The Best Laptop for Trading under $500

Best laptop for trading

Nowadays, crypto, stock, or forex trading is not just like buying and selling stocks when there are ups and downs. Traders today make decisions based on technical analysis and fundamentals.

Trading the market is not like a piece of cake, as some commercials may make you believe. It requires proper knowledge, technical analysis, understanding of the market conditions, and a good trading laptop. Today, you don't need to only rely on newspapers for important information. Thanks to huge technological advancements, you can use your trading laptop to search and find endless news articles, releases, and information about the market.

To do so, you will need to find the best laptop for trading crypto and stock. However, if you are on a budget, we still have offers for you. In this article, you will read about the minimum requirements of a laptop for trading and then get familiar with the best laptop for trading for under 500$ and some other cheap laptops for trading.

Why a laptop and not a desktop?

A significant advantage of being a trader is working from almost anywhere. If you travel a lot, work from different places through the week, or even like to be able to move around the house while working, having a desktop will make things difficult. Fortunately, laptops designed for trading are as powerful as trading desktops nowadays. So, if you don't want your workplace limited to one place, you should buy a trading laptop.

What to look for in a trading laptop?

A trading laptop is a superior, extremely fast computer designed for traders. When searching to find the best laptop for trading crypto, there are several factors you should have in mind. The laptop you use for trading should be able to handle heavy web browsing and run trading software perfectly. Successful stock traders consider some factors important when searching for the best laptop for trading. They say it's better to find a high-end laptop that has these features or abilities:

• High speed 
• A good quality display
• A reliable trackpad
• Multiple browsing sessions
• Ability to attach external monitors
• A long-lasting battery
• Backlit keyboard
• Lightweight form factor

These factors in a laptop make it able to run both browser-based and standalone trading software and handle high-end browsing using modern browsers. To keep it short, a gaming laptop will likely fulfill your trading needs.

Minimum system requirements for a laptop for trading

If you don't like to pay a fortune to purchase a trading laptop but still want the best laptop for trading, you should know the minimum requirements for a trading laptop. In this part, we will talk about some of the most critical components of a trading laptop. Knowing the Minimum system requirements will help you find the best budget laptop for crypto trading.

Processor

The Central Processing Unit is the component that instructs the other computer components on what to do and when to do it. Two major computer processor manufacturers are AMD and Intel. As long as you consider the minimum CPU requirements suitable for a cheap laptop for trading, it doesn't matter much which manufacturer has made it. 

The best laptop for trading needs a high-speed, multicore processor to run most trading software. Each core of a CPU is, in fact, an individual processor itself which can work on a separate task. This feature increases the speed and performance of your computer. The processor's speed shows you how many calculations it processes each second.

A Quad-Core processor is a minimum processor we recommend for most day traders. It can give you enough processing power to run most trading platforms easily. For example, you can use a 10th Gen Intel Core i3 as the minimum processor. They have four cores and a 3.70 GHz clock speed per core, which is higher than the minimum recommended speed of 2.8 GHz. You won't need a ten-core processor like what they use for workstations for trading.

GPU

For your best budget laptop for crypto trading, a GPU capable of multiple displays is a must. Most traders use two displays for tracking various markets and indices simultaneously. To drive multiple displays, you will need at least a mid-range graphics card which can handle at least two independent HD monitors. If you want to see the number of monitors supported by a laptop, check the number of monitor ports it has. If it doesn't have a monitor port, you can use a USB adaptor to convert to HDMI or to display port.

Hard drive

Most laptops you buy for trading have hard drives sufficient for your needs. What matters the most about the storage is having enough storage space for trading platform software, stability, and high boot-up speed. 

A 256 MB drive seems to be the minimum hard drive needed for a cheap laptop for trading. It provides enough space for the software you need for trading and additional file storage. If you want to use your laptop for other purposes, too (video editing, music storage, etc.), you might need to go for a larger hard drive.

We recommend you buy a Solid State Drive (SSD) if possible. The SSDs are more stable and have considerably faster boot-up times than traditional Hard Disk Drives. These features make them the best choice for the primary driver of your laptop.

RAM

The best laptop for trading under $500 will have 8 GB RAM. This will be enough for casual traders. But if you are not on a tight budget, we suggest you invest in 16 GB of RAM or more. A 16 GB RAM will help you run all your trading software smoothly.

Display

The display is one of the most important factors when looking for the best laptop for trading. Choose a high-resolution model so you can clearly see all the data on your screen. A Full HD or higher resolution is the best option. 

Since a good display is essential for crypto trading, we recommend buying a laptop with a screen size higher than 12.5 inches.

Ports

Buy a laptop with multiple ports with at least one HDMI port, 2 USB-A slots, and one USB-C slot. Having these ports, you will be sure you can connect all your devices to your laptop. You can look for a Thunderbolt port if you care about quick data transfer.

Battery life

For stock traders, a long-lasting battery is a necessity. You will need a laptop that can last at least 5 hours on a single charge if you don't want to worry about the battery dying all the time you are working.

Wireless connectivity

Choose a laptop that has both a Wi-Fi and Bluetooth adapter. It makes you able to connect to the internet and other devices quickly.

Cooling system

Heat is the enemy of your laptop's processor. The only way to fight the heat is by using a cooling pad with two or more fans.

Here we have gathered all the necessary information about the different components of the best laptop for trading in a table:

After talking about the requirements of a trading laptop, it's time to see some cheap laptops for trading.

1. Dell Latitude E5280

• Processor: Intel Core i5-7th Generation
• Graphics: Intel
• Storage: 256GB SSD
• Memory: 8GB DDR4
• Display: 12.5 inch
• Dimensions (WxDxH): 333 x 229 x 20 mm 
• Weight: 1.60 Kg

This laptop is an excellent choice for frequent travelers. It fits in smaller luggage, has great battery life, and has a speedy 7th Gen CPU that enables solid performance. The keyboard is comfortable, and the design is simple, but the display may seem a little dim. This laptop weighs 1.6 Kg and measures 20 mm thick. Dell Latitude E5280 is built to survive the dangers of everyday use. Getting hot can be the weak point of this product. Dell Latitude E5280 is a good choice for those who want a durable, reliable machine for trading from different places.

2. Dell Latitude 5290

• Processor: Intel Core I5-8th generation
• Graphics: Intel
• Storage: 256GB SSD
• Memory: 8GB DDR4
• Display: 12.5 inch
• Dimensions (WxDxH): 305 x 211 x 19.4 mm
• Weight: 1.36 Kg

Dell Latitude 5290 2-in-1 has a fold-up design with a detachable keyboard. This laptop is designed to be used for business and features all the security features a trader needs, in addition to long battery life and bright display. The Latitude 5290 doesn't have more ports than essentials, just like most detachable laptops. You can expect the battery to last an entire workday while the laptop stays pretty cool.

3. Lenovo ThinkPad L470

• Processor: Intel Core i5-7th
• Graphics: Intel
• Storage: 256GB SSD
• Memory: 8GB DDR4
• Display: 14 Inch
• Dimensions (WxDxH): 30.7cm x 20.8 cm x 2.04 cm
• Weight: 2.02Kg

Lenovo ThinkPad L470 offers the best balance between portability and usability among its counterparts. The wide array of ports and 17+ hours of battery life make this 14-inch laptop a wise choice for traders. It has a durable design and a speedy PCIe SSD, but some users may find the display a little dim. Using this laptop, you will have a versatile Thunderbolt 3 port too. 

4. Lenovo ThinkPad x1 Carbon

• Processor: Intel Core I7-8th Generation
• Graphics: Intel
• Storage: 512GB SSD
  
• Memory: 16GB DDR4
• Display: 14 Inch
• Dimensions (WxDxH): 323.5 x 217.1 x 15.95 mm
• Weight: 1.3 Kg

Many users like the Lenovo ThinkPad x1 Carbon for its lightweight chassis, colorful display, and snappy keyboard. However, the battery lasts for about 8 hours which is not the most satisfying battery life. Though ThinkPad x1 Carbon is a reasonably thin laptop, it has several ports. The ports include USB 3.0, Kensington lock slot, optional Smart Card reader, USB Type-C port, Thunderbolt 3 port, HDMI out, and audio jack types. Like all ThinkPads, you can expect the x1 Carbon to withstand extreme temperatures, dust, vibrations, and other harsh condition. Considering all the pros and cons, this laptop can be a good choice for traders who are looking for a lightweight business laptop for trading.

5. Dell Latitude 5590 

• Processor: Intel Core I5-8th Generation
• Graphics: Intel
• Storage: 256GB SSD
• Memory: 8GB DDR4
• Display: 15 Inch
• Dimensions (WxDxH): 376 x 250 x 23 mm
• Weight: 1.88 kg

This 2-in-1 convertible laptop has a nice display with good color, brightness, and crispiness. The design is stylish, and the battery life is over 16 hours. Some users think Latitude 5590 is slightly expensive for the performance, but buying it refurbished is the solution to this problem. The Intel Core i7 processor and Intel Iris Xe integrated graphics card make this laptop able to handle your workload and look good. The Latitude 9520 2-in-1 has a fair amount of ports for a laptop of its size. This laptop is good everyday productivity, document-pushing mainstream business laptop.

Final thoughts

You need to invest in a high-performing laptop for trading as a trader. But don't worry if you are on a tight budget. You can still have the best laptop for trading if you pay attention to the minimum requirements. The minimum requirements for a laptop for trading include a processor with four cores and a speed higher than 2.8 GHz. Go for a GPU that supports more than one monitor. Choose a laptop with an SSD drive, and as the last piece of advice, don't forget to buy a cooling pad with two or more fans.