Best laptop for programming in Canada: how to choose

What a programmer actually needs

• Memory: 8 GB is a minimum for light work; 16 GB is more comfortable for editors, browsers, containers and emulators together. Check whether it can be upgraded later.
• Storage: a solid-state drive, with room for projects, dependencies and virtual machines.
• Processor: a recent mid-range chip is enough for most development; heavy builds, games and machine learning want more.
• Screen and keyboard: you will look at it all day. Check key feel and screen brightness in a shop if you can.
• Battery life as tested, not the capacity on the box.
• Operating system: if your tools run on Linux or need a specific OS, check that the laptop supports it well before you buy.

Buying in Canada

Laptops in Canada are mostly bought from Best Buy, Canada Computers, Memory Express, Amazon.ca and the makers' own stores. What differs there:

• Shelf prices exclude sales tax, which varies by province, so compare the final price.
• Student discounts from makers and shops are common; check before buying.
• Check the keyboard layout. Some laptops sold in Canada have a bilingual or a different layout from the US one.

Compare your shortlist

Once you have two or three models, put them side by side. Name them in compare⁄io and say what you do — "web development, two hours a day on battery, budget in dollars" — and it researches each with a live web search and shows where the facts came from. See also how to compare laptops side by side and the weighted decision matrix if you want to score them yourself.