Best Vacuums of 2024
Consumer Reports’ tests show two types of vacuums shine far brighter than the others
When you shop through retailer links on our site, we may earn affiliate commissions. 100% of the fees we collect are used to support our nonprofit mission. Learn more.
Canister vacuums and upright vacuums are the best picker-uppers for everything from embedded dirt to piles of pet hair, according to CR’s experts. But they’re also some of the largest and most bulky of the vacuum types out there, especially compared with the more sleek and light stick, handheld, and robotic vacuums, which have been picking up steam in recent years—they’ve also been improving their performance recently, according to our tests. These latter vacuum types are useful, but they’re better suited for smaller cleanups.
“For some people, it might make sense to have multiple vacuums for different situations,” says Frank Rizzi, an assistant project leader who tests vacuums at CR. “A robotic vacuum can help with maintaining your pristine floors, and a lighter stick can help with quick messes alongside your bigger upright or canister.”
Regardless, we evaluate each vacuum we test for its ease of use (or how it feels to push, pull, and carry), its ability to pick up debris without scattering it, and its ability to lift sand from a medium-pile carpet. While each vacuum is tested on the same performance factors, we calibrate these tests to assess the capabilities of each type—from canister to robotic.
Below are reviews of the best vacuums available today. For even more information and choices, see our vacuum buying guide and complete vacuum ratings.
The midpriced Kenmore Elite Pet Friendly 31150 earns top marks on bare floors and scores well for tool airflow. That means it’s exceptionally powerful when used with its attachments, which include a crevice tool, bristle brush, and power roller. On bare floors it captures almost every particle, keeping debris contained in its disposable bag. It’s no slouch at removing embedded dirt from carpet or tackling pet hair, either, although it’s a little louder and tougher to handle than some bagged uprights. It’s not the cheapest model you’ll find, but this impressive performer is certainly among the best vacuums we’ve tested. Kenmore uprights receive middling scores for predicted reliability and owner satisfaction. See our full ratings for bagged upright vacuums for other models.
This Shark Navigator Professional NV360 stands out in CR’s tests, earning an elusive excellent carpet-cleaning score. Its powerful suction can be controlled manually to accommodate cleaning delicate curtains. Its detachable pod makes it versatile for cleaning under furniture and stairs. Find other great options in our full ratings for bagless upright vacuums.
Our top-performing canister vacuum, the Miele Complete C3 Marin, earns perfect marks in almost every test we throw its way. It’s a champ at bare floors and embedded pet hair and also excels at capturing dust particles. Powerful airflow makes its attachments especially effective. It’s also noticeably quieter than many models. It gets dinged a bit in our handling test, but that’s true of most canister vacuums, which trail behind you at the end of the hose and powerhead. At more than $1,000, it may suck up a big chunk of your bank account, though. Miele canisters earn top scores for predicted reliability and owner satisfaction. See our full ratings for bagged canister vacuums for other high-performing options.
The Miele Blizzard CX1 Cat & Dog canister is on the pricey side for vacuums, but it’s one of the best bagless canisters you can buy. It earns an excellent rating on our bare-floors test, proving that it can suck up 5 grams of Maine Coon cat fur in no time flat. It’s not so great when it comes to cleaning carpet; canisters are better for bare floors. Allergy sufferers may appreciate that this vacuum also performs well in our emissions testing, releasing little debris back into the environment after sucking it up. Miele canisters earn top scores for predicted reliability and owner satisfaction. See our full bagless canister vacuum ratings for other high-performing options.
The “Ultralight” moniker for the Shark Vertex Ultralight HZ2002 refers to its light weight (2.9 pounds) when used in hand vac mode (without the stick). The Shark aces our tests for carpet, bare floors, and pet hair, and earns a very good rating for edges. Although not as versatile as a cordless vacuum, this model has a 30-foot cord that is long enough that you won’t have to constantly map out your electrical outlets. Shark corded vacuums earn an excellent rating for predicted reliability and a very good score for owner satisfaction. For more options, see our complete corded stick vacuum ratings.
Although it’s pricey, the top-ranked Samsung Bespoke Jet VS28C9762UK/AA comes with a lot of extras, including a combination recharging and dustbin-emptying storage tower as well as a powered brush, extendable crevice tool, and dusting brush. It doesn’t disappoint in performance, either, getting top marks on bare floors, pet hair, and edges. and a very good score for carpet cleaning. As a bonus it converts to a hand vacuum, making it even more versatile. At 7 pounds it is easy to maneuver around your space. The Samsung features a digital countdown display that monitors battery life. In our tests, one battery runs for about 97 minutes per charge on the low setting and 18 minutes on high. For more options, see our complete cordless stick vacuum ratings.
Part of the newer generation of iRobot models, the iRobot Roomba S9+ is pricey, but it delivers. This vacuum earns top scores down the line in our performance tests, and it’s the best of the best where edges and bare floors are concerned. This is also a self-emptying model that empties its dustbin into a dirt bag, no hands required. The iRobot Roomba S9+ earns a midlevel rating for data privacy and an excellent rating for data security. See our full robotic vacuum ratings for more choices.
Not all handheld vacuums can tackle pet hair with aplomb, but the Shark Ion W1 WV201 aces that task, earning an excellent rating. It’s also a champ at cleaning bare floors and getting into hard-to-reach places, and it’s not too shabby at cleaning carpet. The vacuum and all its attachments can be stored on the charging base, making it a real space-saver. And at just 1.4 pounds, it’s the lightest handheld vac in our tests. The only downside to its small size is the small dustbin, which may have to be emptied more than once if you have a sizable spill. For more choices, see our full handheld vacuum ratings.
How CR Tests Vacuums
In our lab, CR’s engineers put vacuum cleaners from brands like Bissell, Dyson, iRobot, LG, Miele, Shark, and Tineco through a set of tough tests to evaluate how well a model picks up dirt, how much debris it retains, how easy it is to maneuver, and how noisy it is. We embed sand and pet hair into carpet before vacuuming to see how effective a machine is at picking it up. We use the same type of litter on bare floors to observe whether the vacuum picks it up or scatters it about. And we maneuver the vacuum around the floor, just like you would, to judge how easy it is to operate.
How CR Picks the Best Vacuums
To determine the best handheld vacuums, we filtered models based on their Overall Score, which is based on our rigorous lab tests.
The Overall Score for each model incorporates results for each of these tests, as well as ratings for predicted reliability and owner satisfaction, which are based on survey data from our CR members. We don’t collect reliability data for handheld vacuums because consumers tend to replace rather than repair handheld vacs, given their relatively modest price.
BEST TIME TO BUY:
