For students, and their parents and guardians, the back to school period can be both exciting – and intimidating. If you're moving away from home, or changing schools, there will be enough to worry about without having to also make sure you have all the right equipment.
We're here to help, and we've gathered together the very best tech advice for students going back to school on this very page. We've got loads of great buying advice to help you pick the best student laptop (and a special best student Chromebook guide if you're specifically looking for an affordable ChromeOS-powered device) for your needs, as well as advice on what to look for when shopping around. We don't just show you what students need to buy – we've also got guides on what you can do with your new tech as well to help you succeed in all areas of your academic life.
Also, in the runup to the new school year, many retailers across the internet will run back to school deals – so now is the best time to stock up, and we'll be listing all the best offers right here as well.
Latest about back to school
Dell just won this year's Labor Day laptop sales — get the top-rated XPS 13 from as little as $599
This Dell XPS 13 is easily the best Labor Day laptop deal I've seen this year — and it's an even better offer for students, as you can save an extra $100 off the sale price.
Anker's tiny S2000 2kWh power station drops to $650 for Labor Day
This 2,010Wh home backup unit delivers 1500W continuous output, 3000W peak, 10,000-cycle battery rating, and up to 35-hour fridge backup.
9 best Labor Day laptop deals I've found this weekend — up to $900 off Dell, HP, Apple, Acer, Lenovo, and more
I've searched through all the biggest Labor Day weekend sales to find nine of the best laptop deals that I'd recommend buying from HP, Apple, Acer, Lenovo, and more.
The best laptops 2026 tested, reviewed and rated
Updated Our guide to the best laptops will help you find the perfect device for your needs and budget.
The best back-to-school sales 2026: TechRadar's recommendations for laptops, headphones, essentials, and more
Looking for some essentials before you head off to school, college, or university? Here's what we'd buy if we were students this month.
The new Apple Mac mini is already $100/£100 off for students and teachers — unfortunately, not for journalists like myself
The new Mac mini M6 looks like a great value — especially with this Apple Education Store discount.
HP Smart Tank 6001 printer gets a huge back-to-school discount
HP Smart Tank 6001 offers cartridge-free printing with enough ink for thousands of school assignments and home office documents.
Anker Prime 14-in-1 fast-charge dock 'hits the right notes' — and it's got a big price cut
There's a lot we liked about this 14-in-1 fast-charging dock with 160W total power output, dual 4K@60Hz HDMI, plus 10Gbps USB-C and USB-A data transfer.
