14 inch laptop or 15 inch after all? How to choose the size

Written on 16 September 2026

The size of your laptop determines every day how pleasant the device is to use, and it is one of the few choices you cannot adjust later. Memory and storage can often still be expanded; a screen stays the size it is.

In this article I set the four sizes side by side on the factors that really make a difference: screen space, weight, performance and battery life. With concrete models included, so you see which type of laptop is available in which size.

How big is a 14 inch laptop exactly?

The 14 inch is the screen diagonal, measured from corner to corner, and that is about 35.6 centimetres. So the number says nothing about the width of the device itself.

On most 14 inch laptops the casing comes out at around 32 by 21 centimetres. That means the model fits in virtually any backpack and in most sleeves you buy for this size.

A 14 inch laptop is compact enough for daily use on the road, and that is partly down to the thin screen bezels of modern models. Where an older 14 inch screen still sat in a wide casing, newer series have brought the bezel in, which makes the screen larger at the same dimensions.

13, 14, 15 or 17 inch: what does each size give you?

Every size has a type of user it was made for. The table sets out the differences.

The 14 inch does not sit in between by accident. Dell, HP and Lenovo build their business series around this size, because for office work and travel it turned out to be the best choice for the largest group of users.

If it is specifically the biggest screen you are after, read on in buying a 17 inch laptop.

How much difference does size make in weight and dimensions?

Between a 14 and a 15 inch there is about 450 grams, and you only notice that after an hour of walking with your backpack. The step from 15 to 17 inch is bigger: there it is almost half a kilo plus a casing that no longer fits in many bags.

For school or work with the laptop in your bag every day, that difference is clearly noticeable. If the laptop stays put at your desk at home, weight is the least important factor in your choice.

With a 2-in-1, watch out for something extra. A model with a touchscreen that you use as a tablet is something you want to be light, which is why you find those mainly in 13 and 14 inch.

Measure your bag to be safe before you buy. A 15 inch fits in most laptop bags, while a 17 inch is often just too wide for a standard sleeve and asks for a separate bag.

The keyboard changes with the size too. From 15 inch there is room for a numeric keypad, which works nicely in accounting and spreadsheets, and at 13 and 14 inch the manufacturer gives that up for a more compact casing.

Does the size determine performance as well?

Indirectly, yes. A larger casing offers room for more cooling, and cooling determines how long a processor can keep working at its highest speed.

In practice that makes no difference for office work. An Intel Core i5 or i7 in a 14 inch business model runs Windows 11 with email, Office, video calls and dozens of browser tabs without trouble.

With a refurbished model, watch the generation of the processor, because that determines whether the device officially supports Windows 11. For Intel, Microsoft takes the 8th generation Core as the oldest supported generation; anything below that is not on the list.

The difference arises with heavy work. Video editing, CAD and games ask for dedicated graphics, and those cards need room and cooling that you rarely find in this size; the 14 inch workstations such as the ZBook Firefly are the exception. For graphics work you therefore end up with a 15 or 17 inch mobile workstation, such as a Dell Precision or an HP ZBook.

If you want to know which processor suits your work, the comparison between i5, i7 and i9 helps.

What resolution does a 14 inch need?

Full HD, so 1920 by 1080, is the practical standard at this size. Text is sharp, the load on the graphics stays low and the screen draws modest power.

In the business series you also come across WUXGA, with a 16:10 ratio instead of 16:9. That gives you slightly more vertical screen space, which works a little more pleasantly in documents and spreadsheets.

For films and entertainment there are screens with a higher resolution, and at 14 inch the difference from Full HD is small while it costs more power. With a second-hand model, look at the brightness instead, because a matte screen with enough nits works better in daylight than a screen with more pixels.

Which size lasts longest on a charge?

The smaller sizes win here, because the screen is the biggest consumer. A 13 or 14 inch with an efficient Intel platform comfortably manages a working day of office work.

At 15 and 17 inch the battery grows along, and at the same time the screen and the dedicated graphics ask for more. A gaming laptop or workstation therefore runs down faster, even under light use.

Batteries are also sized differently per series. A business 14 inch is designed for a whole day away from a socket, which a 17 inch desktop replacement never aimed for.

With a refurbished laptop the condition of the cell itself counts as well. How to measure that yourself is in battery life of a refurbished laptop.

Which 14 inch laptops are available refurbished?

The business top series fill this size, and that is exactly why the range is so wide. These models were bought by companies in their thousands, last for years and come onto the market afterwards as refurbished models.

This size is available from several brands. Lenovo 14 inch laptops run from the ThinkPad T490s and T14s to the X1 Carbon and the X1 Yoga with touchscreen, and HP has a mobile workstation in the same size with the ZBook Firefly 14. Note that a model name with a number says nothing about the size: the Dell Latitude 7320 sounds bigger, but according to Dell itself it is a 13.3 inch machine. At Acer and other consumer brands, which we do not sell ourselves, you mainly find lighter models in this size with a Celeron or an entry-level processor. Those are suitable for school or simple home use and last less well in daily business use.

Small screen with a monitor alongside?

This is the route many people overlook. A compact 14 inch for the road, with a monitor and a separate keyboard at home, gives you both advantages for less money than a large laptop.

A docking station makes that practical: you click the laptop in and screen, keyboard and network are connected straight away. How to choose the right dock is in buying a laptop docking station.

For graphics work a large screen remains necessary, and then an external monitor is almost always cheaper and better than a 17 inch laptop. You buy screen space where you use it.

In brief

A 14 inch laptop is the best choice for most people: roughly 35.6 centimetres of screen diagonal, around 1.4 kilos, and the size in which the business top series from Lenovo, HP and Dell are readily available. Choose 13 inch if weight counts most, 15 inch for more screen space with a numeric keypad, and 17 inch if the laptop mainly becomes a desktop replacement. Full HD is enough at this size, and with a monitor and a dock alongside a compact laptop works just as roomily at home as a large one. Unsure about a term? Look it up in our glossary.

Why refurbished at DSL Tech?

Every laptop at DSL Tech is checked on more than 30 points and comes with a 2-year warranty. Customers rate us 9.0 on average, you pay securely by iDEAL or in three instalments with in3, and order before 12:00 and your laptop arrives tomorrow.

This article is part of our complete guide buying a refurbished laptop, with grades, warranty, the right specs and the brands set out side by side.

Sources

• Dell: Latitude 7320 specifications
• Lenovo: ThinkPad T14s specifications (PSREF)
• HP: ZBook Firefly 14 product documentation
• Microsoft Learn: Windows 11 supported Intel processors