Best MSI gaming laptop 2023: buyer’s guide

The best MSI gaming laptops currently available across all budgets

Table of Contents Table of Contents

The shortlist for best MSI gaming laptop in 2023 has some fierce competition, given the quality of MSI as a laptop brand. We’ll be looking at various candidates for this prestigious title, all of them worthy in their own way, depending on your own budget and priorities in terms of screen size, display resolution, refresh rate, raw FPS power, etc. We will be keeping our selections on this page updated as new MSI gaming laptops are released, so be sure to check back throughout the year to keep yourself up-to-date. If you want to know the best gaming laptops across all brands, check out our Best gaming laptop page or one of our price-focused buyer’s guides that you can find in the menu above.

Best MSI gaming laptop deals

Get huge savings on gaming laptops on the Lenovo Store, Best Buy or HP in 2023, as well as Amazon of course, including on:

• MSI Stealth GS77 (17.3″) – 120Hz UHD 4K, Intel Core i9-12900H, RTX 3080 Ti, 32GB DDR5 RAM, 1TB SSD – was $4,199.99 now $3,199.99
• MSI Raider GE77Hx (17.3″) – 240Hz QHD, Intel Core i9-12900HX, RTX 3080 Ti, 32GB DDR5 RAM, 1TB SSD – was $3,799.99 now $2,999.99 
• MSI Raider GE66 (15.6″) – 120Hz UHD 4K, Intel Core i9-12900HK, RTX 3080 Ti, 32GB DDR5 RAM, 1TB SSD – was $3,999.99 now $3,151.99 
• MSI GS66 Stealth (15.6″) – 240Hz QHD, Intel Core i7-11800H, RTX 3080, 16GB DDR4 RAM, 1TB SSD – was $2,599.99 now $1,949.00
• MSI GP66 Leopard (15.6″) – 144Hz FHD, Intel Core i7-11800H, RTX 3080, 16GB DDR4 RAM, 512GB SSD – was $1,799.00 now $1,486.99

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Best MSI gaming laptop in 2023: reviews

Best 17 inch MSI gaming laptop

17-inch pick

The most powerful MSI gaming laptop

MSI Raider GE78HX 17.3″ (i9-13980HX, RTX 4090)

CPU

Intel Core i9-13980HX

Graphics Card

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090

RAM

32GB DDR5 RAM

Storage

2TB SSD

Max Refresh Rate

240Hz

Resolution

2560 x 1440

How We Review

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Pros

• Very powerful GPU & CPU
• Great color replication
• High RAM & SSD upgrade options
• Good port coverage
• Great build quality

Cons

• Expensive
• Poor battery life
• Heavy

The best all-round RTX 4090 gaming laptop we’ve seen so far is the MSI Raider GE78 HX, which comes with the highest TGP variant of the RTX 4090 graphics card, as well as the top-of-the-line Intel Core i9-13980HX processor. This makes it the most powerful MSI gaming laptop you can currently buy, indeed it’s a contender for most powerful laptop across any brand, and it will absolutely demolish anything you throw at it.

The 240Hz 1440p 17.3″ display is great for immersive gaming at a high enough refresh rate to give you the edge in any online competitive shooter, although its larger size and 6.83lbs / 3.1kg of weight does mean it’s not the most portable of devices, and it certainly is not cheap, but it comes with the additional features and design quality that mark it out as a more premium product all round, assuming you don’t mind spending a bit extra. Undoubtedly one of the best gaming laptops money can buy.

Adding to the gaming experience is the display: the 240Hz refresh rate is high enough for even competitive gaming, and the response time comes in at around 3.5ms grey-to-grey, which is up there with the very best on the market, and ensures maximum responsiveness in twitch shooters. The screen has 99.5% sRGB coverage, meaning you could easily use this laptop for color work in this space.

A unique MSI gaming laptop with OLED display

MSI Raider GE67 HX 15.6″ (240Hz OLED)

CPU

Intel Core i7-12800HX / i9-12900HX

Graphics Card

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti / 3080 Ti

RAM

32GB DDR5 RAM

Storage

1TB SSD

Max Refresh Rate

240Hz

Resolution

2560 x 1440

How We Review

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Pros

• Uniquely powerful OED gaming laptop
• 240Hz refresh rate
• High TGP GPU
• powerful CPU
• good build quality
• good selection of ports

Cons

• Not the cheapest

The MSI Raider GE67 HX is a unique proposition – coming with not only high-end Intel 12th gen CPU options and, high-TGP RTX 30-series graphics cards – but also a 15.6″ 240Hz 1440p OLED display! This is quite simply the most powerful OLED laptop on the market, and perfect for gaming.

You can opt for either an RTX 3070 Ti or RTX 3080 Ti GPU or a Intel Core i7-12800HX or Core i9-12900HX CPU, and though all of these are now previous gen options, they’re still very powerful and will make short work of any AAA games at the native QHD resolution. The high refresh rate means you can indulge in competitive gaming, and the OLED display lends itself to creative use and viewing tv/film media,

You get the standard high build quality that you get with all MSI Raiders, plus the latest DDR5 RAM, a great selection of ports, and 1TB of SSD storage.

The only downside of this fine machine is the asking price for the RTX 3080 Ti versions, but the RTX 3070 Ti variant is actually now quite affordable. Either way, considering what you get for the money, we think it’s definitely worth a buy.

Best 15 inch MSI gaming laptop

15-inch pick

The best value high-end MSI gaming laptop for the money

MSI GP66 Vector (1080p/1440p)

CPU

Intel Core i7-12700H / i9-12900H

Graphics

Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti / RTX 3080 / RTX 3080 Ti

RAM

16GB / 32GB

Storage

1TB SSD

Screen Size

15.6”

Max Refresh Rate

360Hz / 165Hz

How We Review

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Pros

• High TGP Nvidia GPU
• Powerful Intel CPU
• superb response time with overdrive
• 360Hz 1080p option
• good value
• detailed BIOS for performance tweaking
• decent color replication
• good brightness & contrast
• good build quality

Cons

• No MUX Switch
• No G-Sync/FreeSync
• speakers could be better
• poor battery life
• runs hot
• not the nicest looking

The MSI GP66 Vector is essentially the updated version of the GP66 Leopard listed below, but with a few minor tweaks.

The primary difference is that it comes with the Intel 12th gen CPU options, as well as later gen Nvidia 30-series GPU options (i.e. the RTX 3070 Ti and RTX 3080 Ti). These GPUs both have nice and high TGPs, making them among the more powerful options available. The 1080p version fo the display now comes with a 360Hz maximum refresh rate, which is ridiculously fast, and there is also a 1400p 165Hz option.

The Vector also comes with a USB-C port and a mini-DisplayPort connection (both welcome additions).

The laptop still doesn’t come with a MUX Switch or G-Sync, and the former in particular is missed. Battery life still isn’t great, the aesthetics are sub-par, and the speakers could definitely be better, but ultimately this is still a solid, more affordable option for those looking for a high-end gaming laptop that won’t break their bank account.

Best affordable 15 inch MSI gaming laptop

Runner up 15-inch pick

A more affordable older gen 15-inch gaming laptop

MSI GP66 Leopard (1080p)

CPU

Intel Core i7-11800H or higher

Graphics

Nvidia RTX 3070 (125-140W)/ RTX 3080

RAM

16GB

Storage

1TB SSD

Screen Size

15.6”

Max Refresh Rate

240Hz

How We Review

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Pros

• High TGP Nvidia GPU
• Powerful Intel CPU
• superb response time with overdrive
• 240Hz display
• good value
• detailed BIOS for performance tweaking
• decent color replication
• good brightness & contrast
• good build quality

Cons

• No MUX Switch
• No G-Sync/FreeSync
• speakers could be better
• poor battery life
• runs hot
• not the nicest looking

This MSI GP66, also known as the MSI GP66 Leopard, is an old warrior with previous gen core components, but with recent price reductions offers great value for money.

It was never the most high-specced MSI gaming laptop in terms of additional features, that honour goes to the MSI GE66 Raider, but it provided a way of getting similarly powerful core components at a much cheaper price: forgoing the inclusion of certain ports, having a less developed wi-fi card, and a shorter battery life to reduce costs. This means that, on a price per performance basis it is the best high-end gaming laptop that MSI produces.

The MSI GP66 is still a top-notch upper-mid gaming performer. It comes with different specification options, including an RTX 3070 option or an RTX 3080 version, though given how well the former performs you might consider picking this cheaper option. The RTX 3070 with 140W max TGP in games actually performs on par or better than some other gaming laptops equipped with the more highly specced RTX 3080, so well-tuned it is within this machine. The Intel processor can also be changed, with the Intel Core i7-11800H CPU being the most common, and solid value for gamers with great FPS performance, even if it seriously underperforms AMD machines in terms of battery life. All told this means gaming performance on this machine is top notch.

Adding to the gaming experience is the display: the 240Hz refresh rate is high enough for even competitive gaming, and the response time comes in at around 3.5ms grey-to-grey, which is up there with the very best on the market, and ensures maximum responsiveness in twitch shooters. The screen has 99.5% sRGB coverage, meaning you could easily use this laptop for color work in this space.

So what are the downsides? Well, compared to the significantly more expensive MSI GE66 Raider, the MSI GP66 doesn’t have the same bells and whistles outside of actual gaming performance. The 720p webcam does the job well enough as does the in-built mic, but neither are high quality. There are no real complaints about the membrane keyboard or the trackpad, but both are merely adequate and the keyboard in particular doesn’t match up to the mechanical keyboards that certain competitors come with, like the Eluktronics Mech 15 / XMG Neo 15. Battery life when doing undemanding non-gaming tasks (a mix of web browsing, Word processing, and watching YouTube) comes in at between 3 and 4 hours, which is disappointing, though somewhat unsurprising given the power of the core components and the fact this is an Intel machine and not an AMD one. Still the battery size is smaller than its more expensive MSI GE76 brethren.

Ultimately though this may not matter to those purely interested in the gaming potential of this machine, and if you can find it for substantially cheaper than the GE66, we think this stripped-back MSI gaming laptop offers great value at the very high end of FPS performance. The 15.6” MSI GP66 comes in a larger 17.3” version called the MSI GP76, which is obviously more expensive but still offers good value. If you’re interested in greater immersion in your games and don’t mind the hit in terms of portability then we’d also recommend this.

Affordable All-AMD MSI gaming laptop

AMD pick

An affordable mid-range MSI gaming laptop with AMD CPU & GPU

MSI Delta (1080p)

CPU

AMD Ryzen 7 5800H

Graphics

AMD Radeon RX 6700M (95-120W)

RAM

16GB

Storage

1TB SSD

Screen Size

15.6”

Max Refresh Rate

240Hz

How We Review

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Pros

• good gaming performance
• 240Hz refresh rate
• fast response time
• fast RAM
• superb battery life
• good color gamut
• relatively thin & portable

Cons

• poor microphone
• build quality could be better

This MSI Delta 15 is a 15-inch all AMD laptop from MSI, that enjoys the high battery life that AMD processors tend to bring, along with great FPS performance in games and great specs almost entirely across the board. Of the few complaints we’ve got with this laptop, these only extend to the slightly plasticy build quality and the poor onboard microphone. Besides this, it’s an impressive piece of kit.

The MSI Delta 15 is a great mid-range AMD gaming laptop, and one of the rare few MSI laptops that come with an AMD processor and graphics card. In terms of FPS performance in gaming, the AMD Radeon RX 6700M when combined with the Ryzen 7 5800H CPU performs somewhere between an Nvidia RTX 3060 and a RTX 3070, depending on the game, which at this price you can’t complain about.

The color gamut of the display is respectable, covering around 97% of sRGB, meaning it can be used for light color work in this color space. Brightness is decent, though nothing to write home about, and the same is true for the contrast ratio. The 240Hz refresh rate of the screen however is great, more than enough for competitive gaming on a laptop with core components of this power level. Similarly, the response time of the screen is also very good, at least with overdrive enabled, coming in at around 5ms grey-to-grey, which is as good as you can expect at this price point.

In terms of battery life, the Ryzen CPU really shines, extending the lifespan to around 11 hours in non-strenuous, non-gaming general use (web browsing and word processing and the like). This is far above what Intel models will be able to manage in this price range or any other, and is a contender for the best battery life you’ll find in any gaming laptop.

The 720p webcam is adequate for a gaming laptop, though the inbuilt mic is certainly less so, and isn’t great at isolating external noise. The keyboard and trackpad won’t set the world on fire either, with the keys feeling slightly stiff and the trackpad a touch loose, but both do the job. Speakers are about average for a gaming laptop, which is to say not great, but still about average vs the competition.

Besides this, the only other real downside of this MSI gaming laptop is the rather plasticy build quality, but even this isn’t terrible. All told, this is a great mid-range gaming laptop and well worth your money with the specs we’ve recommended.

The best budget MSI gaming laptop

Budget pick

The best MSI gaming laptop for those on a budget

MSI Cyborg 15 (144Hz FHD, i7-12650H)

CPU

Intel Core i7-12650H)

Graphics Card

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060

RAM

8GB DDR5 RAM

Storage

512GB SSD

Max Refresh Rate

144Hz

Resolution

FHD

How We Review

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Pros

• An RTX 4060 laptop GPU at a great price
• powerful CPU option for the price
• 144Hz screen
• Unique translucent design
• DDR5 RAM

Cons

• only 8GB of RAM
• only 512GB SSD
• no Thunderbolt support or SD card reader

The MSI Cyborg is a new addition to the MSI gaming laptop roster in 2023. This aims to be an affordable machine to take on the likes of the Acer Nitro 5 and the ASUS TUF A15 in the budget gaming laptop space. It also comes with blue sci-fi styling on the keyboard and an unusual translucent finish underneath and on the sides of the laptop, with the words ‘MSI True Gaming’ etched in. It might seem a bit of a wasted effort to put such a design where you’re least likely to see it, however if you’re a fan of little details on your products, then this may tickle your fancy.

Ultimately the biggest draw for us, and the reason it scores so highly, is that it’s the cheapest RTX 4060 laptop (assuming you pick this loadout) that we’ve seen so far. Even if by the standards of other RTX 4060 laptops it’s relatively underpowered, and the Intel 12th gen laptop CPU it’s paired with (the Intel Core i7-12650H) is from the previous generation, you’ll struggle to find a laptop from any other brand that will match it.

The main drawback is that we’ve typically only seen this particular unit for sale at this price with 8GB of RAM. Although 8GB will run a lot of games, typically we’d advise upgrading to 16GB for both gaming and general usage (web browsers soak up that RAM like a mutha). You can however easily do this yourself (see our how to upgrade RAM on laptops guide) and the laptop has two RAM slots, which can be used to bring the machine up to 16GB or even 32GB RAM. The memory support is also for DDR5, which gives it a bit more future proofing relative to the DDR4 laptops listed here.

The colors, brightness and contrast of the display won’t set the world on fire, but they’re good enough for gaming, and the 144Hz max refresh rate is ideal for components of this power. Performance on both the keyboard and trackpad is respectable for the price. You also get a numpad on the keyboard, which could be a bonus or a drawback, depending on your priorities (personally I like the extra functionality it gives when using the machine for work as well as gaming).

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Things to consider when buying an MSI gaming laptop

If you want to know what to consider when looking for a gaming laptop in general, regardless of subcategory, have a quick look at this same section on our Best gaming laptop in 2021 page. The below points will be a quick summary of what you need to be aware of when shopping for an MSI gaming laptop specifically.

What products do MSI make?

MSI make a range of computer components, desktops and laptops, though they are mostly focused on targeting the PC gaming market, either through their graphics card AIBs, desktop gaming PCs, or their laptop range.

In terms of MSI gaming laptops, the company tends to focus its efforts on the mid-range to high-end price points, with high powered core components, although they do also produce one or two budget laptops, and previous generation models of higher-specced machines can often be found at reduced prices, making them worthy budget options.

MSI gaming laptop model names

As with most laptops, MSI models come with a confusing array of names that can be difficult to distinguish when you’re shopping for a specific product.

Most MSI gaming laptops have a codename that starts with 2 letters: the G is almost universal across all the gaming laptop ranges, but the second letter signifies the specific model range/line and there is often an accompanying brand name before or after which matches it. For instance the GP66 Leopard, the GE66 Raider, the GS66 Stealth, and Katana GF66.

MSI laptops also tend to have two numbers, the first of which signifies the size of the laptop, and the second its generation. The GP66 and GE66 for instance are both 15-inch laptops, whereas the GP76 and GE76 are both 17-inch machines. The older versions of these machines, which usually come with Nvidia 20-series GPUs, come with a 5 at the end, e.g. the GE65, whereas the 30-series laptops have a 6 e.g. GE66.

There are however other laptops that fall outside of this convention, such as the MSI Alpha, Bravo, and Delta ranges, which are all AMD-powered machines, that end with either a 15 or a 17 to signify the size of their display.

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MSI gaming laptop FAQs

Is an MSI laptop good for gaming?

In short: yes. Micro-Star International is a Taiwanese company that has been manufacturing various computer components since 1988, but today they most are well known for their premium and mid-range gaming laptops. MSI’s high-end gaming laptops are regular features on our Best gaming laptop under $2,500 page, and some of them often make it into our more mid-range price guides too. Of course, not every MSI laptop makes it into our best of lists, and some models are definitely better than others in terms of performance and value.

For more information about this, we recommend you have a quick scan through our Things to consider when buying an MSI gaming laptop section further down this page before you pull the trigger on any of these laptop purchases.

What is the best MSI gaming laptop series?

The most premium, high-end gaming laptop series is either the MSI Raider line or (if you’re looking for a ridiculously powerful desktop replacement laptop with masses of SSD space) the MSI Titan series.

Which is better ASUS or MSI?

This is a difficult question to answer when it comes to gaming laptops. Both of these brands feature heavily in our best-of lists across a variety of price points. Overall, ASUS are really impressing us in 2022 with their range of upgrades across all laptop types: from mid-range gaming laptops, to workstation machines, however, the MSI GE76 Raider remains one of the most powerful high-end gaming laptops we’ve ever seen, and our top pick for best premium gaming laptop in the 17-inch range.

Is MSI a cheap brand?

MSI gaming laptops tend to target the more medium to high-end performance markets, so aren’t known to be a cheap brand that targets consumers on a budget. However, the MSI Katana GF66 aka MSI Sword 15 does offer a fairly cheap upper low-end / lower-mid-range option.

Best MSI gaming laptop : Final Word

This has been our buyer’s guide to the best MSI gaming laptop in 2023. We hope that you’ve been able to find the right MSI machine for you, if not, either leave us a comment below to suggest an alternative that you’d like us to consider. Please also have a look at our other guides to the best gaming laptops across different brands and price points (including best gaming laptop under $1,000, best gaming laptop under $1,500, and best gaming laptop under $2,000), which you can find listed in the site menu at the top of this page under Custom Gaming PC > Gaming Laptop.