Whatever your task, you need a laptop that can handle it. These Best Laptop For GIS Work are the perfect balance of power, mobility, and connectivity.
Whether you’re running spatial analysis, digitizing, or managing your GIS database, GIS software is an integral part of your work. So you need a laptop that can keep up.
Not all laptops are created equal. Some laptops have more limitations on what they can do. You will want to look for a laptop that is powerful enough, has a good size screen, and has the right operating system to accomplish your GIS work.
With the right laptop, you can do any and all of your mapping and explore with ease. It will make your life much easier and allow you to be more productive in your work.
This article will break down the various factors that need to be considered before making a purchase decision and will help you do some research on what type of laptop would best suit your needs.
Find out which laptops perform best with GIS software like ArcGIS, QGIS by reading our guide to the top 5 best laptop for GIS Professional.
In a Hurry, Check out our Top Pick
Microsoft Surface Book 2 (Best Laptop for GIS Software Work)
- Best Laptop For GIS Work
- Summary: Best Laptop for GIS Work
Students, professionals and researchers in the field of GIS work need different features in their laptops to ensure they are getting the best performance out of it.
When buying a laptop, there are few features that you should look for like SSD storage, a good graphics card and a long battery life.
Get the best laptop for GIS work by using our top recommendations
Best Laptop For GIS Work
A laptop is an essential tool for GIS professionals as they can use them to view and edit map data on the go. GIS software such as ArcGIS Pro and QGIS will often need a powerful system with a large screen to be able to run these applications smoothly.
This technology requires a lot of processing power and memory. For this reason, it’s best to prioritize processor and RAM before anything else when you’re looking into laptops for GIS work. More RAM will mean less waiting time when you are working on heavy geoprocessing tasks.
Image | Product | Our Rating | Price |
 | Microsoft Surface Book 2 | ||
 | Asus ZenBook 15 | ||
 | Razer Blade 15 | ||
 | Dell Inspiron 15 5593 | ||
 | Lenovo ThinkPad E590 |
#1. Microsoft Surface Book 2 (Best Laptop for GIS Professionals)
A GIS professional relies on a laptop for a lot of the work. A laptop needs to be powerful enough to handle the software and its tasks. It also needs to be portable, live up to long battery life, and have a good screen.
Laptops for GIS professionals have been designed with this in mind. They are powerful enough to handle demanding GIS software and geoprocessing tasks, but also light enough to carry around easily.
Most will last for 10 hours without needing an outlet as well as having large screens that are perfect for viewing maps or other visuals on-screen at high resolutions.
- With a slim profile, this laptop can easily fit into your bag or backpack.
- It has lightning fast SSD with 512GB of capacity for plenty of storage.
- The screen is gorgeous, at 3240 x 2160p, so you can enjoy crisp visuals.
- It’s powered by Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 discrete GPU so it can handle graphics intensive tasks with ease.
#2. Asus ZenBook 15 (Best Laptop For CAD & Draftsman)
The CAD and draftsman require a laptop with a powerful processor, high-resolution display, and a large number of ports.
When it comes to CAD/Draftsman laptops, you want to find one made specifically for the purpose.
There are various types of CAD laptops on the market these days, but not all of them are suitable for CAD Software.
To make it easier, here is the top laptop for CAD software that will make your work easier.
- Revolutionary architecture to virtually eliminate any waiting time for your computer.
- Optimized performance with the latest Intel Core i7 processor, 32GB of DDR4 RAM and 1TB SSD.
- Powerful NVIDIA GeForce RTX graphics card to provide next-gen visuals and immersive gaming experiences. Enjoy the latest blockbuster or game in 4K UHD resolution or super sampling mode.
- Touch screen allows for intuitive interaction that is natural and intuitive, while the 15.6″ inch display provides a large workspace with great color reproduction.
#3. Razer Blade 15 (Best Laptop For ArcGIS & ArcGIS Pro)
We can find many laptops on the market that are suitable for ArcGIS. Some are more expensive but provide better performance. Others are less expensive but they have lower performance, so it is up to you to decide which one is the best for your needs and your budget.
ArcGIS Laptop Requirements
If you want to know which laptop is best for ArcGIS Pro, you must know ArcGIS Desktop and ArcGIS Pro system requirements. So here are these requirements:
ArcGIS Pro System Requirement:
OS: Windows 10 Home Edition, Pro, and Enterprise Edition (64 bit)
CPU: 2.2 GHz Minimum: 2 cores (simultaneous multithreading), Hyperthreaded, 4 cores recommended
Platform: x64
Memory: 8GB minimum, 16GB recommended
Screen resolution: 1024 x 768 or higher
Storage: Minimum 32GB or, 32GB SSD or higher recommended
Graphics Memory: 4GB or higher recommended.
ArcGIS Desktop 10.x System Requirement:
OS: Windows 10 Home Edition, Pro, and Enterprise Edition (64 bit)
CPU: 2.2 GHz Minimum, Hyper-threading (HHT) or Multi-core recommended
Platform: x86 or x64
Memory: 4GB minimum, 8GB or higher recommended
Screen resolution: 1024 x 768 or higher
Storage: Minimum 4GB or, 6GB or higher recommended
Video/Graphics adapter: 64 MB RAM minimum; 256 MB RAM or higher
Now you know the exact system requirement for your laptop, before laptop recommendation, let’s check some more details.
What is the most important thing in the laptop which affects performance?
The most important thing in the laptop which affects its performance is the processor. The processor’s job is to control many of the different settings on your laptop, including how fast it can run your programs, how much power it can use, and how much it can cool itself down.
A better processor will be able to do more work for you without heating up as quickly or using as much power. A good processor will also allow you to run more programs at once without slowing down or forcing your laptop to reboot.
How much RAM does ArcGIS Require?
ArcGIS is a popular application. It can be very hard to know how much RAM it needs to run smoothly.
But as per our recommendation, 8GB to 16GB is mostly required.
As we know, we can find many laptops on the market that are suitable for ArcGIS and we want to recommend you one of them:
- The NVIDIA RTX 3060, with the help of the 10th Gen Intel Core i7-10750H processor, offers close to desktop-level gaming without the expense.
- With Wi-Fi 6, Gigabit Ethernet, Thunderbolt 3, USB Type-A and Type-C ports, and HDMI you’ll be ready for anything.
- The 15.6″ Full HD thin bezel display is crisp and clear with vibrant colors.
#4. Dell Inspiron 15 5593 (Best Laptop For GIS Student)
The best laptop for the individual GIS student will depend on their particular preferences and needs.
If you are looking for something that has a great battery then it will be hard to find what you need. This is because most laptops now have a battery life of about 5 hours and they can be updated to run up to 8 hours with an external charger.
Students who study GIS usually learn about spatial concepts like map projections, coordinate systems and topology. They can also work with mapping and spatial analysis tools like ArcGIS (ArcView, ArcEditor, ArcInfo), ArcGIS Pro, QGIS, MapInfo Professional and others.
It can be difficult to find a good, affordable laptop for GIS studies. Here are our top picks when it comes to budget laptops for GIS students.
- The best that technology has to offer, all in one place.
- Smooth visuals and accurate colors without any annoying glare (FHD IPS Panel).
- Storage for all your needs is available (512GB SSD), as well as a combination of the latest USB ports.
- Features description: – Get the latest Intel processor (10th generation Core i7), sharp display and lightning fast performance for everything from editing videos to running highly demanding games.
- RAM upgradeable for those looking to do more with their laptop, or who need it for future proofing purposes.
#5. Lenovo ThinkPad E590 (Best Laptop For Surveying)
Choosing a laptop for surveying work is a challenge because of the need to have a laptop that can be used in field conditions and also have enough power for processing data from the survey.
A typical surveying job requires data processing from GPS, laser, and total station equipment. These tools generate huge amounts of data that needs to be processed on the laptop.
The battery life must also be considered as it is important for fieldwork where there isn’t always an accessible power source.
The surveyors need to be able to quickly process data on the spot. They also need a laptop that is lightweight and has long battery life.
Most importantly they need a device that has a large screen with a high resolution because of all the mapping, and GPS navigation work they do on-site.
- Blazing-fast boot times.
- Impressive multitasking power.
- Amazing visuals, thanks to 15.6″ high-res FHD display and IPS technology.
- Latest Intel quad core processors (Intel Quad-Core i7-8565U Processor) for superlative performance across all sectors.
Summary: Best Laptop for GIS Work
The best laptop for GIS is one that will suit the needs of the GIS professional. GIS professionals are becoming more mobile with access to desktop GIS software through iPads, smartphones, and laptops.
The best laptop for GIS Programmers should have a high performance. Lightweight laptops are preferred because they are easier to transport in various geographical locations during fieldwork.