Is a Chromebook worth it?
Yes, for browser-based work: a Chromebook gets 10 years of updates and costs £55.59 a year. Not for desktop Office, Steam or Premiere Pro. UK picks and costs.
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Is a Chromebook worth it?
Yes, for a buyer whose work lives in a browser: school work, essays in Google Docs or Microsoft 365 for the web, email and streaming. No, for anyone who needs desktop Office, Steam games or Adobe Premiere Pro, because ChromeOS cannot install Windows or macOS programs.
The value case rests on Google's 10-year update policy. The ASUS Chromebook Plus CX34 costs £315.00 on Amazon UK at the time of writing (October 2026) and gets updates until June 2032, which works out at £55.59 a year. The full ChromeOS against Windows comparison is in Chromebook vs Windows laptop for students.
| Situation | Worth it? | Pick | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| School pupil on Google Classroom | Yes | ASUS Chromebook Plus CX34 | £315.00 |
| Essay-based degree, lots of files | Yes | Acer Chromebook Plus 514 CB514-5H | £414.00 |
| Longest update life, OLED screen | Yes | Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14 Gen 10 | £611.85 |
| Desktop Excel, SPSS or exam software | No | A Windows laptop | n/a |
| PC gaming or Premiere Pro | No | A Windows laptop or a Mac | n/a |
How long does a Chromebook get updates, and what does a year cost?
Google gives every Chromebook released from 2021 onwards 10 years of automatic updates, and its Auto Update policy page lists a fixed end date, the Auto Update Expiration (AUE), for each model. The clock starts when the hardware platform launches, not when the laptop is bought, so a newer platform buys more years.
Compare Electronic divided each pick's Amazon UK price by the months left from October 2026 to its AUE date.
| Chromebook | Price | Updates until | Months left | Per month | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ASUS Chromebook Plus CX34 (CX3402CVA) | £315.00 | June 2032 | 68 | £4.63 | £55.59 |
| Acer Chromebook Plus 514 (CB514-5H) | £414.00 | June 2033 | 80 | £5.18 | £62.10 |
| Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14 Gen 10 | £611.85 | June 2035 | 104 | £5.88 | £70.60 |
The cheapest laptop is also the cheapest per year, but the gap is small: the Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14 Gen 10 costs £296.85 more than the ASUS Chromebook Plus CX34 and only £15.01 more per year, because it gets three more years of updates. How long the hardware itself lasts is covered in How long does a laptop last?.
What can't a Chromebook run?
A Chromebook cannot run Windows or macOS desktop programs, and three gaps matter most to buyers:
- Microsoft 365 desktop apps:Microsoft ended support for its Android Office apps on Chromebooks on 18 September 2021, so Word, Excel and PowerPoint run as web apps only, without features such as Excel's Power Pivot.
- Steam games: Google and Valve ended the Steam for Chromebook beta on 1 January 2026. Cloud services such as NVIDIA GeForce NOW and Xbox Cloud Gaming are the remaining route.
- Adobe Premiere Pro and Photoshop: Adobe sells the full desktop versions for Windows and macOS only.
What a Chromebook does run covers most home and school work: the Chrome browser, Google Docs, Sheets and Classroom, Android apps from the Google Play Store, and a Linux development environment that runs coding tools such as Python. Zoom, Teams and Spotify all work in the browser or as apps.
University software adds to the list: IBM SPSS Statistics, SOLIDWORKS and the Inspera Integrity Browser for exams all need Windows or macOS. Students on those courses should read How much should I spend on a laptop? before choosing.
Radar · 0-100 scores
- Chromebook Plus 514 CB514-5H
- Chromebook Plus CX34 (CX3402CVA, Core 3 100U)
- Chromebook Plus 14 Gen 10
Who is a Chromebook for?
A Chromebook suits a buyer who works in a browser and wants a laptop that maintains itself; it does not suit a buyer tied to one desktop program. Compare Electronic's who-it-suits table sorts the common buyers.
| Buyer | Chromebook? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Pupil in Years 7 to 11 | Yes | Google Classroom, Family Link controls, updates past GCSEs |
| Essay-based student | Yes | Docs, Microsoft 365 web and 512GB on the Acer |
| Older relative: email, video calls, browsing | Yes | No antivirus or driver upkeep |
| Office worker on desktop Excel | No | Web Excel lacks Power Pivot and some macros |
| STEM student (SPSS, SOLIDWORKS) | No | Windows or macOS software only |
| PC gamer | No | Steam beta ended 1 January 2026 |
| Video editor | No | No desktop Premiere Pro |
Buy a Chromebook Plus, not a basic Chromebook. Google set the Chromebook Plus minimums in October 2023: an Intel Core i3 12th Gen or AMD Ryzen 3 7000 series processor or better, 8GB of RAM, 128GB of storage, a Full HD IPS screen and a 1080p webcam. Basic models with 4GB and eMMC storage are the trap in Best laptop under £300 UK 2026, and 8GB is enough on ChromeOS, as Is 8GB RAM enough? explains.
Which Chromebook should you buy?
The Acer Chromebook Plus 514 CB514-5H is the best all-round Chromebook, at £414.00 on Amazon UK at the time of writing (October 2026). It pairs a 10-core Intel Core 5 120U with 8GB of RAM, a 512GB SSD and a 14-inch 1920x1200 IPS screen, and Google updates it until June 2033.
Acer Chromebook Plus 514 CB514-5H specifications
- Processor: Intel Core 5 120U (10 cores, 12 threads)
- Memory: 8 GB
- Storage: 512 GB SSD
- Display: 14 in 1920x1200 IPS
- Ports: 2 x USB-C 3.2 Gen 2, 2 x USB-A 3.2 Gen 1, HDMI (Acer)
- Updates until: June 2033 (Google)
The 512GB SSD is four times the storage of the ASUS Chromebook Plus CX34, which matters for offline files and Android apps, and the extra year of updates brings the cost to £62.10 a year. The compromises are an IPS screen rather than OLED and 8GB of RAM, against 12GB on the Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14 Gen 10.
Acer Chromebook Plus 514 CB514-5H - pros and cons
Where to buy
Check price
Two alternatives cover a tighter budget and a longer update life, at Amazon UK prices on 11 October 2026.
Also consider
Verdict
A Chromebook is worth it for browser-based work, and Google's 10-year update policy makes it one of the cheapest laptops to own per year, from £55.59 for the ASUS Chromebook Plus CX34. The Acer Chromebook Plus 514 CB514-5H at £414.00 is the pick; buyers who need desktop programs should compare Windows laptops in Chromebook vs Windows laptop for students, and tablet buyers should read Should I buy an iPad or a laptop?.
Frequently asked questions
Is a Chromebook worth it for university?
A Chromebook is worth it for essay-based courses that run on Google Docs or Microsoft 365 for the web, and a poor fit for courses that need SPSS, SOLIDWORKS or Windows exam software. The Acer Chromebook Plus 514 CB514-5H costs £414.00 on Amazon UK at the time of writing (October 2026), with a 512GB SSD and Google updates until June 2033.
How many years will a Chromebook last?
Google gives Chromebooks released from 2021 onwards 10 years of automatic updates, counted from the platform's release, so a model bought in 2026 usually has six to nine years left. Google's Auto Update policy page lists June 2032 for the ASUS Chromebook Plus CX34, June 2033 for the Acer Chromebook Plus 514 and June 2035 for the Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14 Gen 10.
Can a Chromebook run Microsoft Word and Excel?
A Chromebook runs Word, Excel and PowerPoint as web apps in the browser, not as desktop programs. Microsoft ended support for its Android Office apps on Chromebooks on 18 September 2021 and points ChromeOS users to Office.com. The web apps handle essays, spreadsheets and slides, but they lack some desktop features such as Excel's Power Pivot.
Can you play Steam games on a Chromebook?
No. Google and Valve ended the Steam for Chromebook beta on 1 January 2026, and games installed through it stopped working on that date. Chromebook owners now play PC games through cloud services such as NVIDIA GeForce NOW and Xbox Cloud Gaming, which stream from remote servers and need a fast, stable broadband connection.
What is the difference between a Chromebook and a Chromebook Plus?
A Chromebook Plus meets Google's minimum hardware bar: an Intel Core i3 12th Gen or AMD Ryzen 3 7000 series processor or better, 8GB of RAM, 128GB of storage, a Full HD IPS screen and a 1080p webcam, according to Google's October 2023 launch. The cheapest Chromebook Plus here, the ASUS Chromebook Plus CX34, costs £315.00 on Amazon UK.
What happens when a Chromebook stops getting updates?
After its Auto Update Expiration date, a Chromebook keeps working but receives no more security or feature updates from Google, so banking and school sites may stop trusting it over time. The date is fixed per model and shown under Settings, About ChromeOS. Buying a newer model, such as the Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14 Gen 10 with updates to June 2035, buys more years.