Buying PCs for your employees is not cheap, and it seems like a number of businesses and schools are eyeing Google's low-cost Chromebooks as an affordable alternative to pricier laptops.

According to Monday data from The NPD Group, U.S. commercial channel sales - which include businesses, schools, governments, and other organizations - of Chromebooks were up 250 percent over the last year for the first five months of 2014, and made up 35 percent of all channel notebook sales between January and May.

NPD said this bodes well for Chromebook ahead of the back-to-school season. During the three weeks ending June 7, about 40 percent of commercial channel notebook sales were for Chromebooks, up from 35 percent of overall sales to date.

"Building on last year's surprising strength, Chrome's unit strength ahead of this year's education buying season shows how it has become a legitimate third platform alongside Windows and Mac OS X and iOS," said Stephen Baker, vice president of industry analysis, The NPD Group. "The next test for Chrome will clearly be the most difficult, as both Apple and Microsoft get more aggressive in pricing and deal making over the next few months. By the end of the third quarter we will have a much clearer picture of the long-term impact Chromebooks will have in the commercial channel."

Those aggressive tactics appear to have already started. As noted by The Verge, Microsoft today revealed that HP will release a $199 Windows-based laptop in time for the holidays, while Acer and Toshiba will have $249 options.

For now, it's Windows-based desktops that are doing well, according to NPD. Commercial channel Windows desktop sales through the first five months of the year were up 25 percent, thanks in part to the demise of Windows XP support.

"In fact, Windows desktop sales volume actually exceeded Windows notebooks in the first five months of 2014," NPD said - 1.5 million vs. 1.4 million, respectively.

Windows notebook sales were flat, while MacBook sales increased more than 20 percent, NPD said.

"The commercial channel for client devices has been undergoing considerable change over the last few years," said Baker. "The advent of tablets and Chromebooks, and the introduction of Windows 8 have all combined to make the market much more volatile than it has been in the past. But the bottom line is that despite reports to the contrary the market for desktops and notebooks sold through the channel in the U.S. has never been better."

One PC maker who likely wishes things were better is Dell, which has temporarily halted consumer sales of its Chromebook 11. The education version is still available.

"Due to strong demand, the Dell Chromebook 11 is currently unavailable for sale on Dell.com, but it remains available for Education customers through their sales representative. We'll offer it again for sale on Dell.com as soon as possible," a Dell spokeswoman said in a statement.

The HP Chromebook 11 was pulled from virtual shelves in November, amidst concerns about overheating and melting chargers, but is now back on sale.

For more, see PCMag's review of the Toshiba CB35-A3120 Chromebook (slideshow above) and Acer Chromebook C720P-2600, as well as our roundup of The Best Chromebooks.

Editor's Note: This story was updated at 5:35 p.m. ET with comment from Dell.

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