The Best Home Vacuum Cleaner
The best vacuum cleaner for home use is a multi-functional tool that is easy to operate and use. The right model should also be light, efficient and quiet.
This suction model is a great value at a reasonable price, with an effective anti-hair wrap floorhead as well as an odor neutralizing puck. It also has a large bin that is easy to empty.
1. Power
A powerful vacuum cleaner can efficiently manage household debris and help to keep mess under control. It should be able to clean any mess, whether it is a pile of hair from a dog or a kitchen drain clogged. It will also be able to trap dust and stop the growth of bacterial to ensure clean, healthy air. The best model is determined by your budget, floor type and household size. The most popular models are uprights, portable handhelds lightweight sticks, and practical robots.
The Black+Decker Flex Vac is a lightweight handheld vacuum cleaner that offers an impressively high-quality performance. It can remove pet hair and other larger debris with ease which makes it perfect for households with multiple pets or larger homes. It also comes with an easy to empty debris receptacle to prevent messy cleanups. The vacuum can be used as a mop, allowing users to do two jobs at the same time.
Take a look at a large upright or canister corded vacuum for homes with a lot of furniture. These models typically have stronger motors and a floorhead with a motorized design to take on the toughest dirt and carpeting. They're also available with different power modes to provide different suction and a longer battery life. If you or someone in your family suffers from allergies, it's a good idea for you to choose a vacuum that has a HEPA filter system.
2. Flexibility
The most effective vacuum cleaners can tackle many chores around the home from dusting to deep-cleaning carpets. They're usually lightweight, making them easy to maneuver, and should also have a variety of attachments to suit your requirements.
Consider a vacuum designed to deal with hair from pets if you own pets. These models usually have a brush specifically designed to remove hair from the main floorhead and then directs it to the dust container so it does not block the brush roll or wrap around it.
The best vacuums are equipped with smart features that can be integrated with your home systems or adjust for different floor types and dirt levels. This is particularly important for those suffering from allergies, as these features help keep dust particles from circulating in the air.
Vacuums can be expensive however, they're on sale during major events like Black Friday and Amazon Prime Day. There are also great deals in the spring when retailers plan sales to coincide with customers' annual spring cleaning.
The life expectancy of a vacuum varies depending on the model you choose and how you make use of it. Most of our top-rated vacuums last on average eight years. If you want to make sure that your device will last longer than other models, you should look for one with an extended warranty.
3. Ease of Use
A vacuum cleaner must be easy to maneuver and use, even for a longer cleaning session. A lightweight, compact vacuum cleaner that has easy-to-use controls, attachments, and a large, non-emptying bin are all important. This user-friendly design is possible thanks to many features, including motorized power heads that can clean carpets and rugs more effectively, a large and tall floor head to reach under furniture, rotating nozzles to clean corners and LED lights that illuminate the pathway.
For example, our top choice in this category is the Shark Stratos cordless vacuum, was a breeze to move and required the least amount of battery power during our testing. It also features automatic suction adjustment as well as a sleek LCD screen with a battery indicator, and the ability to switch between Auto Eco and Boost modes.
In our tests, the Stratos sucked up coffee grounds, kibbles and flour with ease. It also worked well on flooring with low pile, removing sand, rice, and other particles with only a few strokes. It also has a front-facing brushroll that is soft to catch fine particles and prevent pet fur from spilling out and a rear brushroll which is stiff and can dig into carpeting.

Similar to the budget-friendly Kenmore Elite sucks up wet spills and dirt from hard floors thanks to the power of its dual brushroll design, yet it's still lightweight enough to carry up and down stairs as well as across a house without breaking sweat. It's also easier to maintain than other upright models as well with a movable HEPA filter and a disposable dust bag that is able to be changed when it's full.
4. Versatility
The Levoit is a multi-functional model that can tackle most cleaning tasks. It isn't equipped with the perks offered by pricier models however, it does come with many important features that ensure it's suitable for everyday use: it has multiple cleaning modes that alter suction power and battery run-time (including Eco) and an 8-foot hose for reaching over floors, and a huge, easy-to-empty dust cup.
The brush roll is designed for capturing and sucking up hair without wrapping bristles around it, making it a great option for households with hairy pets or humans who shed lots of hair. good robot vacuum of tests conducted on it proved that it was able to handle a variety debris, including carpets with low piles and hard floors. It also removed sand, rice and Cheerios.
The Miele Flex Vac is a versatile cordless vacuum that also boasts impressive power. It was particularly effective in sucking pet hair and also removing larger particles, like cereal. However, it struggled with more caked-on debris such as dust from cars. It comes with a variety attachments, including an electric power-nozzle that will quickly get rid of dirt and pet hair from upholstery.
5. Battery Life
A good vacuum cleaner for home use should last at least an hour before needing to be recharged. If you have a cordless model, this is crucial because it lets you to tackle cleaning sessions without stopping to begin again.
Shark Stratos cordless vacuum is our top pick. It has an extended battery life and a powerful debris pickup. The three cleaning modes - Eco Auto, Boost and Eco let you control the power so that you can clean for longer without draining the battery too quickly. The vacuum has a sleek LCD screen that shows the status of your battery, how much time is left, and whether there is a clog.
This model is a fantastic option for families with pets who shed hair, as its no-tangle brushroll does an excellent job of getting rid of pet hair. It's also very effective at dealing with dirt and dust but it struggled to remove fine particles like flour from floors and could not remove coffee grounds from carpeting.
Tineco Floor One S7 Pro can also handle spills that are wet. It's a bagged vacuum but has features like an iLoop smart sensor that detects dirt and stains; self-cleaning, which dries the brush roll; more effective edge cleaning that gets into corners and along baseboards and a battery that lasts 40 minutes, which is more than any other model we've tried.
6. Cleaning is easy
The most effective vacuums make cleaning up messes a breeze. The Levoit LVAC-200 is a good example is light and compact however, it is incredibly powerful. In our standard tests, it took in everything from kibble and ground coffee to dog hair. The dual brushrolls snatch pet hair and other large particles without spilling them out or wrapping them around the cleaner head. This helps it avoid clogging. The motorized tool is able to eliminate pet hair that has been embedded, even from hard-to-reach areas.
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 comes with a soft brushroll that can catch dust and other debris. The second floorhead, which has rigid bristles, can reach deeper into carpeting to take on more difficult messes. automated vacuum cleaner is plenty, and is easy to empty.
If your house is carpeted heavily, think about an upright or full-size canister vacuum that has beater bar for longer cleaning sessions. You can also choose an all-purpose wet-dry vacuum that can tackle the floors as well as messes caused by water or food, like the Miele C3 Cat and Dog or the Henry Hoover. These machines can handle various household waste including small crumbs and larger messes, and may offer more advanced features than the handhelds listed in this list.