I’ve got an old win10 laptop. It’s nothing fancy in 2025, but I use it now and then while traveling, just to have a proper computer on hand. It’s time to move it over to Linux, and I have A LITTLE Linux experience. I work in software dev, so I know my way around CLI, but I don’t have much firsthard experience, other than occasionally using Kali for offsec tools. What are the distros I should be considering for a personal gaming laptop for occasional use for both gaming and occasional general use? Why?
I’d recommend starting with either Linux Mint for a solid general purpose starting point or Bazzite if you’re focused on gaming.
Edit:
You can always try other distros later if you want. Make sure your starting point and foundation are solid first.
Your mileage may vary depending on your specs, but: very happy with CachyOS on my DELL Latitude 5590.
Based on Arch, meaning you get constant updates. Many tools and easy installation compared to stock Arch. KDE is similar in it’s ergonomics compared to Windows. Many pre configurable gaming packages, getting stuff up and running is easy.
More „conservative“ and not liking living on the bleeding edge? Debian would be my personal choice. Bazzite is really interesting, but the „insistence“ on BTRFS breaks some gaming things (e.g. was not able to get Battle.net running with BTRFS, with ext4 on CachyOS it works)
No matter what distribution you choose, ProtonDB is your first stop for infos on windows games you want to get running on Linux
Fedora or OpenSUSE. Either “just works” with very little setup or fuss. I still recommend Fedora to most new users who want a general purpose OS, but OpenSUSE is very similar with the added advantage of not being sponsored by a giant, openly evil corporation.
If you want your device to be primarily a gaming device and absolutely are not a Linux tinkerer, Bazzite is a great pick. If you do like to make the OS “yours” then skip Bazzite.
I recommend avoiding Arch-based distros like Endeavor or Cachy, though they are very popular. Nothing against them, exactly, I actually really love Cachy, but the AUR is dangerous and cannot be trusted, and I don’t want to have to obsessively vet packages constantly.
Definitely don’t touch anything Ubuntu. If you want Ubuntu compatibility, give Mint a try or Debian 13 with KDE.
If you want to test drive a bunch of distros, find a spare thumb drive and install Ventoy. Ventoy lets you easily put as many ISOs as your drive can hold into a folder and just as easily select which you want to boot with. It’s a great way to try things out quickly and easily before you settle.
if you dont play multiplayer games probably bazzite, cause it downloads everything gaming oriented. if you struggle with the drivers and compatibility, just go with with a windows ltsc version.
I use Nobara, I’ve daily driven on my gaming setup for 8 months. Strong recommendation. It’s maintained by GE of GE-Proton. I have an RTX 4080 and it has been completely smooth with drivers, my mic, camera, XBox controller, all working out of the box.
All of them.
Specs like cpu, ram etc would be handy?
I’ll have to dig up finer details in a bit, but it’s a backup device I got on discount years ago. i5 what gen I’m not sure, gtx 960m, I may have replaced ram up to 16gb at some point and it’s running on an ssd at least.
If it’s not your daily driver, and you want to learn more about Linux, open the Arch Wiki, click on Installation guide, and have fun.
