The best vacuum cleaners don’t just pick up dust, they save you time and effort, too. We’ve put a wide range of models through their paces to find which offer the best suction, the most convenient cleaning process, and the most useful tools. In short, the best vacuum cleaners to get your home dust-free effectively and efficiently.
Our list includes cordless vacuums, upright models, cylinder vacuums and even a robot version, and we’ll walk you through the pros and cons of each so you can pick the right one for you. When we test, we don’t just look at suction power. We try out each vacuum on all kinds of messes, and we consider everything from how long their batteries last to whether they’ll make your arms tired. And of course we take price and value for money into consideration too.
In our guide you’ll find all the big brands and many lesser-known companies too, so you’ll see great models from the likes of Dyson, Shark and Tineco, among many more: we’re interested in finding the very best, not just the most popular. All clear? Read on for the best vacuum cleaners on the market…
The quick list
1. Shark Detect Pro Cordless
Best for most people
This Shark model is our favorite vacuum cleaner overall. It’s versatile, effective, and packs some impressive power for a cordless model.
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2. Halo Capsule X Pet Max
Best for carpet
It lacks the bells and whistles of other models, but for outright suction, this vacuum is outstanding. It aced all of our tests, and is especially impressive on carpet.
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3. Shark Stratos Corded Stick
Best budget
This vacuum boasts powerful suction and a versatile design, for a very affordable price. There’s a great anti-hair wrap floorhead and odor-neutralizer, but you will have to deal with a cord.
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Best Dyson
The V11 delivers genuinely useful features and a super-effective design. It’s not the highest-spec Dyson, but it hits the sweet spot in terms of price to performance ratio.
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5. Shark Stratos Cordless
Best for pet hair
An excellent hair-detangling floorhead, strong suction and an anti-odor puck make this cordless vacuum an excellent choice for pet owners.
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Best robot vacuum
For effortless, hands-free cleaning, the J7 Plus is our favorite robovac. It can mop and vacuum, will self-empty, and its room mapping is excellent. Perfect for regular, low-level cleans.
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7. Shark Stratos Upright Vacuum
Best upright
If you’re willing to sacrifice the versatility of a cordless stick vac, this corded upright delivers powerful suction and allows for uninterrupted cleaning.
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Best lightweight vac
If you’re looking for a compact vacuum that you can grab quickly to clean up the odd spillage straight away, this lightweight models transforms from handheld to stick vac.
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Best hi-tech vacuum
The Gen5 knows exactly what it’s sucking up, adjusts suction according to how dirty your floor is, and provides real-time reports as it cleans. Seriously innovative engineering, but it’ll cost you.
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Best for hard floors
If you have lots of hard floors, but also need to tackle pet hair, this is the vacuum for you. It delivers excellent pickup on hard floors and the mini pet brush tool is outstanding.
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11. Tineco Floor One S7 Pro
Best vacuum and mop
This cordless option is able to vacuum and mop at the same time. And, it does a wonderful job at it. Plus, it can self-propel, so getting those floors clean is effortless.
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The best vacuum cleaner for most people
The Shark Detect Pro Cordless is the best vacuum cleaner for most people, delivering cutting-edge tech and versatile cleaning. The specially designed floorhead is as effective on hard floors as it is carpet, and there are sensors that know everything from how dirty each patch of floor is to whether you’re next to the edge of a room, and optimize suction accordingly for the most efficient clean. It sits right at the top of our best cordless vacuum guide.
Even though there’s only one extra tool included (a crevice tool), the Detect Pro can be used in a wide range of scenarios. The fact that the stick can be flexed so that the vacuum will lie essentially flat to the floor is useful for getting underneath furniture, and the LED headlights help you spot dust and debris in dingy areas. It’s easy to transformed into a handheld cleaner, too, although a little heavy in hand in that mode.
In general, cordless vacuums have a little less power than corded models, and while that’s true here, the suction is impressive for a cordless model and plenty strong enough for most people’s needs. If you have mostly carpets, you might be better off with the Shark Stratos Cordless (#5), which has more outright power (but is a bit heavier) or for a truly deep clean, you can’t beat a corded upright (#7).
The configuration we tested has a self-emptying base station with a huge dust bag, and anti-odor technology to keep things feeling fresh. We enjoyed how it minimized the hassle of cleaning, but if you’re not so fussed about that, there’s a version available without the self-empty feature.
Price-wise, at time of updating this model is discounted almost everywhere, bringing it down to the cusp between our budget and mid-range price brackets and offering incredible value for money (before buying, head to our Shark promo codes page to make sure you’re not missing a discount). Overall, this is an excellent all-rounder that’ll suit most people’s needs, and the best Shark vacuum we’ve tested.
Read more: Shark Detect Pro Cordless review
The best vacuum cleaner for carpet
The Halo Capsule X is a slightly quirkily designed vacuum, but when it comes to suction it’s seriously impressive. It aced all of our suction tests, and is our pick for the best vacuum for carpet, but it’s equally impressive on hard floors. It looks a little weird, but it’s comfortable to hold, feels light in the hand and is easy to maneuver too.
Unusually in this list, the Capsule X is a bagged vacuum. That will be a negative for some, but it does have its benefits, including the ability to suck up fine particles like fireplace ash without ruining the motor. The bags are made from compostable cardboard and brown paper, to minimize environmental impact, but they do represent an ongoing cost.
Battery life is decent, and the batteries are swappable, so you can have two charged and ready to go at any time. If you want smart features, look elsewhere in this list, but for pure suction power in a cordless form factor, the Halo Capsule X is an excellent choice.
Read our full Halo Capsule X Pet Max review
The best budget vacuum cleaner
If you’re on a tight budget or are a student looking for something that will do the job without breaking the bank, we rate the Shark Stratos Corded Stick as the best cheap vacuum around. The main sacrifice you’ll need to make for that low price is that it’s corded. If you can deal with that, you’re getting superb suction (corded models often beat cordless on this front), a lightweight and versatile design, effective anti hair-wrap floorheads and even the little bonus of an Odor-Neutralizing puck to keep everything smelling fresh.
There are two slightly different versions of this vacuum – the HZ3000UKT, which has a smaller dust cup (perhaps annoyingly small, if you have a large home) and a wand that can bend forwards to help you get under furniture, and the HZ3002, which has a larger dust cup and no flexible wand. Both are equally budget-friendly.
For UK shoppers looking to avoid being tethered to the wall, the Shark Anti Hair Wrap cordless vacuum IZ202UK is a similar price and also performed well in our tests.
Read our full Shark Stratos Corded Stick vacuum review.
The best Dyson vacuum cleaner
The V11 is our favorite Dyson vacuum, balancing that meticulous engineering and useful design flourishes with a not-too-painful price tag. The design places the cyclones, motor, dust bin and wand in a straight line to maximize suction efficiency, and it works extremely well in practice. This vacuum sailed through all our cleaning review tasks. The maximum runtime is generous at a full hour in the lowest-powered (but still very sucky) Eco mode, and in Auto mode it’ll sense what kind of floor it’s on and adjust power accordingly, for the most efficient clean. The V11 was the first Dyson to add an LCD screen, providing useful information like which power mode you’re using and how much longer you have left on the battery, in the current mode.
Like all the Dyson stick vacs, it converts into a handheld when you remove the wand. Which tools are included will vary by model and location, but all the ones we’ve tested have been well-designed and effective at tackling a range of different cleaning tasks. Our only complaint is that it can feel a little top-heavy, especially in handheld mode (this issue gets worse with later models – it’s not too bad here).
It’s not the best Dyson vacuum based on specs – that’s the Gen5 at #9, which comes with some seriously clever features you won’t find here. However, that model is will be overkill. In terms of price to performance ratio, the V11 is our winner. And it’s a worthwhile upgrade on the cheaper, older Dyson V8.
Read our Dyson V11 review
The best vacuum for pet hair
The Shark Stratos Cordless is the best vacuum if need to tackle pet hair. It packs an impressive amount of power for a cordless model and boasts a few features that make it especially well suited to households with hairy pets (or indeed, hairy humans). The main floorhead – which is suitable for hard floors as well as carpet – is designed in such a way that it’ll siphon hair off the brushroll as you clean, and direct it straight into the dust cup. This stops things getting clogged, while the built-in odor neutralizer keeps it all smelling fresh.
There’s up to a full hour’s cleaning on one charge, and a generously sized dust cup, which means you can clean for longer without having to empty it. A wand that can bend forwards to 90-degrees means getting right under furniture is a cinch, and on test we were also impressed with this vacuum’s ability to remove hair from furniture when used in handheld and Boost mode. All those factors mean it sits at the top of our best vacuum for pet hair guide.
If you don’t have such demanding cleaning needs, you’d be better off with the Detect Pro (#1), which is lighter and more streamlined. On the flip side, if you need maximum power and are happy to sacrifice maneuverability to get it, you can beat a corded upright like #7.
Read our full Shark Stratos Cordless with Clean Sense IQ IZ862H review
The best robot vacuum cleaner
If you’re after effort-free cleaning, you need a robovac, and our top pick in this area is the iRobot Roomba Combo J7 Plus. It’s quite different from the other entries in this ranking, so if you know this is the type you want, head to our separate, dedicated guide to the best robot vacuums.
The iRobot Roomba Combo J7 Plus is designed to minimize the effort needed to get your floor sparkling. For starters, it mops as well as vacuums (like the Tineco option at #11), retracting its mopping pad when tackling carpeted areas so you don’t end up with damp results. It comes with a self-emptying base station, which is especially useful given the smaller bin size, and you can instruct it using a voice assistant or through the app if you want to go totally hands-fee.
Like most robot vacuums, suction can’t match the most powerful regular models. These are designed to be used regularly, to maintain a constant low levels of dust, rather than for tough deep-cleans. The remote operation means most people will set it to run when they’re out in the day, so they never really even have to see or hear it (we’d especially recommend this here because the self-empty option is noisy).
Overall, we found this high-end model from iRobot does a great job cleaning. Its mapping is superb; it’s able to register large, split rooms and will continue learning even after the initial setup phase. Our only real complaint is that the side brush has a habit of flicking some debris across the floor, extending the cleaning time required.
Pet-owners will love the fact that it can pick up particles as small as 0.7 microns, so no dander or hair will escape its grasp (those with furry friends should also check out the iRobot Roomba i7 Plus, which is especially good with pet hair).
Read our full iRobot Roomba Combo J7 Plus review
The best upright vacuum cleaner
If you want outright power, a corded upright is typically the best option, and our top pick in this category is the Shark Stratos Upright. If you need something for deep cleans, it’s an excellent choice, and on test we found it was great for tackling pet hair, too. The cord means there’s no time limit on your cleaning session, and the large dust cup means you won’t be traipsing back and forth from the trash can, either. Like many of Shark’s newer vacuums, there’s an anti-odor puck that keeps things smelling fresh.
While it’s clearly bulkier and heavier than the cordless vacuums in this list (including the stick option from the same range, at #5), it has been designed for maximum flexibility within that upright form factor. So the dust cup / motor part can be lifted off and held in your hand, and the cleaner head added to the end of a stretch hose – super useful for tackling things like stairs. If you’re not sure it’s right for you, our guide to the best upright vacuums has plenty of alternative options.
Read our full Shark Stratos Upright Vacuum review
The best lightweight vacuum cleaner
If you’re looking for something lightweight that you can grab quickly to clean up the odd spillage straight away, the Shark Lightweight 2-in-1 from the WandVac range is the best vacuum for the job. This clever design can be used as a stick vacuum or in handheld mode, depending on where you need to clean. The suction is good for the size, although in our tests it performed better at sucking up fine dust, but required a few passes for chunkier debris.
This isn’t going to work as a main home vacuum for most people, because the battery life is too short and the dust canister too small to make it suitable for large areas. However, for quick and easy cleaning, it’s a great choice. It’s simple but effective and extremely easy to empty, too.
Read our full Shark WandVac review
The best hi-tech vacuum cleaner
If you want a seriously clever vacuum cleaner, check out the Dyson Gen5detect. Sensors enable it to assess the type of floor and amount of dirt, and adjust suction accordingly, for a battery-efficient but effective clean. It’ll even tell you exactly what it’s sucking up, via real-time reports on the LCD control screen; a feature that’s interesting just from a data point of view, but can also tell you exactly when a patch of floor is clean and you can move on. A secondary fluffy floorhead has a laser that highlights hidden dirt on hard floors. A number of competitor vac brands include headlights on their machines now, but Dyson’s laser is in a different league, offering effective illumination even in bright daylight.
Performance-wise the Gen5detect is outstanding, with an ultra-powerful yet relatively quiet motor, and effective hair-tackling design. (Although it’s worth noting that for most people’s cleaning needs, there are plenty of other, cheaper machines that will do a perfectly effective job.) Battery life is pretty much the best you’ll find anywhere, maxing out at 70 minutes on one charge. It even lasted slightly longer than that in some of our tests. Our main complaint is that it feels noticeably heavy for a cordless vacuum, and uncomfortable to use in handheld mode.
Its (very) premium price will also put it out of the reach of many, and Dyson promo codes are rare. However, if you want the smartest vacuum on the market, the Gen5detect is it. When making your purchasing decision it’s worth also throwing this model’s predecessor, the Dyson V16 Detect, into the mix. It has many of the same clever features and is cheaper, although the performance is better with the Gen5 (see exactly how the two compare in our Gen5detect vs Dyson V15 faceoff).
Read our full Dyson Gen5detect review
The best vacuum cleaner for hard floors
If you’re constantly vacuuming around after hairy pets, then the Samsung Jet 85 Pet could be your savior (provided you don’t live in the US, where it’s not currently available). This vacuum’s mini motorized pet hair brush tool is the best our reviewer – a Labrador owner – had tested, making light work of dog hair on pet beds, car seats and more.
The main Jet 85 Pet vacuum cleaner head also delivers great suction on hard floors, and fine (although not amazing) dirt pickup on carpet. It’ll deliver up to 44 minutes of vacuuming, depending which of the four power modes you use. (It’s considerably less in the maximum ‘Jet’ mode, but this is so powerful you’re unlikely to ever really need it.)
Elsewhere, this vacuum is ergonomic and comfortable to use, and overall a competent performer. For pet owners, and especially those with mostly hard floors in their home, it’s as very strong recommendation.
Read more: Samsung Jet 85 Pet vacuum cleaner review
The best vacuum and mop combo
If you want a more complete cleaning solution for hard floors, we rate the Tineco Floor One S7 Pro the best wet-dry vacuum on the market. This model offers top-notch vacuuming and mopping, and deodorizes and disinfects as it goes, leaving floors spotless. It’s heavy at nearly 10kg, but its self-propelling capabilities make it super-easy to push about.
All that cleaning power takes a toll on the battery life, which is relatively short at 40 minutes on one charge. Our tester also found the water tank a little small, and the fact it needed to be emptied frequently a little annoying. And as you might expect, it’s not for carpeted floors.
There are lots of useful features, including voice prompts and a bright LED display that lets you know what mode you’re using as well as water and battery levels. Being able to vacuum and mop in one go is in itself a revelation for how much time and effort it saves.
It’s a bit of an investment, but we think the performance justifies the higher price. If you want something more affordable, the Roborock Dyad Pro is our favorite budget option.
Read our full Tineco Floor One S7 Pro review
How to choose the best vacuum for you
As we’ve mentioned already, knowing which type of vacuum to choose can end up leaving you confused. However, considering the type of property you have will help you decide.
These days, cordless vacuums are some of the most powerful vacuums when it comes to suction and they ensure you’re not restricted by the length of the wire. However they can also be some of the most expensive too. Check how long the battery will last between charges, and whether the battery is swappable, so you can simply replace it and carry on vacuuming, rather than the floor cleaner being out of action completely while it recharges.
Corded vacuums are often more affordable than cordless models, and many have wider floor headers, which can ensure vacuuming is a much quicker task. Although if you have nooks and crannies the vacuum may not be able to reach them. For those with stairs, consider models with extra-long hoses so you can clean the stairs without moving the vacuum.
Robot vacuums are good for regular cleans, however with suction that can’t match the best cordless vacuums they’re not suitable for a deep clean, and struggle to suck up dust embedded in carpets.
Households with pets will need a vacuum that can handle pet hair and if you want to use it to clean more than just floors, you’ll need one that converts to a handheld cleaner and comes with plenty of useful attachments.
And if you have hard floors, look for a vacuum cleaner that comes with a dedicated cleaner head, which has a softer brush roll to ensure the flooring isn’t damaged when vacuuming.
Whichever style you select, consider whether the dust canister is large enough to clean all of the floors in your home, without needing to stop and be emptied half way through.
Frequently asked questions about vacuum cleaners
Is Shark better than Dyson?
Shark and Dyson are two of the biggest names dominating the floor care market right now, so if you’re considering kitting your home out with a powerful new vacuum, it makes sense to opt for one of these brands. But which is best?
In a nutshell, Dyson vacuums are more expensive but this ensures you get a vacuum cleaner that’s extremely powerful but still lightweight and easy to maneuver around your home. Dyson vacuums are stuffed with cutting edge technology too, from lasers that highlight hidden dust to innovative floor heads that can be moved in any direction. If you prefer a cordless model, they also come with long-lasting batteries too.
Shark’s vacuum cleaners are more affordable than Dyson’s offerings, but they can still match the stalwart when it comes to suction power. Shark models are not usually as sleek and stylish as Dyson’s, and they’re often heavier too, but they do come with useful technology such as the ability to stop hair getting tangled around the brush and flexible wands to ensure you can clean in hard to reach places.
Shark vacuums tend to have larger dust canisters than most of Dyson’s models, but the battery doesn’t last as long. So are they better? It very much depends on the layout of your home and your budget. Read our Shark vs Dyson article for a more in-depth look at the two floor-cleaning brands.
How often should you vacuum?
“When the floor looks dirty” I hear you cry, but to keep your home allergen-free and your floors as clean as possible, you’ll need to vacuum more regularly than this.
We recommend vacuuming most floors once a week while increasing this to twice a week in high-traffic areas such as hallways and doorways. Especially, if you have carpet, as the longer dust is left, the more it becomes embedded in the fibres making it hard to thoroughly clean.
While this may seem like a lot, vacuuming this regularly will ensure there is less dust to suck up each time, making cleaning your floors a quicker process.
For more on this, head to our full feature on how often should you vacuum?
How we tested these vacuum cleaners
To find the best vacuum cleaner, we’ve assessed how well each model collects everything from fine dust and dirt to larger debris such as cookie crumbs and cereal. As well as evaluating how well floors are cleaned, we’ve also compared how easy the vacuum cleaners are to maneuver on carpet and hard floors, as well as whether dust pick up is evenly distributed across the cleaning head, or concentrated in one area.
We rated each design on how durable it is, as well as simplicity of emptying, how loud it is during use and how long the battery lasts – if it has one. For each model we wanted to know whether it was easy to convert into other modes; such as a handheld vac, the useful tools and accessories it came with to clean edges or remove pet hair, and that it didn’t require reading a thick instruction manual before use.
