Quick Links
Looking for a new Windows laptop? Both the Surface Laptop 5 and Surface Laptop Go 2 are great options in 2022. These are laptops made directly by Microsoft, with great displays and keyboards. However, they are devices made for two different groups of people: One Microsoft laptop is more affordable, and the other is a premium device. But which falls more in line with your needs? That's why we've put together this buying guide pitting the Surface Laptop 5 vs Surface Laptop Go 2.
We'll compare the various specifications of both devices, like the CPUs, displays, webcams, and more. Now let's dive deeper!
Surface Laptop 5 vs Surface Laptop Go 2: Specs & price
|
Surface Laptop 5 |
Surface Laptop Go 2 |
|
|---|---|---|
|
Operating system |
|
|
|
CPU |
|
|
|
Graphics |
|
|
|
Display |
|
|
|
Storage |
|
|
|
RAM |
|
|
|
Battery |
|
|
|
Ports |
|
|
|
Audio |
|
|
|
Camera |
|
|
|
Windows Hello |
|
|
|
Connectivity |
|
|
|
Color |
|
|
|
Size (WxDxH) |
|
|
|
Weight |
|
|
|
Starting price |
$999.99 |
$600 |
Performance: The Surface Laptop 5 has newer and better CPUs
When you want to look into the performance of the Surface Laptop 5 and Surface Laptop Go 2, you need to check out the CPU and RAM. In all these areas, the Surface Laptop 5 is better than the Surface Laptop Go 2, but considering the Surface Laptop Go 2 is nearly half the price, performance would never be comparable to a flagship laptop.
The Surface Laptop 5 sports Intel's latest 12th-generation CPUs inside, with options for the 15-watt U-series Core i5 or the Core i7 CPU, as we listed above. These CPUs have 10 cores and 12 threads. Those are great numbers, but the thing that makes these CPUs great for performance is the hybrid architecture, which features both performance and efficiency cores. We want to be clear that the Surface Laptop 5 is not a gaming laptop, but this can help your device run better when you're doing heavier productivity tasks like editing in Photoshop or playing light games like Fortnite.
Besides that, you can configure Surface Laptop 5 models with up to 16GB of RAM on the 13.5-inch model and 32GB on the 15-inch model. These days, more RAM is better, and we suggest 8GB as the minimum, so a 16GB option is nice.
Looking now at the Surface Laptop Go 2, it has Intel's last-generation CPU inside. It has a single CPU option, the 11th generation Intel Core i5-1135G7. This is a very good chip for the basics like web browsing and multimedia streaming, but it won't do you much good if you want to do gaming or photo editing. It does have a higher wattage at 28 watts, but this is just a quad-core CPU, so the Surface Laptop Go 2 will slow down heavily with more intensive tasks. Combine that with the slower 8GB LPDDR4 RAM, we wouldn't suggest you go beyond the basics with this device. It's an entry-level laptop. For things that need more CPU power, the Surface Laptop 5 is much better.
Display: The Surface Laptop 5 has a bigger and better display and pen support
Similar to their internals, the Surface Laptop 5 and Surface Laptop Go 2 have very different displays. Sure, they both have displays with 3:2 aspect ratios to help boost productivity, but the similarities end there.
With the Surface Laptop Go 2, Microsoft focused on portability and affordability. That wasn't the case with the Surface Laptop 5. It's hard to beat the 13.5-inch and 15-inch displays on the latter device. These are high-resolution displays. You can get 2256 x 1504 resolution, or 201 PPI, on the 13.5-inch Surface Laptop 5, and 2496 x 1664 resolution, or 201 PPI, on the 15-inch model. This gives you a lot of pixels to play with and room to stack windows side by side. Other than that, the Surface Laptop 5 also supports the Surface Pen.
On the other side of the price point, the Surface Laptop Go 2 will get you a much different screen. Its lower resolution only maxes out at 1536 x 1024 with just 148 PPI. There's also no Surface Pen support, either. For basic web browsing and productivity, this display is decent. But it's still below the 1920 x 1080 resolution we look for on most laptops. Again, it's a sacrifice for the price.
Design: The Surface Laptop 5 is more premium
The designs of the Surface Laptop 5 and Surface Laptop Go 2 might seem the same from up close, but there are a few differences. Of course, the size is one, but there are also colors and materials being used.
As a $1,000 device, the Surface Laptop 5 wins for its premium design. Along with the Alcantara fabric keyboard option, it has options for an all-aluminum casing on 13.5-inch and 15.-inch models. That metal does come with some extra weight though — the 13.5-inch model weighs 2.8 pounds.
In terms of portability, the Laptop Go 2 is smaller than Laptop 5. It's made from a mix of aluminum and polycarbonate composite resin and is lighter at about 2.48 pounds. You can definitely feel the difference. In terms of size, it has a 10.95 x 8.10 x 0.62-inch footprint. The Laptop 5 has a bigger 12.1 x 8.8 x 0.57-inch footprint. Of course, both are still portable, but as you can see, the Laptop Go 2 is smaller and will be easier to transport.
The other design element to note is the inclusion of backlit keyboards. The Surface Laptop Go 2 doesn't have one, but the Surface Laptop 5 does. Other than that, there are the colors. The Surface Laptop 5 comes in Platinum in the Alcantara fabric and metal finish, then Sage, Black, and Sandstone in metal-only finishes. On the Surface Laptop Go 2, the colors include Platinum, Sage, Ice Blue, and Sandstone. No matter which Surface Laptop model you choose, there will be various colors you can pick out.
Webcam, ports, and connectivity: It's quite even
With both the Surface Laptop 5 and Surface Laptop Go 2 being made by Microsoft, the webcam, ports, and connectivity are very similar. There's almost no difference, except the Surface Laptop 5 has Thunderbolt 4 on its USB-C ports.
Across both Surface Laptops, you're getting 720p webcams, though the Surface Laptop 5 has a Windows Hello webcam. The Surface Laptop Go 2 has a Windows Hello fingerprint reader. Other than that, both devices have a 3.5mm headphone jack and a Surface Connect port for charging. The lone difference is that support for Thunderbolt 4 on the Surface Laptop 5, which will help you connect to external GPUs. The Surface Laptop Go 2 doesn't support this.
Final thoughts: Pick the device for your budget
Both the Surface Laptop 5 and Surface Laptop Go 2 are great devices. They line up with some of the best laptops we've reviewed. However, they're for different buyers, so which one you choose is up to you. If you're on a budget and don't mind a slower CPU, a screen that isn't pixel dense, or a keyboard that isn't backlit, then the Surface Laptop Go 2 is for you. On the other end of the spectrum, the Surface Laptop 5 is nearly double the price, but it has a better display, a backlit keyboard, better overall performance, and support for the Surface Pen. We'll let you decide which one fits your needs, but for sure, if you can afford it, the Laptop 5 is the better option!
Microsoft Surface Laptop 5
The Surface Laptop 5 is the newest flagship laptop from Microsoft with 12th-generation Intel CPUs and new color options. It might be expensive, but it's one of the best laptops Microsoft sells right now.
Surface Laptop Go 2
The Surface Laptop Go 2 is a great entry-level device if you need something for web browsing on the go, but it has an 11-generation Intel CPU and few other features.