These are the Best MSI Laptops to buy in 2022

If you’ve been on the hunt for a gaming laptop before, you’ve no doubt heard of MSI. The company makes some very well-known gaming hardware, including laptops, desktops, and PC components. But beyond gaming, the company has been investing in broadening its scope, and it now offers some great laptops for creators and for business users in general. If you’re a fan of the brand but you’re not quite sure which model is right for you, we’re here to help. We’ve rounded up the best laptops from MSI, whether you’re looking to game or do some more work-oriented tasks.

Of course, MSI is still a gaming brand above all else, so that’s where a lot of our focus is on this list. But there are some great options if you want to get some work done, too, so we have some of those listed below. Without further ado, let’s get right into it.

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Best overall: MSI Raider GE66

If you’re looking for a high-end gaming rig that isn’t absurdly expensive and doesn’t completely destroy any chances of portability, the MSI Raider GE66 is probably your best option. This is still a beastly laptop, featuring 12th-generation Intel Core processors up to a Core i9-12900HK and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti for a total of up to 195W of power. There is also a more powerful GE66HX model, but we’d say this is still the best balance for most people if you don’t want something that burns through the battery instantly. It also comes with up to 32GB of DDR5 RAM at 4800MHz and a 1TB SSD, which you can upgrade later.

It has a pretty great display, too, with a few options to choose from. This 15.6-inch panel comes in either Full HD resolution with a 360Hz refresh rate, Quad HD resolution with either a 165Hz or 240Hz refresh rate, or an amazing Ultra HD panel with a 120Hz refresh rate. This way, you can balance image quality and smoothness to your preference, though we’d say one of the Quad HD models may be the most well-rounded option in terms of delivering fantastic visuals without using up too many resources. On top of that, there’s a Full HD webcam above the screen, which is something often overlooked in gaming laptops. However, there’s no Windows Hello support here.

As for ports, that’s something gaming laptops are very good at, and this is no exception. The MSI Raider GE66 comes with one Thunderbolt 4 port, one regular USB-C port, three USB Type-A ports, HDMI 2.1, Mini DisplayPort 1.4, RJ45 Ethernet, a combo audio jack, and a full-size SD card reader.

Design-wise, RGB lighting is a big focus here with a huge light bar at the front of the laptop so you can make sure you’re noticed in public. The keyboard is also RGB backlit. Surprisingly, all of this comes in a chassis weighing 5.25lbs, which isn’t insanely light, but definitely still somewhat portable. That’s part of the reason this is one of the best MSI laptops you can buy right now, striking a really good balance of performance, portability and (depending on configuration), price.

Best lightweight gaming laptop: MSI Stealth 15M

If you want a bit more portability in your laptop, the MSI Stealth 15M is a fantastic option that cans till handle some serious gaming. This laptop comes with an Intel Core i7-1260P processor, with a 28W TDP and 12 cores delivering very good performance for gaming on the go. That’s paired with an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 Laptop GPU, which can handle most modern games without much of an issue (though you may need to turn down some settings here and there). Additionally, up to 32GB of DDR4 RAM and a 1TB SSD ensure a pretty great experience across the board.

If that’s not all too impressive after seeing the laptop above, this is where it gets really interesting. Unlike the Raider GE66, this is a laptop that’s actually portable, weighing just 3.73lbs. If you’re a student who likes to play games, for example, this is a great machine you can still carry to school and then play games on when you get home. It’s also much more subdued in terms of design, though you still get some cool RGB lighting on the keyboard and a backlit MSI logo on the lid.

The display is also a bit more tame here, but it definitely makes sense for a laptop with these specs. You get a 15.6-inch Full HD panel with a 144Hz refresh rate, which makes things a little easier on the GPU so you can run games at higher settings and still get very high frame rates. It also helps you save some power for when you need to get work done away from an outlet, so you can worry a little less about battery life. The webcam is only 720p resolution, which is serviceable, but unfortunate.

As for ports, this smaller size does mean you get a more limited supply, but you still have a solid selection, including two USB Type-C ports (one with DisplayPort), two USB Type-A ports, HDMI 2.1, and a headphone jack. It’s a pretty solid setup for a laptop of this size, though the lack of Thunderbolt is a bit unfortunate.

While it’s not meant for the most power-hungry users, the MSI Stealth 15M is a great laptop that can handle gaming just fine while still being very portable, and certainly one of the best MSI laptops depending on your needs.

Best desktop replacement: MSI Titan GT77

If you have the money to throw around and want the absolute most power you can get in a portable package, then the MSI Titan GT77 is pretty much unrivaled. This beast of a laptop comes with up to an Intel Core i9-12900HX – a processor with a whopping 16 cores and 24 threads, plus a 55W TDP (though it can use as much as 150W if needed). That insane amount of power is combined with up to an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti laptop GPU that can use a massive 175W of power by itself, so you’re going to be blitzing through any and all games without any issues. Together, the CPU and GPU can use up to 250W of power in total. To get even crazier, you can also go up to 128GB of RAM and 4TB of SSD storage with room for more, so nothing is missing here.

The display here is similarly insane, being a 17.3-inch 4K panel with a 120Hz refresh rate. That’s a difficult screen to drive, but the insane power inside this laptop ensures that at least some of your games will run at that resolution and framerate, especially lighter e-sports titles. The screen also covers 100% of DCI-P3, so if you ever want to shift to some content creation, that’s also doable.

Ports are also everything you could want, including two Thunderbolt 4 ports, three USB Type-A ports, HDMI 2.1, Mini DisplayPort, RJ45 Ethernet, a headphone jack, and a full-size SD card reader. That’s quite a lot of connectivity.

All of this makes for a very heavy machine, but this laptop is all about power over everything else. It weighs a whopping 6.82lbs so you really won’t be carrying this around everywhere, and it’s big in just about every dimension. If you’re into RGB lighting, the keyboard has per-key RGB lighting and a colorful light bar built into the exhaust vent at the back.

This certainly isn’t a laptop for everyone, but if you want the most power you can get, this is the best laptop MSI makes. You just need a lot of money for it.

Best affordable gaming laptop: MSI Sword 15

If you want a laptop that can handle some gaming without spending a ton of money, the MSI Sword 15 may just be the right choice for you. While it’s obviously not the most powerful machine around, this laptop is still powered by an Intel Core i5-12450H with eight cores and 12 threads, plus it has an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 with 60W of maximum power, so it can still handle most modern games as long as you’re willing to change some settings here and there. It’s also great if you play some older titles or e-sports games that tend to be lighter on resources. This model also includes 8GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD, though you can upgrade later as your budget allows.

Of course, the screen is also a bit more on the basic side, being a 15.6-inch panel with Full HD resolution and a 144Hz refresh rate, but it makes sense considering these specs. You wouldn’t be able to make the most out of a sharper or faster display either way considering the GPU in here. As usual, the webcam is a common sacrifice, so you’re only getting a 720p camera here, but it works in a pinch.

Aside from being affordable, the MSI Sword 15 also stands out from the rest of the lineup because it has a mostly white chassis, something MSI doesn’t do that frequently. It also doesn’t have RGB lighting, though the keyboard is backlit in blue, adding a nice touch to the overall design.

In terms of ports, the MSI Sword 15 comes with one USB Type-C port, three USB Type-A ports, HDMI, RJ45 Ethernet, and a headphone jack. It’s not quite as impressive as more expensive laptops, but you still have a lot of ports here, and you should be able to connect all of your peripherals just fine. All of this comes in a chassis that weighs just under 5lbs, so while this isn’t the most portable laptop around, it’s not ridiculously heavy, so you can still take it with you on trips.

All in all, for users on a tight budget, the MSI Sword 15 is probably the best laptop in the company’s lineup.

Best business laptop: MSI Summit E14 Flip Evo

Moving away from gaming, MSI also has a pretty great business laptop in the form of the MSI Summit E14 Flip. This is a thin and light machine powered by up to an Intel Core i7-1260P with 12 cores and 16 threads, which is more than enough to handle all kinds of day-to-day tasks without breaking a sweat. Plus, you get up to 32GB of LPDDR5 RAM and a 1TB NVMe SSD, making for a great work laptop overall. And it has a pretty big battery for this kind of laptop, so it should last fairly long on a charge, too.

Also helping with this is the display, which is a fantastic 14-inch panel with a 16:10 aspect ratio and a very sharp “Quad HD+” resolution, meaning 2880 x 1800. This is a convertible, so the screen can rotate 360 degrees and you can use it as a tablet, plus an MSI Pen is included if you prefer interacting with it that way. On top of that, 100% coverage of DCI-P3 also make this a great laptop for media consumption and lightweight content creation. Another standout feature is the Full HD webcam with Windows Hello facial recognition.

Part of what makes this a great business laptop is how thin and light it is, being a machine that weighs only 3.61 lbs. It’s also great to see an extremely clean design with nothing that would make this laptop stand out in a public setting. No RGB or weird accents here, making it a perfect work laptop.

Ports are also fairly abundant, with two Thunderbolt 4 connections, one USB Type-A port, HDMI, a headphone jack, and a microSD card reader giving you plenty of options for connecting peripherals. For a convertible of this size, it’s a pretty great setup.

MSI may not be known for its business laptops yet, but this one definitely deserves recognition – and your purchase.

Best mainstream laptop: MSI Modern 15

If you’re looking for something cheaper for everyday life, the MSI Modern 14 is another great option for school work and other basic tasks. This model is powered by an Intel Core i5-123U, with 10 cores and 12 threads, capable of handling web browsing, document writing, and so on without a hitch. It also comes with 8GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD, which is bound to be enough for most students, too.

The MSI Modern 14 also packs a 14-inch display with a 16:9 aspect ratio, which is fairly common for this price. The resolution is Full HD, which is also a good fit for a screen of this size. Everything should look plenty sharp for the average user, and it’s perfectly acceptable at this price.  An unfortunate sacrifice is the 720p webcam, but this isn’t all that surprising considering the price tag of this machine and that webcams are always one of the first things to go.

In terms of ports, the MSI Modern 14 still has a decent setup, with one USB Type-C port, three USB Type-A ports, HDMI, a combo audio jack, and a microSD card reader. You definitely get solid variety here, though most of the USB ports are fairly slow. Again, it’s important to remember that this is a fairly cheap laptop, so those concessions make a lot of sense.

Despite being the cheapest laptop on this list, the MSI Modern 14 is also the lightest, coming in at just 3.09lbs, meaning you can easily take it anywhere. It has very muted design without any colors or accents so it’s great if you want a laptop for school, plus the keyboard is backlit with white light.

This is definitely a great choice if you’re looking for a laptop for a younger student who may not need a top-tier laptop, or if you just want something to have at home for occasional web browsing.

Best laptop for creators: MSI Creator Z16P

Creative professionals often need the power of a gaming laptop but in a chassis more fit for work, and that’s exactly what you get with the MSI Creator Z16P. This high-performance version of the Creator Z16 comes with up to an Intel Core i9-12900H processor with 14 cores, plus it has an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti GPU that can use up to 90W of power, ideal for all kinds of content creation workloads, from video editing to 3D rendering. You also get up to 64GB of RAM and 2TB of SSD storage, so it can handle plenty of projects.

The display on this one is also fantastic. It’s a 16-inch panel with a 16:10 aspect ratio, and the resolution is a very sharp 2560 x 1600, so it’s great for productivity. It also covers 100% of DCI-P3, as you’d probably expect for a creator laptop, and it even supports touch and pen input using the MPP protocol. It’s also worth highlighting that this is one of the few laptops on the list with a quad-speaker setup for more immersive audio. Above the display, there’s also a 1080p webcam with Windows Hello support, which is also great to see.

For ports, you get one Thunderbolt 4 connection, one regular USB Type-C port, one USB Type-A port, and a headphone jack. There are a few odd omissions here like HDMI, but it’s probably because this is a very thin laptop for the specs it’s packing, so there isn’t a lot of headroom for ports. You can still connect basic peripherals this way, and the USB-C ports both support display output if you need it.

Design-wise, the MSI Creator Z16P is very clean laptop that can easily fit into any work environment. The MSI logo on the lid may stand out a little bit, but there are no garish accents or RGB lights here, so it’s a very professional-looking machine. It’s definitely one of the best laptops MSI makes for creators, though you’ll have to pay quite a bit for the privilege of owning one.

Best workstation: MSI CreatorPro Z17

Finally, if you need a machine for more serious workstation-level work, the MSI CreatorPro Z17 may be for you. It’s similar in many ways to the model above, starting with the fact that it has an Intel Core i9-12900H processor, but it does have a key difference in the GPU. This model is powered by an Nvidia RTX A5500, a professional-grade GPU meant specifically for workstations. The GPU can use up to 90W of power, which should be enough to handle most kinds of workloads without much of an issue. Beyond this, it comes with 64GB of RAM and a 2TB SSD.

The display here is a large 17.3-inch panel, giving a pretty big canvas for all kinds of work. It comes in Quad HD+ (2560 x 1600) resolution, it has a 165Hz refresh rate, and it covers 100% of DCI-P3, so it’s a great machine for more color-sensitive work, too. It also supports touch and pen input using the MPP protocol. Similar to the model above, it has a quad-speaker setup so the audio experience should be better than most others on this list. It also has a Full HD webcam with Windows Hello facial recognition.

For ports, the MSI CreatorPro gives you quite a bit, with two Thunderbolt 4 ports, one USB Type-A port, HDMI 2.1, a headphone jack, and a full-size SD card reader. This is achieved while still being less than 20mm thick, which is impressive considering the specs here.

The rest of the design is very clean and sleek, making this a great laptop for work. It does have an RGB backlit keyboard, but it’s done in a relatively subdued way so it only shines through the key labels. If you want to be more discrete, you can always change the backlight to solid white.

The biggest downside of this laptop is its very expensive price tag, but that’s what you get with something this powerful. It’s not a traditional workstation (MSI hasn’t refreshed those models in a while), but it gets very impressive performance into a compact chassis.

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And those are the best MSI laptops you can buy today, whether you want something for gaming or work. Sure, the company definitely focuses more so on gaming, but recently, it has made some fantastic devices for other uses, and you can see that here.

One thing we did;t really see on this list is cellular connectivity, so if you’re interested in that, maybe check out the best 5G laptops you can buy today.