The best early Black Friday laptop deals under $500

We're tracking the best early Black Friday laptop deals under $500 as tech retailers start to roll out their holiday sales. So far, we've seen prices dip as low as $299.99.

Black Friday famously ushers in steep discounts on big-ticket purchases like Apple MacBooks and powerful gaming PCs, which typically see new record-lows during the holiday season. But shoppers seeking a new budget laptop for schoolwork, streaming, or basic browsing can also find some great deals this time of year. (Sub-$100 Chromebooks are not unheard of at retailers like Amazon and Walmart in late November.)

The very best early Black Friday laptop deals under $500 will likely appear closer to the actual holiday, but if you want to get your shopping out of the way ahead of time, you've already got pre-Black Friday sales to peruse at Best Buy, Dell, and Lenovo. Keep reading for a list of the nine "worth-it" doorbusters we've spotted so far, and check back often — we'll be updating it as Black Friday draws nearer.

Early Black Friday laptop deals under $500 at Best Buy

Why we like it

This 14-inch, 2-in-1 HP Chromebook is from Google's all-new Chromebook Plus line (announced last month), meaning it comes with built-in Google apps, a Full HD IPS touchscreen display, and an AI-powered 1080p+ camera; this is not a bare-bones, essentials-only budget laptop. The configuration with a 12th-generation Intel Core i3 processor, 8GB of memory, and 256GB of storage is on sale for $379 at Best Buy as part of its pre-Black Friday programming, which is 46% off its suggested retail price of $699. In all my time covering laptop deals for Mashable, I don't think I've ever seen a brand-new machine get a discount that high upfront.

Early Black Friday laptop deals under $500 at Dell

Why we like it

Most sub-$300 laptops have lousy Intel Celeron N Series processors and jittery 60Hz displays, and max out with 4GB of memory and 128GB of slow eMMC storage. Not this 15-inch Dell Inspiron model, though: It's packing a 12th-gen Intel Core i3 CPU, a 120Hz display, 8GB of RAM, and a whopping 512GB of SSD storage. It's not an aesthetically stunning laptop by any means, but an incredibly good value spec-wise at just $299.99 during Dell's Black Friday Sneak Peek event, which skims 21% off its $379.99 MSRP.

More traditional laptop deals under $500 at Dell

• Dell Inspiron 14 3420 (Qualcomm Snapdragon, Adreno 690, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD) — $299.99 $499.99 (save $200)

• Dell Inspiron 15 3525 (AMD Ryzen 5 5500U, 8GB RAM, 512GB SSD) — $329.99 $449.99 (save $120)

• Dell Inspiron 14 5425 (AMD Ryzen 7 5825U, 8GB RAM, 512GB SSD) — $449.99 $699.99 (save $150)

• Dell Inspiron 15 3525 (AMD Ryzen 5 5700U, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD) — $499.99 $709.99 (save $210)

2-in-1 laptop deals under $100 at Dell

• Dell Inspiron 14 7430 2-in-1 (Intel Core i3-1315U, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD) — $499.99 $649.99 (save $150)

Early Black Friday laptop deals under $500 at Lenovo

Why we like it

For a budget laptop with a slightly sleeker look, this 15.6-inch Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3 with a current-gen AMD Ryzen 5 7530U processor, 8GB of RAM, and 512GB of storage is a solid pick: Its thin, lightweight design includes a backlit keyboard and a fingerprint reader. Its 720p webcam is a bit underwhelming, but it does have a built-in privacy shutter. Lenovo marked it down to $399.99 (normally $699.99) during its own Black Friday Sneak Peek sale, which works out to a 43% savings.

Chromebook deals under $500 at Lenovo

• Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3i Chromebook Plus (Intel Core i3-N305, 8GB RAM, 128GB eMMC) — $399.99 $549.99 (save $150)