a top performing gaming laptop that’s highly portable, MSI Vector 16 HX AI A2XW (2025) is a great alternative as it sacrifices some of that portability for a larger battery and a heftier build, but that could be preferable to anyone who enjoys having the freedom of gaming without being tied to a power source.

Unlike the A16 which was unfortunately a bit of a letdown where battery life is concerned, the Vector 16’s 90Whr cell can really go the distance. In our battery test, we were able to get the Vector 16 to run for six hours and 59 minutes which is really impressive in its category. When you do need to top it up, a full charge with the included power brick only took 112 minutes.

Don’t mistake the focus on battery life to mean that MSI has dropped the ball on performance, far from it. Under the hood of our test unit was an Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX and RTX 5080 graphics card, the combination of which ran rings around our go-to test titles. 

When starting things off at 1080p, both Cyberpunk 2077 and Returnal performed exceptionally well, reaching 129.67fps and 135fps respectively. Even if you decide to sacrifice some of the refresh rate in return for a more vibrant and higher resolution image, these games still came out on top at 1440p, with the lowest of the two being 85.09fps for Cyberpunk which is still respectable.

The one trade-off that might turn some people away from the Vector 16 is the use of an IPS screen. To its credit, the panel is wonderfully bright, and you certainly won’t be disappointed with the colours that it’s capable of portraying. It’s only when looking at the contrast levels that you start to see where an OLED screen could do a better job, but there’s so much to like elsewhere that it shouldn’t be seen as a dealbreaker.

While most of the laptops on this list are designed specifically with gaming in mind, if you’re a professional who works long hours but enjoys a bit of gaming in their downtime and needs a device that can cater to both use-cases, then the MSI Prestige 16 AI Evo (2025) is made with you in mind. 

As a work laptop, the bright 16-inch QHD+ IPS display is perfect for multitasking, reading through documents and getting a bit of research done. Plus, because this has a gaming-ready CPU on board, it can make short work of more intensive apps such as photo and video editors, so if you work in a creative industry then you’ll be well catered to here.

What really separates the Prestige 16 from other laptops on this list however is the phenomenal battery life onboard. By packing a sizeable 99Whr cell, we were able to get 18 hours and 48 minutes of use on a single charge, which absolutely decimates most of the competition, let alone other MSI laptops. With that kind of longevity in the tank, you can easily get through two working days before needing a top-up, so you can easily work in a cafe without any fear of seeing a low battery warning.

When it comes to gaming performance, the Prestige 16 isn’t quite as capable as the most powerful laptops on this list, but it runs to a degree that casual gamers can enjoy. For example, when running the laptop at 1080p, we reached a peak of 50fps in Rainbow Six Extraction and 29fps in Returnal. Again, these numbers don’t overshadow those of laptops that go all in on gaming, but it’s enough to know that you can run triple-A titles here and still have an enjoyable experience.

There are only really two areas where we would have liked to see some improvements, those being the keyboard and the available selection of ports. Even though it’s an almost full-sized keyboard with no shortage of keys, the buttons do feel a tad spongy, and when it comes to the ports, you get the essentials including two USB-C slots, a USB-A and a full-sized HDMI port, but we would have liked to see an additional USB-A port to really open up the laptop to more accessories.

You might consider the MSI Claw 8 AI+’s inclusion a bit cheeky given that it isn’t technically a laptop, but when having the discussion over which MSI device to go for, particularly if you want a great gaming experience on the go, it would be daft not to bring up the brand’s handheld console given the growing popularity of this sector.

With close competitors like the Steam Deck and the Nintendo Switch 2, there’s no shortage of options now when it comes to buying a handheld console, but for PC gamers who want to feel like they’re still getting a high-end experience in a more compact form factor, the Claw is a great one to buy, especially with its gorgeous eight-inch FHD+ 120Hz display.

Sure, OLED would have been nice but there’s still a ton of detail on show, oftentimes outshining the Steam Deck OLED in areas other than contrast. Even if you’re gaming when out in the sun, you shouldn’t have any issues with seeing what’s on screen. The buttons are nice and tactile too, and the inclusion of RGB lighting around the thumbsticks is a nice visual touch.

In terms of raw performance, the Intel Lunar Lake CPU and Intel Arc 140V iGPU do a terrific job of staying locked in with the action. When diving into titles like Rocket League, EA Sports FC 25 and The Invincibles, the Claw held its own with a solid 60fps average. For more demanding titles, that refresh rate does drop a bit but we still saw 41fps when running Cyberpunk 2077 at 720p, so you can enjoy triple-A titles here without issue.

What did surprise is that, even when running titles that would inevitably push the Claw to its limits, the device stayed fairly cool in operation, with the fans doing a great job of circulating air. The big sticking point with the Claw, as you may have already guessed, is the price. £899/$899 is no small amount of change, so we do recommend hunting around for a deal if possible, but the price tag is sure to be worth it for gamers who want as many bells and whistles as this form factor can afford.

The MSI Prestige 14 AI Evo C1M is a well-built laptop with fast performance, forward-looking connectivity and plenty of AI features, making it a solid investment for the home and the office.

The design might not be the most exciting aspect of this laptop, but it’s by no means a dealbreaker as the Prestige 14 AI Evo C1M strikes a balance between the style and portability of a thin-and-light laptop and the functionality of a larger business machine.

While the keyboard feels a little cramped, the keys themselves offer light but crisp action with plenty of travel and tactile feedback, and the keyboard backlighting is effective. The touchpad is smooth too, responding well to multi-touch gestures.

The IPS display might not offer the perfect blacks and high contrast of an OLED panel, but it is still very bright and relatively crisp, with a 16:10 aspect ratio that proved comfortable for multi-tasking and Windows’ split-screen views during our testing period.

The Prestige 14 AI Evo C1M also offers excellent performance in mainstream apps thanks to its 14-core Ultra 5 CPU and 16GB of DDR5 RAM, resulting in Geekbench 6 and PC Mark 10 results that position the laptop ahead of the Acer Swift X 14, last year’s MSI Prestige 14 Evo and the Asus Zenbook S13 OLED. The CPU includes integrated ARC graphics for entry-level 3D speeds, while 1TB of SSD storage rounds out these specs.

The laptop comes with relatively little bloatware, though some notable preinstalled apps include the Tobii Experience privacy software and MSI Center, which is where you’ll find all of the system and diagnostic tools.

Finally, the MSI Prestige 14 AI Evo C1M packs a 90Whr battery and energy-efficient specs that make it possible to get through the average workday without pausing to plug in a charger. When it does come time to recharge, a 100W charger will get the battery from 0 to 48% in just 30 minutes.