In this article, we take a look at the best laptops for Revit. We selected the best laptops according to AutoDesk Revit system requirements.
The ASUS ProArt StudioBook 15 is a BEAST workstation. If you are a professional. You will benefit a lot from its enormous computing and graphics power
The Lenovo ThinkPad P1 is a very light workstation with great processing power.
The Acer Nitro 5 is a solid budget laptop for AutoDesk Revit especially if you are on a tight budget or a student.
The ASUS ProArt StudioBook 15 is a BEAST workstation. If you are a professional. You will benefit a lot from its enormous computing and graphics power
The Lenovo ThinkPad P1 is a very light workstation with great processing power.
The Acer Nitro 5 is a solid budget laptop for AutoDesk Revit especially if you are on a tight budget or a student.
Last update on 2024-04-19 at 05:02 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
AutoDesk Revit System Requirements
You can find the Autodesk Revit minimum, recommended and max system requirements for laptops and desktops here.
Can You Use MacBook For AutoDesk Revit?
No, you can’t use a MacBook for AutoDesk Revit because macOS is not compatible with it. Windows is the only operating system that supports AutoDesk Revit.
What Is The Best Laptop For AutoDesk Revit?
Here are a few things to know looking for the best laptop for Autodesk Revit.
What Processor Is Best For AutoDesk Revit?
Depending on the model, Autodesk Revit might need a lot of processing power. CPUs with high clock speeds are the most recommended.
The higher the clock speed the more work it will be able to do in a short time.
Another thing you should also take into consideration is the number of cores.
Multiple cores with high clock speeds are much better than single cores with lower clock speed. But, a single-core which has a very high clock speed is better than multiple cores with lower clock speeds.
If you also plan on rendering – the more cores, the better.
For the reasons mentioned above, the best processors are Ryzen 5, Ryzen 7, Intel Core i5 and i7. Anything higher than these is also great.
Do You Need A Graphics Card For AutoDesk Revit?
Graphics cards are important as CPU and RAM. Quadro cards are the best in the industry when it comes to rendering and running simulations but are also very expensive.
Consumer graphics cards (NVIDIA GeForce and AMD Radeon) are much cheaper but not as powerful as Quadro cards. Quadro cards are mostly reserved for professional and heavy-duty tasks.
If you have the budget, go with a laptop that has an NVIDIA Quadro or AMD FirePro because they provide better GPU performance than consumer cards.
Is 8GB RAM Enough For Revit?
Revit requires a large amount of RAM for it to run smoothly. According to AutoDesk, opening a 100 MB Revit central file will consume 2 GB RAM.
This quickly consumes a lot of RAM if you are opening large files 200 MB and above.
Aside from that, you might also be working on other things while you have your project open. A minimum of 8 GB RAM or higher is recommended especially if you are working on large projects.
You can visit here to find out more about the recommended RAM.
Best Laptops For AutoDesk Revit – Reviewed & Rated
➕ Pros
- Insane performance
- Plenty of storage
- Solid build quality
- Beautiful display
- Thin and light
➖ Cons
- Runs hot
- Not the best battery life
- Pricey
CPU: Intel Core i7 | Graphics: NVIDIA Quadro RTX 5000 | RAM: 48GB | Screen: 15.0″ WUXGA NanoEdge Matte Display (3840 x 2160) | Storage: 2TB NVMe SSD
The ASUS ProArt StudioBook 15 is a powerful laptop making it the best workstation laptop for large and complex models in Revit and other BIM software.
Taking look at the hardware, you have an Intel Core i7, 48GB and a Quadro RTX 5000. Plenty of processing power for modelling and rendering.
There’s also a lot of storage space which is fast – 2TB – to keep your files on.
Moreover, the ASUS ProArt StudioBook 15 is a fairly light and thin workstation. It weighs 2.5 kg (5.5 pounds) and less than an inch thick. The laptop is also well-built, thanks to its magnesium alloy build.
And the display on it is amazing. A 15-inch screen that is bright, sharp and has high colour accuracy. More than enough screen for modelling in AutoDesk Revit.
The ASUS ProArt StudioBook is an excellent device. But, it does have a few downsides. A thin and light workstation with plenty of performance is going to run hot and this is no exception.
You have to undervolt and properly apply thermal paste to reduce high temperatures under heavy loads.
Also, the battery life is not the best – 57Wh. You can expect 4-5 hours of use before it dies.
Finally, it’s pricey which is understandable because of its powerful hardware.
Overall, the ASUS ProArt StudioBook 15 easily fits the performance system requirements for AutoDesk Revit. This makes it one of the best laptops for Revit.
➕ Pros
- Great performance
- Slim and lightweight
- Decent battery life
- Solid build quality
- Thin and light
➖ Cons
- Runs hot
- Pricey
- 256GB SSD
CPU: Intel Core i7 | Graphics: NVIDIA Quadro T1000 | RAM: 16GB | Screen: 15.6″ Full HD (1920×1080) | Storage: 256GB SSD
The Lenovo ThinkPad P1 is a very lightweight workstation with great hardware. A solid choice for professionals who want something light and powerful enough for large and complex projects.
Powered by a high-performance Intel Core i7, 16GB RAM, and an NVIDIA Quadro T1000, the Lenovo ThinkPad P1 has the processing power for 3D modelling, design, and rendering.
The storage is also a super-fast SSD. However, it’s only 256GB, and swapping it out for a larger one is highly recommended.
Back to the weight and thinness. It weighs 3.76 pounds (1.7 kg) and is almost half-an-inch thick. Light and slim to carry to work or site.
For the display, you have a 15.6-inch Full HD (1920 x 1080) display. Colour accuracy and reproduction are above average. A beautiful display that has thin bezels.
Battery life is decent. Nothing stellar but still impressive for a workstation. You are looking at 6-7 hours under normal workloads.
If you want something lightweight with plenty of performance, the Lenovo ThinkPad P1 is the best choice. It excels very well in these two departments. Hence the reason it’s one of the best laptops for Revit.
Where To Buy
➕ Pros
- Unique 2-in-1 design
- Big, sharp display
- Excellent keyboard
- Solid performance
- Good battery life
➖ Cons
- Pricey
- Performance drops a lot when it gets hot
- Surface pen not included
CPU: Intel Core i5-i7 | Graphics: NVIDIA GTX 1650 – 1660 Ti Max-Q | RAM: 8 – 32GB | Screen: 13.5″ PixelSense (3000 x 2000) | Storage: 256GB – 1TB SSD
Convertible laptops are somewhat popular when it comes to AutoDesk Revit because you can use a stylus pen to easily make changes in your models. In this case, it’s the Microsoft Surface Book 3 for Revit.
You can use the Microsoft Surface Pro 7 for Revit but the lack of a dedicated graphics card makes running the software laggy.
The Microsoft Surface Book 3 has three hardware configurations. The base, mid and high-end.
It’s recommended you get the mid or high-end model because both have dedicated graphics cards.
And performance will be more than enough to meet the best value and performance system requirements for AutoDesk Revit.
When it comes to the display, you can choose between 13.5 and 15.6 inches. Both have the same high resolution, sharpness, brightness and colour accuracy. It’s more of personal preference.
But, if you are going to use it in tablet mode a lot, then it is best to get the 13.5-inch model.
Also, the ease at which you can easily switch between tablet and laptop mode makes it one of the best convertible laptops.
The battery life of the Microsoft Surface Book 3 depends on how you going to use it.
If you are using it in tablet mode, you will get an average of 6-8 hours of usage.
The laptop model is around 10-12 hours of normal usage, that’s because there are batteries in both the keyboard and the display of Surface Book 3 hence the longer battery life when used as a laptop.
Overall, Microsoft Surface Book 2 is one of the best convertible laptops for Revit.
Although it’s more expensive than the Microsoft Surface Pro 7. You will get better performance.
Where To Buy
➕ Pros
- Great performance
- Graphics card optimized for CAD
- Good battery life
- Good keyboard
➖ Cons
- Not the best webcam
CPU: Intel Core i7 | Graphics: NVIDIA Quadro P520 | RAM: 16GB | Screen: 15.6″ Full HD (1920×1080) | Storage: 512GB SSD
The Lenovo ThinkPad P53s is an affordable workstation laptop. An Intel Core i7 quad-core, 16GB RAM and an NVIDIA Quadro P520. The Quadro P520 is what makes the Lenovo Thinkpad P53s a great workstation.
Even though it’s not the most powerful, you can get more use out of it compared to the lower-end NVIDIA GTX series.
Because NVIDIA Quadro and AMD FirePro cards are the recommended graphics cards for CAD works, not the consumer graphics cards.
The display on this thing is decent. A 15.6-inch Full HD (1920 x 1080) that has decent brightness, colour accuracy and reproduction.
Viewing angles are decent enough. You won’t have any problems with it. It’s average at best.
When it comes to its battery life, it is above average. You are able to get 8-9 hours under normal use.
More often than not, laptops with powerful hardware have short battery lives. But, Lenovo Thinkpads do well in this department.
The Lenovo ThinkPad would have been perfect if not for its webcam. A low-resolution webcam with a lot of graininess.
Avoid this laptop if you use the webcam a lot. You will be disappointed by its poor quality.
But still, the Lenovo ThinkPad P53s is an affordable workstation with quite the powerful hardware. One of the best workstation laptops for Revit if you are on a budget.
Where To Buy
➕ Pros
- Solid performance for the price
- Affordable
- Good battery life
➖ Cons
- Low storage space
- Dim display
CPU: Intel Core i5 | Graphics: NVIDIA GTX 1650 | RAM: 8GB | Screen: 15.6” Full HD (1920 x 1080) Touchscreen | Storage: 256GB SSD
The Acer Nitro 5 is the best cheap Revit laptop. A solid laptop if you are on a tight budget or a student.
Powered by an Intel Core i5, 8GB RAM and a GTX 1650, the Acer Nitro 5 meets the minimum requirements of AutoDesk Revit.
However, it’s highly recommended that you upgrade the RAM to 16GB and the storage to 512GB. This will further improve its performance and it will be able to handle medium models.
The battery life is quite impressive. You are able to get the 6-7 hours when web browsing, watching movies, etc.
What is not impressive is the display. A 15.6-inch full HD display that is not very bright and has average colour accuracy. One of the compromises they had to make for the Acer Nitro 5 to be affordable.
Overall, the Acer Nitro 5 is a budget laptop that absolutely delivers in performance. This makes it the best cheap laptop for Revit.
Final Thoughts
Autodesk Revit is one of the most widely used BIM software and requires a good amount of processing power. The good news is that these laptops depending on your model can handle it.
That’s it for the best laptops for AutoDesk Revit.
