The Best Home Vacuum Cleaner
The best vacuum cleaner for the home is a versatile, easy-to-use tool. The right model will also be quiet, light and efficient.
This model provides excellent suction for a very low cost. It also includes an anti-hair wrap floorhead which is effective and an odor neutralizing puck. It also boasts a large bin that is easy to empty.
1. Power
A powerful vacuum cleaner will efficiently manage household debris, making it simple to keep messes under control. It should be able clean any mess, regardless of whether it's a pile of hair of a dog or a kitchen sink that has become blocked. It is also required to trap dust and inhibit bacterial development, for a healthy, fresh air. The best model is determined by your budget as well as the flooring type and size of your household. The most commonly used types are uprights, portable handhelds, light sticks, and handy robots.
The Black+Decker Flex Vac is a lightweight handheld vacuum cleaner that offers an impressively powerful performance. It can remove pet hair and larger particles easily and is ideal for households with multiple pets or large homes. It also has an easy-to empty trash bin to avoid messy cleanups. The vacuum can also be used to mop so that users can complete two tasks at the same time.
For households with lots of furniture it's a good idea think about a more durable full-size, corded upright or canister vacuum. These models usually have stronger motors and a motorized floorhead to tackle the toughest dirt and carpeting. These vacuums can also be found in different power modes to provide different suction capabilities and a long life battery. If you or anyone in your household suffers from allergies it's recommended for you to pick a vacuum that has a HEPA filtration system.
2. Flexibility
The best vacuum cleaners can take on a variety of chores in your home that range from quick dusting to cleaning carpets. They are usually light and easy to move. They should also have various attachments that will meet your requirements.
If you have pets, think about a vacuum that's designed to handle hair from pets. These models usually have a brush specifically designed to remove hairs from the floorhead and then directs it to the dust container, so it doesn't block the brush roll or wrap around it.
Some of the top vacuums come with smart features, that can be integrated with your home systems or adjust for different types of flooring and dirt levels. This is particularly crucial for people suffering from allergies, since these features stop dust particles from getting recirculated in the air.
Vacuums are expensive, but they go on sale during major occasions such as Black Friday and Amazon Prime Day. There are also sales during the spring season, when retailers schedule sales in anticipation of customers' annual spring cleaning.
The life expectancy of a vacuum can be different depending on the model and the type of use you put it through. Most of our top-rated vacuums last on average eight years. If you want yours to outlast the competitors, select a model that comes with a long-term guarantee.
3. Simple to use
A vacuum cleaner should be simple to use and maneuver even during a long cleaning session. This means a light, compact body, convenient controls and attachments and a large bin that doesn't require frequent emptying. This user-friendly design is possible due to numerous features, including motorized power heads that clean carpets and rugs better with a tall and wide floor head that can reach under furniture as well as rotating nozzles for corner cleaning and LED lights that illuminate the path.

For example, our top choice in this category is the Shark Stratos cordless vacuum, was a breeze to move and required the most power from the battery during our testing. It also features automatic suction adjustment as well as an elegant LCD screen with a battery indication, and the ability to switch between Auto Eco and Boost modes.
In our tests, the Stratos picked up coffee grounds, kibbles, and flour easily. It also handled low-pile flooring well by removing the sand, rice and other particles in only a few strokes. It also has a front brushroll which is soft to hold fine particles and prevent pet fur from spilling out, and a rear brushroll which is rigid and digs into carpeting.
Likewise, the budget-friendly Kenmore Elite sucks up wet spills and messes from hard floors thanks to the power of its dual brushroll design, yet it's still light enough to move up and down stairs and across a house without breaking the bank. It's easier to care for than many other upright models as well and comes with a removable HEPA filter and a disposable dust bag that can be changed after filling up.
4. Versatility
The Levoit is a multi-functional model that can tackle most cleaning tasks. It isn't equipped with the advantages offered by more expensive models however, it does come with a number of important features that ensure it performs well for everyday use. For instance, it comes with multiple cleaning modes that vary suction power and battery run time (including Eco) as well as an 8-foot hose that can reach above floors, and a huge, easy-to-empty dust cup.
auto vacuum is designed to capture and suck up hair without wrapping bristles around it making it a good option for households with hairy animals or even humans that shed many tears. Its performance during standardized tests proved that it was able to take on a variety of debris, including carpet with low pile and hard floors. It even removed sand, rice and Cheerios.
The Miele Flex Vac is a versatile cordless vacuum that also has a powerful motor. It was particularly effective in sucking pet hair, and also picked larger particles, like cereal. However, it was unable to deal with more clogged-up debris like car dust. It comes with a variety of attachments, including a motorized power-nozzle which can swiftly remove dirt and pet hair from upholstery.
5. Battery Life
A good vacuum cleaner for the home should last at least one hour before it needs to be recharged. If you have a cordless model, that's important because it allows you to take on cleaning tasks without stopping and start again.
Our top choice, the Shark Stratos Cordless Vacuum is a great choice, with a long battery life and a dazzling debris pickup. The three cleaning modes - Eco, Auto and boost, allow you to control the power to allow you to clean for longer without draining the battery too quickly. The vacuum comes with a sleek LCD display that lets you know the presence of a blockage, how much time you have left, and the status of your battery.
This model is a great option for households with hairy pets, as its brushroll is non-tangle and is very effective in collecting pet hair. It's also extremely effective in dealing with dirt and dust, although it struggled to remove small particles such as flour from hard floors and could not remove coffee grounds from carpeting.
If you're looking to tackle wet spills as well then the Tineco Floor One S7 Pro is a great option. It is a bagged vacuum but has features like an iLoop smart sensor that can detect dirt and stains; self-cleaning which dries the brush roll; cleaner edges that get into corners and along baseboards and a battery that can last for 40 minutes, which is more than any other model we've tested.
6. Ease of Cleaning
The best vacuums make cleaning up spills a breeze. The Levoit LVAC-200 is a lightweight, compact vacuum cleaner that's powerful. It sucked up everything from ground coffee to kibble and hair from dogs in our standard tests. Its dual brushrolls catch pet hair and other particles without spilling them out or wrapping them around the cleaner's head. This helps it avoid blocking. The motorized tool can be used to remove embedded pet hair even from areas that are difficult to reach.
The Shark Stratos Cordless is another top performer, because it handled pet hair and large pieces of debris effortlessly in our standard tests. The main floorhead is a soft front brushroll, which captures fine dust and debris while the second floorhead with stiff bristles penetrates deeper into carpeting for more difficult mess. And the dust cup holds plenty, and is easy to empty.
If you have a lot of carpeting in your home, you might need to consider a full size upright or canister vacuum with beater for deeper cleaning. Select a vacuum cleaner that is wet dry that is able to handle floors and messes caused by water or food. Examples include the Miele Cat & Dog, or the Henry Hoover. These vacuums are able to handle an array of household waste, from small dust to large-scale messes. They might be more sophisticated than handhelds on this list.