Best laptop stands of 2024 (2024)

Best laptop stand

The best laptop stands will elevate your comfort while you work.

When paired with an external keyboard and mouse, a laptop stand offers improved ergonomics which translates to better overall health whether you’re working from home or have already returned to the office.

As an alternative to the best standing desks, laptop stands come in all shapes and sizes. Some are designed to be stationary and are meant for more permanent setups at your home or office, while others can be folded up and taken with you so you can work comfortably from anywhere.

If you’ve experienced fatigue from using a laptop for long periods of time, you owe it to yourself to upgrade your setup. While you could opt for a desktop PC and a monitor, the portability of a laptop might appeal to you. With a laptop stand, you can improve your work without breaking the bank and make the device you already own much more pleasant to use.

To this end, we’ve picked out five of the best laptop stands on the market today that are compatible with a wide range of laptops.

The best laptop stands of 2024 in full

The Lamicall Laptop Stand is one of several laptops stands on this list that can be folded up and easily brought with you in a backpack. This way, you can leverage the benefits of a laptop stand at the office, in a classroom, or anywhere else you may find yourself working from since it weighs just 3.25lbs (1.47kg).

While Lamicall makes several foldable laptop stands, this is the company’s most expensive one at $55.99. The Lamicall Laptop Stand is either grey or silver and features a high-quality aluminum alloy and a larger, heavier base. This laptop stand can accommodate 10 to 17-inch laptops, and the anti-slip rubber at its base prevents it from sliding around on your desk or table. This same rubber is used on the stand to prevent your laptop from moving or scratching, while a hook ensures your laptop won’t tip over easily.

The stand has a length of 7.8 inches (198mm), a width of 7.9 inches (200mm), and a height of 6.3 inches (160mm). There are also cutouts on either side of the middle of the stand to provide airflow to your laptop due to the stand’s almost diamond shape. During our testing, we found that the hinge requires two hands and quite a bit of force to adjust, which means it’s less likely to move. To fold up the stand, you simply tilt the laptop tray back and then push it down toward the base. When folded up, though, the Lamicall Laptop Stand does take up a bit more space than some of the other laptop stands on this list due to its unique design and heavier base.

• You can buy the Lamicall Laptop Stand here

The Brocoon Laptop Stand is also portable but will likely be easier to carry in a backpack since it folds up to just 1.1 inches (27.94mm). This laptop stand is available in dark black, rose gold, silver, and space gray, which means it will pair quite well with Apple’s MacBook, especially if you order a matching stand. The Brocoon Laptop Stand has a list price of $49.99 though it frequently sells for around $10 cheaper.

While the base has a length of 7.8 inches (198mm) and a width of 9.9 inches (251mm), the stand’s laptop tray is 8.8 inches (223mm) long and 11.6 inches (294mm) wide. The Brocoon Laptop Stand is also 10.2 inches (259mm) tall when extended and weighs 3lbs (1.36kg).

This laptop stand features a cutout in the tray to provide airflow to your laptop, but there is also a second cutout in its hinge that can be used for running wires. Additionally, the base plate features a recessed area under the tray where you can keep your headphones or other business accessories while working. There are also two hooks at the base of the tray and rubber pads to prevent your laptop from sliding off the stand, while its rubber feet prevent it from moving on your desk or table.

• You can buy the Brocoon Laptop Stand here

The minder Laptop Tower II Stand deserves a special place on this list because it is one of the only laptop stands we’ve seen that can be used while seated or standing. It’s also portable and folds to a compact size, so you can bring it wherever you go. However, you will have to pay a bit more for the minder Laptop Tower II Stand, which costs $89.99.

This laptop stand has a base with a width of 7.5 inches (190mm) and a depth of 10.5 inches (266mm), while its tray is 11 inches wide (279mm) and a depth of 9.5 inches (241mm). As the hinge contains a button that allows it to extend further, the minder Laptop Tower II Stand has a maximum height of 20 inches (508mm). Four rubber pads prevent your laptop from moving around while in use, a cutout at the back of the tray allows for airflow, and two hooks at the front prevent your device from falling over. For the second edition of its laptop stand, obvious Solutions has added an integrated phone or tablet stand with four different levels of tilt.

During testing, the minder Laptop Tower II Stand was comfortable to type on at its lowest height and fully extended hinge. Adjusting the tray's angle required two hands, though, as it was a bit stiff, but there wasn’t any movement while in use. Due to its unique design, the minder Laptop Tower II Stand is a perfect fit for presentations as you can stand up in front of your audience and read from your laptop without having to look down and back up again.

• You can buy the minder Laptop Tower II Stand here

Unlike the previous two entries on this list, the Besign LSX3 Aluminum Laptop Stand is meant to be stationary, as you aren’t able to fold it up. This laptop stand comes unassembled and you need to put it together using the four included Allen head screws. Two of the screws attach the laptop tray to the stand’s adjustable centerpiece, while the other two are used to attach the base to it.

The Besign LSX3 Aluminum Laptop Stand, available in either grey or black, is compatible with 10 to 15.6-inch laptops and can hold devices weighing up to 8.8lbs (3.9kg). Although the base has a length of 8.8 inches (225mm) and a width of 7.4 inches (190mm), the laptop tray is quite a bit larger, with a length of 11.4 inches (290mm) and a width of 9.6 inches (245mm). The centerpiece has a maximum height of 7.65 inches (195mm) and a minimum height of 4.92 inches (125mm).

While the other laptop stands on our list have rectangular trays with cutouts for airflow, this one is U-shaped to provide even more airflow to your laptop, with rubber strips on either end to keep your device in place. A knob on the back of the stand allows you to adjust the height, and there is also room under the tray to stash a keyboard when you’re not using it. In our testing, the stand wobble a fair bit when typing, so if you’re considering picking this one up, you’ll likely be better off using it with an external keyboard instead.

• You can buy the Besign LSX3 Aluminum Laptop Stand here

The Rain Design iLevel2 Laptop Stand is slightly different from this list because it works best with an external keyboard and mouse. While you can type on a Macbook Air placed on this stand, the laptop tray flexes quite a lot, which is why Rain Design recommends against doing so.

The iLevel 2 has a width of 10.1 inches (256mm), a depth of 8.8 inches (223mm), and a height of 5.4 inches (136mm) to 7.9 inches (200mm). The stand itself comes fully assembled, but its design means you won’t be easily able to bring it with you. Since the iLevel 2 works best with an external keyboard and mouse, its lack of portability makes sense.

In addition to being compatible with all MacBooks, the iLevel2 features a similar aesthetic to Apple’s other devices and an anodized aluminum finish. Its tray has a raindrop cutout that is more for branding than to help cool your device. Another unique thing about this laptop stand is how you adjust the tray's angle. A sliding mechanism at the front of the stand lets you slide back and forth to find your preferred angle. If you’re looking for a laptop stand in rose gold or space gray, it’s worth noting that Rain Design does make other stands with more color options.

• You can buy the Rain Design iLevel2 Laptop Stand here

The best laptop stands: How we test

To test the best laptop stands, we looked at numerous aspects of the products. We first looked at what types and sizes of laptops the stands were compatible with. We checked how much they weighed, how much they could be adjusted, and how much portability they offered overall.

We assessed whether the laptop stands came assembled or required assembly. If they had to be put together, we checked how simply it was to do so. We evaluated how much weight the laptop stands could bear and whether there was a wobble while typing or playing games.

We also looked at their designs and whether they encouraged laptop cooling and considered additional features, like integrated phone stands and adjustable arms.