Choosing the Best Vacuum Cleaner

Below, we take a closer look at specific types of vacuums to help you identify the right one for you. For more general guidance about vacuums, read on for how to pick one and why you can trust CR’s ratings, tests, and surveys.

Almost half of the vacuums on the market today are uprights, according to NPD, a market research group. It’s easy to see why: These full-sized vacuums cut a wide cleaning swath, they’re easy to store (most stand up on their own), and they do a great job of deep cleaning both carpets and hardwoods. 

“With the full weight of the vacuum sitting over the power brush, you can more easily push it down into the carpet pile to suck up the debris caught deep inside,” says Frank Rizzi, a senior lab technician for CR who tests vacuums. However, uprights tend to be bulky, which can make them difficult to lug from floor to floor, and they’re a tad noisy compared with some other models.

For specifics, check out the best upright vacuums and our full ratings of upright vacuums.

• Carpet. We adapt an industry-standard test to lift 10 grams of surface talc and 90 grams of embedded sand from a medium-pile carpet. The soiled carpet and vacuum are weighed to get a baseline measurement. After a specific series of back-and-forth strokes across the test area in a climate-controlled chamber, the carpet and vacuum are weighed again to determine precisely how much debris was cleaned up.
• Bare floors. Test technicians measure out 40 grams of sand and sprinkle it evenly over hard-surface flooring. The empty vacuum is weighed, passed over the debris field once in both directions, and weighed again to determine how much it sucked up.
• Tool airflow. The hose of each model is rigged up to a pressure gauge and the level of airflow is measured at three stages: with the vacuum bag or bin empty, with it filled with 100 grams of wood flour, and again with a total of 200 grams of wood flour. Vacuums are rated on how much suction they maintain and how strong the airflow is relative to other models.
• Emissions. Testing is conducted in a sealed test chamber with controlled environmental conditions. Technicians fill each vacuum with 50 grams of wood flour and run it with the powerhead off the floor, using a laser spectrometer to measure the particle concentration—down to 0.1 micrometer—released by the bag or the bin into the room. Our testers then run the same vacuum over a medium-pile carpet scattered with an additional 20 grams of wood flour, and measure the air again for released particles due to brush agitation.
• Pet hair. First, technicians take 5-gram bags of long fur from Maine coon cats and scatter and embed it into medium-pile carpet. Then they make multiple passes with the test vacuum to see how much of the hair it picks up. Vacuums with an excellent rating collect all the fur in the bag or bin. Average vacs leave behind visible patches or fur becomes entangled in the brush.

What makes canister vacs distinct is their design. Because the weight is distributed between the canister itself and the powerhead, they’re easier to move around than upright vacuums, which is ideal if you live in a house with multiple levels. Canister vacs do a good job of cleaning bare floors, stairs, and under furniture, and some are very good at cleaning carpets, too. 

For specifics, check out the best canister vacuums and our full ratings of canister vacuums.

Canister vacuums undergo the same series of tests as upright models (see above).

Stick vacuums are compact, easy to use, and lightweight, making them an ideal choice for quick cleanups that avoid lugging around a heavier full-sized vacuum cleaner. Many also rival the surface-cleaning performance of upright and canister vacuum cleaners. Stick vacs come in both corded and battery-powered, cordless models. (Cordless models dominate the market.) Some convert to a handheld vacuum as well. And some come with handy features, such as a motorized small brush accessory or a sensor that detects the amount of debris and adapts the machine’s suction power accordingly.

For specifics, check out the best stick vacuums and our full ratings of corded stick vacuums and cordless stick vacuums.

• Bare floors. In separate tests, we scatter cereal, rice, and sand on a section of laminate flooring. We make four swipes to remove the cereal and rice, and two to pick up the sand. We weigh the vacuum before and after to calculate how much debris was removed.
• Pet hair. We embed 1 gram of Maine coon cat hair in a medium-pile carpet and then see how many vacuum strokes it takes to remove it, with a maximum of five. We note the number of strokes as well as how much fur, if any, is left behind on the carpet or in the brush roll. 
• Carpeting. We embed 100 grams of sand into a carpet, then vacuum over it on high speed for 16 strokes using a strobe light to highlight the test area. We weigh the vacuum before and after.
• Run time. To test battery life, we run the cordless vacs on high and then again on low until the battery is depleted, and then note the times. If the vacuum has a medium setting (not every vacuum does), we test that, too.
• Edges. Technicians scatter sand in a corner along a simulated baseboard of a tile floor and measure how well a vacuum picks up the grains in one pass by comparing the weight of the vacuum before and after the test.
• Emissions. Our technicians fill the bag or bin of each stick vacuum with 20 grams of wood flour, run it with the brush off the floor in a sealed chamber, and use a laser spectrometer to measure the particle concentration—down to 0.1 micrometer—released into the room. Our testers then run the same vacuum over a medium-pile carpet scattered with an additional 20 grams of wood flour and measure the air again for released particles due to brush agitation.

Although the performance of cordless stick vacuums continues to improve, reliability remains a concern with these battery-powered cleaners. Because of poor reliability scores in CR’s member surveys, we don’t recommend any cordless models currently, despite some of them scoring well in other lab tests. 

That said, corded stick vacuums have their own flaws. They’re mainly suited for picking up surface litter and aren’t intended as a replacement for a conventional vacuum. Also, the capacity of their dirt bin is typically small (some have small bags instead of bins), most are fairly noisy, and having a cord may offset their convenience.

Looking for a lightweight vacuum that can quickly dispatch a small amount of debris in a particular area on short-pile carpets and bare floors? A handheld vacuum might fit the bill. It’s a cinch to handle and is versatile. You can use it to attack the mess that accumulates in the back seat of your SUV as easily as hard-to-reach corners in your kitchen. But handheld vacuums aren’t intended for deep cleaning because they lack the power and capacity of full-sized upright or canister models. 

For specifics, check out the best handheld vacuums and our full ratings of handheld vacuums.

Handhelds aren’t as powerful as larger vacuums or sticks, so our tests are easier—though still tough enough to reveal differences in performance among models.

• Carpet. On medium-pile carpet, each hand vac undergoes three single-ingredient trials in which it has to pick up Cheerios (25 grams), sand (50 grams), and rice (50 grams). For the Cheerios, we time how long it takes to get them all. The best hand vac finished in 8 seconds and the worst took 35 seconds (it clogged). For the sand and rice, models are graded on how much they can pick up in 15 seconds.
• Bare floors. The procedure is the same as for carpet testing, except it’s done on a tiled floor.
• Edges. Technicians measure how far a hand vacuum can reach under a piece of furniture and into a crevice.
• Pet hair. Technicians spread 1 gram of Maine coon cat fur on medium-pile carpet, make 14 back-and-forth strokes, then inspect and rate the cleanliness of the rug and the vacuum’s brush roll.

A robotic vacuum won’t totally replace your trusty upright or canister vacuum, each of which is better at deep cleaning hardwood and carpet. But it can be just the thing for touch-ups in between regular manual vacuuming sessions. Many models can be controlled via a smartphone app. And top performers can find their way out of tight spots and around extension cords. You will need to do some prep work in moving clothes, toys, and other objects on the carpet before sending out the vacuum.

For specifics, check out the best robot vacuums and our full ratings of robot vacuums.

• Carpet. For surface cleaning, technicians disperse 20 grams of cereal, 30 grams of rice, and 20 grams of yellow peas across a 4x5-foot framed test area of medium-pile carpet. Then they measure how much of the debris is captured during a 10-minute period. For embedded dirt, technicians embed 75 grams of flour across a section of test carpet, let the vacuum run in the area for 3 minutes, and then weigh the amount of flour it picked up. Human hair is embedded into the same section of test carpet. Technicians time how long it takes for the vacuum to pick up the hair and weigh the amount of hair that’s in the dirt bin and the brush roll.
• Bare floors. Technicians spread 0.75 gram of sand over laminate flooring in a 4x5-foot framed test area and measure the amount the vacuum picks up in a 10-minute period.
• Navigation. Technicians attach a tracking device to the vacuum and map its movement through a multiroom lab. Then they calculate the coverage of the room over multiple runs and note what the vacuum avoids and what it doesn’t. They conduct several runs to see whether the vacuum is able to learn the layout and improve its navigation. In a separate 4x5-foot framed area, they note whether the vacuum gets caught on power cords or carpet fringe and whether it can transition over different materials. They also measure the height of the vacuum to determine how likely it is to glide under furniture.
• Ease of use. This score is a combination of many factors, such as the size of the dustbin, whether it has a handle for carrying it around your home, how easy it is to clean the brush roll, whether it scatters debris, and whether you can schedule the robotic vacuum for routine cleaning.
• Data privacy and security. Our experts use The Digital Standard, an open-source set of criteria for evaluating digital products and services that CR created with other organizations to conduct security and privacy tests. We score robotic vacuums on more than 70 indicators.

Unlike a traditional vacuum that you can move from room to room, a central vacuum’s main power unit is installed in a basement or garage, where its large debris container remains stationary. Section tubes are installed at various points of the home that connect with the power unit. With no vacuum body to pull along, you carry only an attached hose and powerhead. Central vacs are quiet at the point of use, and their dirt chambers don’t need to be emptied very often. But they’re also pricey, they require professional installation, and their long hoses can be cumbersome to wield. (CR doesn’t test central vacuum cleaners.)

There are some baseline considerations you’ll want to weigh for all types of vacuums. Below, we outline those considerations across design, specs, and common features, and how various brands are different.

The first consideration when picking a vacuum is the type of flooring in your home. If you have a lot of carpeting, you’ll need an upright or canister vacuum for deep cleaning. If you have mostly hard-surface flooring, you might be able to use a stick or robotic vacuum for light cleaning jobs. 

• Vacuum size. Start by determining the style of vacuum that you need. Vacuums fall into one of two broad categories: large and small. Large, or full-sized, vacuums include canisters and uprights, the most powerful type, and are best for larger homes and spaces. Small vacuums include stick vacuums, handhelds, and robotic vacuums. 
• Vacuum weight. Pushing and pulling a heavy machine can be strenuous, especially if you’re going to be lugging a vacuum cleaner up and down stairs to clean multiple floors. If that’s a concern, you can filter our ratings by weight. For example, here are canister vacuums that weigh less than 25 pounds. (The best performers tend to be heavier.)
• Pet friendliness. Pet owners, take note: Certain vacuums do a better job than others at removing pet hair. Upright and canister vacuum cleaners that excel at regular jobs typically test best in show for picking up pet hair. You can filter our ratings to find the best vacuum cleaners for pet hair removal. For example, here are the best upright vacuums for pet hair removal.
• Noise level. Even the quietest vacuums that CR tests make plenty of noise, but some keep the volume down to an acceptably dull roar. If you’re looking for a less noisy model, check out our list of the quietest canister vacuums.  
• Reliability. Vacuums aren’t problem-free. We’ve surveyed CR members about the reliability of over 110,000 vacuums. Based on our survey results, we’ve identified the most—and least—reliable vacuum cleaners.
• Maneuverability. Even if you order online, go to a store first to test-drive various models. Push, pull, turn, and lift the vacuum cleaners you’re considering. Check out the controls and features. If you find a lower price online, see whether the walk-in store will match it.

At CR we attach an Overall Score to each vacuum based on a calculation of its ratings across a battery of tests and survey data regarding its reliability and owner satisfaction.

To determine the Overall Score of a vacuum, we calculate how well it scores across a variety of tests, as well as what longtime vacuum owners have said about its reliability and their satisfaction with the product. All of this information gets crunched by our engineers into a single Overall Score. Our ratings pages showcase some of the specific test results that inform them.  

To determine how well a vacuum cleans, we conduct a different set of tests on each vacuum type, based on what they’re designed to clean. Above, we describe those specific tests. Below are some baseline testing techniques and specifications that CR test engineers follow when testing all vacuums.

Vacuums that perform well but don’t hold up over time aren’t winners, so we incorporate predicted reliability and owner satisfaction ratings from our exclusive member surveys into that comprehensive Overall Score, which helps us determine which are the most reliable vacuum brands.

To calculate reliability, we survey our members about the vacuums they own, then use that data to make projections about how new models from a given brand will hold up over time. Predicted reliability estimates the likelihood that newly purchased vacuums from a given brand will develop problems or break within the first five years for nonrobotic vacuums and within the first three years for robotic vacuums. (Note: CR doesn’t currently collect reliability data for handheld vacuums.) 

Owner satisfaction reflects the proportion of CR members who are extremely likely to recommend the vacuum they bought.

A note on the reliability of stick vacuums: Consumer Reports doesn’t currently recommend any cordless stick vacuums because of the generally high incidence of problems reported by our members. The problems can include batteries that diminish in power over time or die completely. Such problems are particularly acute by the fifth year of ownership. While there are cordless stick vac brands in our ratings that earn high performance scores, none rate high enough for predicted reliability to be recommended by Consumer Reports at this time.