The best back-to-school tech and accessories to buy in 2025

Buying a refurbished MacBook is a brilliant way to get a fast, long-lasting Mac on a budget. We use a MacBook Air M1 every day for work, so we know that older models still excel at everyday productivity jobs and get the latest Apple software. Make sure you get a 12-month warranty and pick a refurbisher that offers a good returns policy too, like the Apple official store or Back Market.

This is a great value pick whether you’re after a capable Windows laptop for schoolwork or university. It offers solid and reliable performance, a long battery life and plenty of ports. The design is simple but dependable, and it has a big touchpad, HD webcam, and a decent display. Just note that it’s not made for gaming or heavy workloads.

A Chromebook is an ideal budget laptop if mostly using a web browser, for things such as Google Docs, research and video streaming. This one has a speedy performance and strong battery life, and you also get a generous amount of storage for a Chromebook.

For more of our top picks for school or university, read our guide to the best laptops for kids.

These are great sub-£100 over-ear headphones with soft ear pads, lively sound and up to 40 hours of listening with active noise-cancelling – which makes them great for the library and commute. They’ve not got the best build quality we’ve seen, but they have a good app for customising the sound, dual-device multipoint connectivity and a 'Safe Hearing' volume limit. If only the best noise-cancelling will do, though, consider premium picks like the Sony WH-1000XM6, Bose QuietComfort, or QuietComfort Ultra.

These are bass-forward, fun-sounding earbuds with surprisingly effective noise-cancelling for the money, plus a comfy fit and a tiny case. You can customise the sound and controls in the handy companion app, too. We’d still recommend Apple fans look to the AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation or the AirPods Pro 2, while Beats like the Studio Buds + remain a great affordable option for cross-platform use on Android or iOS – but those picks are all pricier than this pair from CMF.

This power bank doesn’t come cheap, but it’s a powerhouse that can fast-charge a laptop, tablet and phone at the same time, with handy built-in USB-C cables so you won’t forget your cords. The screen shows useful information and, on test, we saw our MacBook Air reach 50% charge in about 40 minutes, it also restored half of our iPhone 16 Pro battery in under 30 minutes.

You don’t have to spend a lot if you want a high-capacity portable battery and aren’t fussed about fast-charging. This one offers a lot of juice for a low price, so it’s great for topping up your phone multiple times and charging three devices at once. While a USB-C port offering up to 15W is fine for phones and accessories, though, it won’t deliver the high-watt laptop speeds you get from pricier models.

Light, compact and affordable, this little hub adds HDMI, two speedy USB-A ports and passthrough USB-C charging, so your laptop can stay plugged into a display and powered at the same time. Most of today’s slim and portable laptops lack ports that you might need for connectivity, so a USB-C hub can end up being the simple fix you need to transfer files from thumb drives and use external screens.

A light and outdoor-ready Bluetooth speaker is an essential piece of university kit, and the Soundcore 3 is a cheap, tough and properly portable option that we highly recommend. It pumps out punchy, detailed sound and is light enough to slip into a backpack for easy portability.

The Kånken is a roomy laptop backpack with padded straps, easy-access pockets and a separate area for your laptop. The main compartment has enough space for books and tech bits. The version we originally tried – which fits a 17-inch laptop – can feel a bit bulky, so we’re linking to the compact 13-inch size here if you’re buying one for a smaller laptop.

Wireless earbuds are great, but you can’t beat good old-fashioned wired headphones for some things. These offer a clear and balanced sound, plus an in-line microphone and controls for excellent call quality. They’re comfy, durable and great value at this price.