Best iPads and tablets 2025: the top choices for all budgets
We broke down the best iPad and tablets into three categories
🍎 iPad is the top tablet in three categories: high-end, mid-range, and budget
🆚 Rials include Samsung, Microsoft, Lenovo, OnePlus, and Amazon Kindle
👀 An 11” and 13” iPad Pro is an excellent MacBook Sidecar second screen
🫵 Below, we’re breaking down which iPhone is right for you
Today’s tablets often fall into two buckets. At the high end, they can take over your laptop’s essential duties with all of the bells and whistles in a slimmer form factor. At the lower end, they act as bigger versions of your phone, often feeling like overpowered Netflix machines.
Having an iPad or tablet that can be a middle-ground between your laptop and phone is a great tool, offering a large touchscreen you can interact with, enough performance to get real work done, and all the apps and services you need to stay entertained on the go. iOS 26 has made all things easier, especially true multitasking on an iPad.
Of course, finding the best tablet for you can be tricky, especially given how many are out there. That’s where we come in.
The Shortcut’s team of experts has combined its decades of experience reviewing tablets to find the best of the best, all highlighted below in our easy-to-digest format. Here are the tablets you should buy, based on how much you want to spend.
Best high-end tablets
Prices start at: $749
Apple iPad Pro (M5, 2025)
✅ MacBook-level performance
✅ Gorgeous OLED displays
✅ 5.1mm form factor
✅ All-day battery life
❌ Gets expensive very quickly
❌ Overkill for some users
The best high-end tablet money can buy is the iPad Pro, if only because it has the same processor as a full-fledged MacBook. The M5 chip gives you incredible performance for everything you want to do, from multitasking during working hours to creating content and everything in between. That’s not to mention it’s just 5.1mm thin, making it easy to store in your bag and forget about. Plus, you get a gorgeous OLED display, iPadOS 26, up to 2TB of storage, and all-day battery life. It’s available in 11-inch and 13-inch screen sizes.
Starting prices
11-inch: $999
13-inch: $1,299
Samsung Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra
✅ Stunning 14.6-inch AMOLED display
✅ Massive battery for multi-day stamina
✅ IP68 certification
✅ Blazing-fast performance
❌ Android apps on tablets (still) aren’t great
❌ Only one huge size available
The most impressive Android tablet we’ve picked up in a while is Samsung’s Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra. It lives up to the “Ultra” moniker quite well, given its huge 14.6-inch AMOLED display and skinny 5.1mm form factor. The tablet uses a MediaTek Dimensity 9400+ processor for blazing-fast performance, and it comes with Samsung’s One UI 8 based on Android 16. There are a bunch of different multitasking tools onboard thanks to DeX integration, there’s an S Pen in the box, and you can take it anywhere thanks to an IP68 certification (the same water resistance rating as most smartphones).
Starting price: $1,199
Microsoft Surface Pro (13-inch)
✅ Full-fledged Windows 11
✅ All-day battery life
✅ Plenty of ports
✅ Optional 5G connectivity
❌ OLED display costs extra
❌ Keyboard and pen not included
It’s a tablet and a PC all in one, and it’s one of the most popular to ever exist. Microsoft’s Surface Pro tablet is powered by Windows 11 and gives you a full desktop experience, all while blending enough UI elements to make it touch-friendly. It’s a work-driven tablet with a Snapdragon X processor for great performance and efficiency, a 13-inch display, and AI features like Recall and Copilot. Compatible with Microsoft’s Flex Keyboard and Slim Pen, the Surface Pro continues to be the go-to tablet for millions of people who need to get work done on the go.
Starting price: $1,19.99
Samsung Galaxy Tab S11
✅ Thin and light design
✅ 11-inch AMOLED display
✅ Solid performance
✅ IP68 certification
❌ Middling battery life
❌ Boring color choices
The Galaxy Tab S11 is a great choice if you need the ultimate Netflix machine. With beautiful 11-inch AMOLED display, your movies and TV shows will look great, while the quad-speaker array produces room-filling sound. The tablet is powered by the same Dimensity 9400+ chip that’s in the bigger Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra, which will give you reliably-fast performance when gaming, multitasking, and more. It’s powered by One UI 8 based on Android 16, measures just 5.5mm thick, and also comes with an IP68 certification.
Starting price: $799.99
Best mid-range tablets
Price range: $449 - $699
Apple iPad Air (11-inch, 2025)
✅ MacBook Air-level performance
✅ All-day battery life
✅ Optional 5G connectivity
✅ Compatible with Magic Keyboard and Apple Pencil Pro
❌ Display is LCD and locked to 60Hz
❌ 13-inch model jacks up the price
It’s hard to find a better tablet for $599 than Apple’s iPad Air. It follows a formula that Apple has been using for quite some time: use a familiar design that still holds up, load it with insane performance, and give it a good price. The result? An iPad that’s perfect for both productivity and entertainment. The M3 chip is the same one that’s found in a variety of MacBooks, delivering exceptional performance across games, apps, and more. The 11-inch screen is perfectly calibrated for watching movies, and the battery can last all day on a charge. Plus, there’s optional 5G connectivity and compatibility with Apple’s Magic Keyboard.
Starting price: $599
OnePlus Pad 3
✅ Blazing-fast performance
✅ Long battery life
✅ Silky-smooth 144Hz display
✅ Keyboard and stylus accessories available
❌ Higher price than the iPad Air
❌ LCD screen isn’t the best on the market
One of the most underrated Android tablets we’ve used is the OnePlus Pad 3, which punches above its weight class in a variety of ways. The large 13.2-inch display is super smooth thanks to the 144Hz refresh rate, helping it feel very responsive and fast. The Snapdragon 8 Elite processor delivers exceptional performance across games and productivity, and the huge 12,140mAh battery means you can use it for 2-3 days on a full charge before plugging it back on. Plus, OnePlus sells a keyboard and stylus for those who need to work on the go. It’s great for work, play, and everything in between.
Starting price: $699
Read our full OnePlus Pad 3 review!
Apple iPad mini
✅ Compact 8.3-inch design
✅ Powerful performance
✅ Compatible with Apple Pencil Pro
✅ Optional 5G connectivity
❌ 60Hz display
❌ Price can get high quickly
The iPad mini is widely regarded as one of the best compact tablets you can get. It comes with an 8.3-inch display that makes it perfect for entertainment on the go, and the powerful A17 Pro chip (the same one found in the iPhone 15 Pro) has enough performance to keep the tablet speedy for years down the road. You also get iPadOS 26 and all of its multitasking capabilities, a USB-C port, impressive speakers, and optional 5G connectivity.
Starting price: $499
Lenovo Legion Tab Gen 3
✅ 8.8-inch 165Hz display
✅ Fast performance for gaming
✅ Stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos
✅ Bonus case and screen protector in the box
❌ Slow software updates
❌ Battery life runs a little short
While technically geared toward gamers, Lenovo’s Legion Tab Gen 3 is widely regarded as one of the best small-ish Android tablets on the market, all thanks to its 8.8-inch 165Hz screen that delivers punchy colors and instantaneous responsiveness. Paired with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor, it’s ideal for those who like gaming on the go, but also works well if you want to multitask or just watch a movie. The speakers are surprisingly good given its size, too. Plus, Lenovo includes a case and screen protector in the box, which is a nice touch.
Starting price: $419.99
Best budget tablets
Price range: $99 - $399
Apple iPad (11th-gen, 2025)
✅ Unbeatable performance for the price
✅ Fun color choices
✅ 128GB base storage
✅ Keyboard and Pencil accessories available
❌ 60Hz display
❌ Price gets steep with upgrades
The base iPad remains a no-brainer for anyone who just needs something to check email, watch Netflix, and play the occasional game. With an 11-inch Liquid Retina display, the iPad has a modern design that’s in line with what Apple’s been doing with the higher-end Air and Pro models for years. It’s powered by the speedy A16 processor, has all-day battery life, and is compatible with optional keyboard and stylus accessories for getting work done. All of that for $349 is quite the steal.
Starting price: $349
Amazon Fire HD 10
✅ Spacious 10.1-inch HD display
✅ Alexa+ support
✅ Read all your Kindle books out of the box
✅ Regularly on sale
❌ Slow processor
❌ Bad webcam
Amazon’s Fire tablets are great for budget-conscious shoppers who need an entertainment machine. The Fire HD 10 is our personal favorite, offering a spacious 10.1-inch HD display that’s ideal for watching movies, playing games, and reading Kindle books. It runs Fire OS and integrates closely with your Amazon account, giving you access to Prime benefits and content right out of the box. You also get access to Amazon’s next-generation Alexa+ experience, making this one of the smartest AI tablets for less tan $200.
Starting price: $139.99
Samsung Galaxy Tab A9+
✅ 11-inch 90Hz display
✅ 128GB base storage
✅ Thin and light design
✅ Long battery life
❌ Slower performance than iPad (11th-generation)
❌ Older version of Android
Samsung’s thin-and-light Galaxy Tab A9+ checks a lot of boxes for what you need from a tablet. It has a big 11-inch screen with a smooth 90Hz refresh rate, loud stereo speakers, long battery life, and compatibility with all of your streaming apps and games through the Google Play Store. It’s all crammed into a design that’s super portable and ready to be taken anywhere.
Starting price: $269.99
Max Buondonno is an editor at The Shortcut. He’s been reporting on the latest consumer technology since 2015, with his work featured on CNN Underscored, ZDNET, How-To Geek, XDA, TheStreet, and more. Follow him on X @LegendaryScoop and Instagram @LegendaryScoop.
Matt Swider is the Editor-in-Chief of The Shortcut, the #1 consumer tech publication on Substack. Matt, a trusted technology expert with over 25 years of journalism experience and the former US Editor-in-Chief of TechRadar, can be found on social media through X (Twitter), Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok.