Answer a few quick questions and get a straight recommendation, based on how old it is, what is wrong, and what the repair would cost.
This is a rough guide, not gospel. The honest rule of thumb: it is usually worth repairing if the fix is cheap next to a new machine (an SSD or memory upgrade, a clean-out, a battery), and usually not worth it if an expensive part fails on an older computer. Read the full repair or replace guide. If the machine is fine but stuck on Windows 10, check whether it can run Windows 11 before deciding anything.
There is a rough trade rule that holds up well: if the repair costs more than about half of a suitable replacement, think hard, and if it costs more than about seventy percent, replace. That is the ratio the calculator weighs, but it is only half the picture, which is why it also asks the age and the fault.
Age matters for a reason that catches people out. When a six year old laptop needs an expensive part, the question is not really whether that part is worth replacing. It is whether the next thing to fail is close behind, because the battery, the fans, the drive and the hinges all wear at roughly the same rate. Paying two hundred pounds to fix one of five ageing components is how people end up spending the price of a new machine in instalments.
This is the part people leave too late. Before any repair, and certainly before any machine is handed over or thrown out, get your files, photos and email off it, and be sure you can actually open them somewhere else. A backup you have never tested is not yet a backup. If the machine is already unreliable, do this today rather than after the weekend: see how to back up your photos and will I lose my data if I get my computer repaired.
And do not simply bin the old one. A drive full of your documents, saved logins and photos should be wiped properly or physically destroyed, and the rest recycled at a household waste centre rather than put in a bin.
If the repair costs less than about half of a suitable replacement, repairing is usually good value. Between half and roughly seventy percent it is a genuine judgement call, and above that you are mostly paying for an old machine. Age shifts the answer: the same repair that is sensible on a two year old laptop is often not on a seven year old one, because the parts around it are wearing at the same rate.
It depends almost entirely on what the laptop cost new. On a mid-range or premium machine that is otherwise healthy, a screen replacement is usually worth it. On a budget laptop the screen can represent a large share of the original price, and you are better putting the money towards a replacement. To be straight with you: I do the setup, software, networking and support side rather than screen replacements, so on that one I will tell you where to go rather than quote you.
You should not, and a careful repair starts by protecting it. Some jobs, such as replacing a drive or reinstalling Windows, involve moving your files to the new setup, and that is done deliberately rather than hoped for. Back up before you hand any machine over regardless of who is doing the work. There is a fuller answer in will I lose my data if I get my computer repaired.
Five to eight years is a fair expectation for ordinary use, and many go longer with an SSD and a clean-out along the way. Cheaper laptops tend towards the lower end because of what is in them, not because they are treated worse. The thing that usually ends a laptop's life is not one dramatic failure but several small ones arriving together.
Frequently, yes, and it is the cheapest good decision available. An SSD and more memory in a five or six year old machine will handle browsing, email, documents and video comfortably, for a fraction of a replacement. What upgrades cannot fix is a processor too old for what you need, or a machine that is failing in several places at once.
Not immediately, and it is worth separating the two questions. A machine that cannot upgrade still works, and Microsoft's Extended Security Updates programme keeps security patches coming for a while yet. Decide on repair or replace based on the condition and the cost, not on the Windows version alone. The Windows 11 checker lays out the options.
Get your files off it, then wipe the drive properly or remove and destroy it; deleting files and emptying the bin does not remove them. After that, recycle it at a household waste centre rather than putting it in a bin, since it contains materials that should not go to landfill. If it still works, a wiped and tidied machine is genuinely useful to somebody.
No. It works entirely from the four answers you give, in your browser, and nothing is sent or stored. It is a structured version of the reasoning I would talk through with you, so treat the result as a steer rather than a verdict, especially if you are unsure about the replacement cost you entered.