6 Best Handheld Vacuums of 2025, Lab-Tested and Reviewed
The best handheld vacs—from brands like Black+Decker, Dyson, and Shark—clean small messes quickly, and are easy to handle
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If convenience is what you value in your vacuuming, you should consider a handheld vacuum. While they don’t possess the suction power of an upright, a canister, or stick vac, these tools are perfect for spot-cleaning. You can use a hand vac to clean the inside of your car or get into crevices such as the space in between your couch cushions. And if you’re a parent of young children, a light, convenient handheld vac will help you tackle spills quickly.
But which handheld vac should you go for? To find out which are the best, we put them through lab tests that evaluate their proficiency at cleaning up small messes like Cheerios strewn under and around a high chair or the mess that accumulates in the back seat of your SUV. The best handheld vacuums are able to pick up debris of varying sizes without scattering it or pushing it around without actually removing it. They also don’t easily clog. What’s more, most weigh under 3 pounds, making them easy to handle and store.
All of the models in our handheld vacuum ratings have longer-lasting lithium-ion batteries, and the run times for the models in our tests range from 9 to 24 minutes. (We calculate the run times by averaging how long the vacuum can run on one battery charge on its highest power setting.) A number of new models come with convenient attachments, including tools for cleaning crevices.
Below, we’ve listed six of our top-rated handheld vacuums, which score the highest in our tests, in alphabetical order. Scroll down to find out more details about how we test them. If you’re looking for a more powerful vacuum, consider our picks of the best stick vacuums or even trade up to a full-sized canister vacuum or upright vacuum.
What stands out the most about the Dyson Car+Boat 586119-01 is its run time. In its high power mode, this model can run for approximately 24 minutes, the longest of all the handheld vacuums we tested. It excels at picking up pet hair and vacuuming debris from bare floors, though it’s not as effective at getting into narrow spaces. The pistol-style grip is unique among the vacuums we’ve tested and might be easier to hold and use for some people. However, it’s one of the heavier handheld vacuums we’ve tried, weighing 4 pounds, and it tends to be pricey compared with some competitors.
The inexpensive Black+Decker DustBuster CHV1410L picks up almost all the debris in our bare floor and carpet tests—no small feat for a handheld vacuum. The filter is snugly set inside the dustbin and is easy to remove and empty. This model doesn’t come with detachable tools but has a built-in slide-out crevice tool and a pop-out brush. It’s a little noisier than the competition, making a light whistling sound when you turn it on.
With a built-in hose, the compact, cord-free Black+Decker Flex BDH2020FL easily suctions up debris in hard-to-reach places, like under a child’s car seat or behind your washer. It earns a stellar rating for cleaning edges and tight spaces. It also comes with a rubber pet-hair attachment that helps remove more hair without it getting stuck. Our testers like how you can store all the vacuum’s attachments in the charging dock, making this model a space-saver. One glitch is that this vacuum sometimes shuts down while vacuuming large amounts of fine particles—restart it, and the vac gets right back to work like nothing happened.
The cordless Black+Decker DustBuster Ion HHVI315JO42 is top-notch at cleaning bare floors and pet hair and earns a respectable rating for vacuuming carpeted surfaces. It’s also one of the least expensive options among our top-rated handheld vacs. The crevice tool and dust brush are separate and not combination tools like those on other Black+Decker handhelds. On the downside, there’s no battery indicator light, making it difficult to know whether this hand vac is fully charged, or about to die mid-cleanup.
The Black+Decker Max+ DustBuster AdvancedClean+ HHVK515J00 is a good choice if you have bare floors, and it delivers solid results when cleaning carpets. If pet hair is your nemesis, however, you should try another model on this list, such as the Shark Ion or Black+Decker Flex. This Black+Decker earns an excellent rating for cleaning narrow spaces and comes with attachments to help it reach into tighter corners, such as the cushions of your car seats. It’s one of the quieter handhelds in our tests.
This is the highest-scoring handheld vac in our tests, and for good reason. Not all handheld vacuums can tackle pet hair well, but the Shark Ion aces that task. 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 of its attachments can be stored on the charging base, making it a real space-saver. And at just 1.4 pounds, it’s one of the lightest hand vacs 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.
How CR Tests Handheld Vacuums
To rate handheld vacuums, we test models on their ability to clean up debris on carpet, bare floors, and edges. For example, one of our tests for surface cleaning involves dispersing Cheerios and noting how long it takes the vacuum to pick them all up. We also examine their loudness, how long they run on a single charge, and how well they clean up pet hair, among other things
To learn more about how we rate and test handheld vacuums, check our vacuum cleaner buying guide, or take a peek into our labs to see our testing process.
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