Best Budget DJ Laptops: DJing on a budget, playing and making music on the go for under $500

Do you want to start your DJ career but don’t have money? Start DJing and creating music with these 5 Best Budget DJ Laptops under $500.

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Most likely this will not be your first computer or laptop that you buy. So if you’re like me then you prefer your new DJing laptop to be from the same manufacturer as your old one.

If money is not an issue, then I advise you to buy a gaming laptop. Laptops for DJs using advanced music production software require quite some impressive specs. And mostly gaming laptops have everything you need, including great connectivity (more on that later). So what if you don’t have the money and you don’t want to use all your savings money? Then check out some of these best DJ laptops under the price range of $500. They might not be as powerful as the more expensive ones, but they will be enough for anybody just starting with DJing or music production. The best laptops for DJing on a budget are quite similar. Any of these laptops will be a good place to start your music production journey.

Why are there no Macbook laptops included on this list? Well, this is because Apple computers are way more expensive. And if you do find one under $500, then most likely the specs of any other competitor will be better and newer for your music production needs. So that’s why I advise you to just look for Windows laptops because they will give you more bang for your buck!

What are the best DJ laptops for under $500 included in this guide

Largest Screen

ASUS Vivobook 16

The Vivobook is a trusted name in the field of laptops. With its Intel Core i5-1235U CPU, you can get quite a lot done. With the 16-inch display, you can get an expansive, ‎1920 x 1080 (Full HD) resolution. It has a fast hard disk: 512GB M.2 NVMe PCIe 3.0 SSD. All in all a great laptop to begin music production with.

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Best Overall Value

Lenovo V15 Gen 4 Laptop

Lenovo is known to produce quality laptops. I have used an Ideapad-y700 laptop for many years. The Lenovo V15 Gen 4 is a stable laptop that can pack a punch considering its price. The 15.6" FHD display allows a nice 1920x1080 resolution, which is great for when you're working on bigger music projects or when you want to have a clear overview of your music set.

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Cheapest Laptop

Dell 2023 Newest Inspiron 15 3520

As the name already hints. This laptop is suitable for creating any kind of creative work. And definitely for music making. The Intel Core i5 processor is great for when you want to start producing music on a tight budget.

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Best Processor

Acer Aspire 5 Slim

This smart laptop is great for on the go. Its specs are very competitive and the processor is great. Even middle-heavy games can be played for when you want a break from your productions and music.

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Most Ram & Storage

HP 2023 15.6 inch HD Laptop

What other laptops in this list are missing when it comes to a big hard disk and more RAM, this HP does have it. The processor is not overwhelming, but the total offer is very balanced for a production laptop. And it should be enough to get you going with creating music

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What’s important when buying a budget laptop for making music?

The RAM, CPU and Hard Disk are most important in a laptop. So you should always look out for their specs when you are looking for the best laptops for DJing on a budget under $500, but this also goes for the more expensive computers. Of course, you cannot expect the same performance from a cheap budget laptop compared to a desktop or expensive gaming laptop. So depending on what kind of DJ you are, you might need a more advanced computer.

Here is a summary of why these three components are so important:

• The RAM, or memory, is where the laptop stores the data that it needs to access quickly and frequently. The more RAM the laptop has, the more data it can store and process without slowing down or crashing.
• The CPU, or processor, can be considered to be the brain of the laptop. It handles all the calculations and instructions. The faster and more powerful the CPU, the faster and smoother the laptop can perform various tasks.
• The hard disk is where the laptop saves all the data, such as your applications, and files. The more storage space the laptop has, the more data it can store without running out of room. Storage speed is often overlooked but is important. Because it determines how fast the data can be loaded and saved. Just imagine when you need to load some heavy sample library. There are two types of storage devices: hard disk drives (HDDs) and solid-state drives (SSDs). SSDs are much faster and more reliable than HDDs, but they are more expensive.

Best Laptops for DJing on a budget

ASUS Vivobook 16

A great laptop with a beautiful screen. Lightweight and flexible. Ready to take on your next DJ set

Largest Screen

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Pros

• 16-inch screen
• Fast M.2 SSD disk
• Great port connectivity
• Intel i5 processor

Cons

• Could use a bigger hard disk
• Can be less portable

The Vivobook 16 is surprisingly quick. The performance is as you would expect from an Intel i5 processor. I would not recommend it for playing AAA games. But you can do some heavy tasks with this laptop. This means that it has enough power to run Virtual DJ or software like Rekordbox. But if you want to work in a DAW like FL studio, they recommend at least 16GB RAM. For your DJing requirements and live performances, it should be able to run smoothly without any hiccups.

And when you are not busy playing and creating music, you can enjoy watching movies and streaming TV series. The beautiful NanoEdge screen is a pleasure to look at. Not only a joy to work with but also nice for during your free time.

Lenovo V15 Gen 4

Trusted quality of Lenovo. A great laptop with plenty of upgrade possibilities. Ready to grow with your DJ career

Best Overall Value

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Pros

• Lot's of quick storage
• Great processor
• Many different ports

Cons

• Build quality could be better

This Lenovo V15 Gen 4 laptop will be a great companion in your DJ and music making journey. It has all the features that any musician or beginning music producer would need. I especially like the fact that the processor is a 13th gen i3 processor. With six cores and 8 threads, you will be able to play clean music arrangements. Also, I recommend that any laptop you buy for your DJ activities has a processor with at least 4 cores.

The 1 TB NVMe SSD disk in combination with a USB-C port will allow you to connect external SSD disks that have all your music and samples on it. This way you don’t have to clog your laptop’s hard disk.

Dell Inspiron 15 3520

A very powerful laptop for the money and has options for upgrading hardware.

Cheapest Laptop

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Pros

• Great processor for the money
• Options for RAM upgrades
• Great Narrow Border Display

Cons

• No USB-C
• A bigger hard disk would be welcome

Dell is a great brand when it comes to making computers. The Inspiron 15 3520 is no exception. My first PC was a Dell and I loved every minute working with it. The Intel Core i5 processor has a boost of up to 4.2 GHz and should be able to deal with all live sets and song arrangements. Even though the pre-installed 8GB of RAM is not overwhelming it should be enough for you to work with Mixxx and programs such as Serato DJ Pro. If you work with a digital audio work station then you can load VST instruments and play live music or record instrumental tracks.

When a laptop screen is the only screen you have, then the screen size is very important. Because music arrangements can become visually cramped. Especially if you need to make quick decisions. The 15.6-inch screen is big enough for you to work comfortably with multiple tracks and have a clear overview of your project.

Acer Aspire 5 Slim

The production laptop with a powerful processor.

Best Processor

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Pros

• Nice slim design
• Good processor
• USB-C and Thunderbolt

Cons

• Could use more storage
• More RAM is welcome
  

The Acer Aspire 5 Slim is a very tempting laptop. This is mainly for its Intel Core i5 processor which has 10 cores and 12 threads. The storage and RAM could be more. But what you get out of the box is very capable of handling your DJ set and creating music tasks. Also from this list of best budget laptops for DJs, it is the cheapest. It is steady and nice and slim. This means that it is ideal for any DJ on the move. Apart from clubs and other venues, you can take it to any home studio, library or coffee bar that you like.

HP 2023 15.6″ HD Laptop

For people who want plenty of storage space and a fast hard disk.

Most Ram & Storage

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Pros

• Lot's of Ram
• Enough storage
• SD card reader
• Lightweight

Cons

• The processor is not the best
• Could use more ports
• Resolution could be better

With this HP laptop, you won’t have to be afraid of bloating your hard disk if you install a few of your sample libraries or some extra programs. It comes with 1TB of disk space. And that is quite generous. If you want to install your samples on an external SSD drive, you can always use the fast USB-C connection for speed. If you choose to have less RAM in the beginning then this computer might end up being the cheapest of all budget laptops for DJing. I just would have liked a faster processor.

Frequently Asked Questions