Best Deals on Vacuums

This Black+Decker POWERSERIES Extreme BSV2020P vacuum performs well in CR’s tests overall but struggled at edge cleaning. A few pluses: It’s self-standing, has a brush on/off switch, and features a filter cleaning dial that empties the filter dust into the dustbin to prevent your hands from getting dirty. In CR tests, it runs for about 30 minutes per charge on low and 10 minutes on the high setting. The batteries can be used in other Black + Decker products. A few caveats: If you grab the dustbin while vacuuming, it may disengage. The vac is also a bit wobbly in self-standing mode.

The Shark Vertex Pro IZ662H is at the best price we’ve seen this year, and only $20 more than its Black Friday price. In addition to the low price, we like its many features. The wand can be bent to reach underneath furniture better, and the vacuum itself folds to allow for more compact storage. While it’s only decent at cleaning carpets, the vacuum shines in cleaning up pet hair and bare, uncarpeted floors. The price for this vacuum fluctuates—it was just $279 in the beginning of February, so you may want to wait and keep an eye on it.

We’ve seen the Shark Stratos IZ862H as low as $250 around Black Friday, but that big of a discount isn’t likely going to come around anytime soon, so now’s a good chance to buy this vacuum. It has Shark’s signature DuoClean brush roll and a flexible wand for reaching under furniture. It earns top scores for cleaning bare floors and removing debris along edges. But if you have carpet, it’s only so-so. A dirt sensor increases suction when the vacuum senses debris and decreases when the floor is clean. It also has a self-cleaning mechanism that prevents hair from getting tangled around the brush roll.

The Miele Duoflex scores well in nearly all of our cleaning tests. It’s excellent at cleaning debris from bare floors as well as picking up pet hair. It’s only so-so at vacuuming dirt from carpets, but that’s not uncommon for stick vacs, which aren’t as powerful as uprights. What stands out the most about this model is how easy it is to use; we like how simple it is to remove the vacuum’s dustbin and clean its filter.

The flexibility of the Miele Triflex HX2 is one of the things we enjoy the most about it. You can adjust the placement of the bin to either the top or bottom of the vacuum depending on the areas you’re cleaning in your home. You can also convert it into a hand vacuum. The vacuum is quiet and boasts exceptionally strong cleaning performance in our bare floors, edges, and pet hair tests.

If you dislike robovacs that are too noisy, the Eufy RoboVac 11S Max is the choice for you. It’s unobtrusively quiet, and it gets high scores for how well it can navigate through your home and avoid obstacles. While it’s only so-so at cleaning carpets, it’s impressive at picking up debris from bare floors. We like that its profile is slim, so that it can get underneath low furniture without getting stuck.

Its lowest price is $139, but Amazon’s price is the best you can get right now.

The iRobot Roomba Max 705 might be slightly more expensive than some other robots, but it’s the highest-performing one we’ve tested, which may be a reason to lay out the cash. This price just dropped $100 at Best Buy and iRobot, even lower than it was during the holidays, making it a great time to buy. It’s quiet and does well in every cleaning test we’ve thrown at it. It’s also outstanding at vacuuming up pet hair and is no slouch at cleaning carpets either, with a feature that increases suction power when it detects carpet. This vacuum is also better than many other robotic vacuums at navigating spaces and avoiding obstacles.

The GorFanty 10-in-1 MultiPurpose is an excellent cleaner with a decent steam rate. It takes only 20 seconds for the steam mop to produce steam, and its steam can last for around 10 minutes on its maximum setting. We like that you can adjust the length of the mop to accommodate people of different heights. The mop comes with plenty of accessories, including attachments for cleaning tile grout, clothes, furniture, windows, and carpets.

It’s hard to find fault with the Tineco Floor One S5, which is exemplary at cleaning stains off of ceramic tiles and producing steam. It also scores a very good rating on our convenience test, meaning it’s easy and comfortable to use.

True to its name, the Kenmore Elite Pet Friendly 31150 is very good at vacuuming up pet hair. It nailed our bare-floor cleaning tests and is impressive at cleaning carpets as well. If you’re looking for a vacuum with strong suction, this model has the most powerful hose suction among the uprights we’ve tested. But it’s not exactly lightweight—it weighs 21 pounds—and some of our members have complained about the hose being too short. It’s worth noting, however, that we found this model’s hose length to be roughly average for its category.

It’s now $30 less than it was earlier this month, and $15 less than we’ve seen all year.

Consistent with its moniker, the Bissell Pet Hair Eraser erased any evidence of pet hair from test carpets. It wasn’t the most powerful vacuum, but testers like the lighted crevice tool and the lights on the side of the vacuum that make it easier to see debris along edges. This model also has a lift-off feature which allows the user to convert the vacuum to canister mode.

The bagless Shark Navigator Lift-Away NV352 is a great vacuum—if you don’t have pets. It’s relatively weak at suctioning up pet hair, but it’s stellar at picking up debris from bare floors and very good at cleaning carpets. It also does a solid job at capturing all the dust it picks up, which is a plus if you have allergies or other respiratory issues.

Right now, it’s $20 less than its typical price.

For those looking for a vacuum that cleans carpets well, the bagless Shark Navigator Professional NV360 sucks up detritus from carpets better than all the other vacuums in the upright category. It’s also superb at picking up pet hair. One of our favorite features of this model is its lift-away functionality. You can detach the vacuum "pod" to allow for easier cleaning of stairs and the spaces under your furniture. As a brand, Shark vacuums get solid ratings in reliability and top-mark scores in owner satisfaction based on our member surveys.

If you don’t have a lot of carpets at home, it’s worth considering the Shark Rotator Powered Lift-Away NV752, which is excellent at cleaning bare surfaces. It’s one of the quieter upright vacuums we tested, and it also scores well for picking up pet hair. The vacuum comes with LED headlights, which can spotlight any debris on the floor while you’re cleaning.

The Bissell CrossWave Cordless Max Multi-Surface Wet Dry Vac Mop (try saying that three times fast) is one of three combo-vacuum mops in our ratings that can run without dispensing liquid. The Bissell is best at dry pickup and stain removal, scoring only middling scores for wet pickup, ease of cleaning, and run time. It’s already one of the more affordable models in our ratings, so this price makes it an even more attractive option.

This Kenmore 200 Series 81214 performs quite well in CR cleaning tests, with a strong score for cleaning carpets and suction power, while its ability to clean bare floors and pet hair is stellar. Negatives? Handling is average, and it’s one of the noisier canisters. Differences from the 400 Series: the on/off switch is on the body, it has a different type of suction control, and there’s no telescopic wand.

While the Kenmore Elite Pet Friendly CrossOver 21814 might be on the heavier side at 26 pounds, it makes up for it with its strong performance. Compared to other vacuums we test, it’s especially good at cleaning carpets and bare floors. Its suction power also earned an excellent score, the highest in its category.

The Miele Blizzard CX1 Cat & Dog is on the pricey side, but it’s one of the best canisters you can buy. It’s a top-grade performer in our bare-floor and pet-hair tests, but it’s not as great when it comes to cleaning carpet. This vacuum also performs well in our clean emissions tests; it doesn’t release debris back into the air of the room you just cleaned. Miele vacuums have a devoted following, and in our member surveys, the brand earns top scores for predicted reliability and owner satisfaction.

If you don’t mind the fact that the Bissell TurboClean PowerBrush 2987 Carpet Cleaner is noisy, this model is great at cleaning and will keep your carpets dry. It earned a very good score for convenience and has tanks for clean and dirty water.

The Hoover PowerDash Pet Advanced performs very well in all our tests for cleaning, dryness, and convenience, though it’s noisier than some other models. It lacks a carrying handle, but it weighs 14 pounds when empty and 19 pounds when full, making it fairly easy to maneuver. It cleans just 7 square feet of carpet per tank of solution, but its 8-foot hose gives you lots of room to work without constantly moving the machine. It has separate tanks for clean and dirty water, and it comes with a special pet tool attachment.

The Dirt Devil Compact Portable Spot Cleaner is a light little carpet cleaner at just 9 pounds with a full tank of solution. While the portable cleaners in our tests don’t measure up to full-sized machines in terms of their cleaning abilities, this model did well, especially when it comes to drying. It’s also one of the quieter models we tested. The tank isn’t huge (partly why the cleaner is so light), but if you’re just using it for spills and spot-cleaning, this model will do the trick.

A high performer among the portable carpet cleaners we tested (which, as a group, clean less effectively than full-sized machines), the Shark StainStriker PX201 Carpet Cleaner is decent at cleaning stains and impressive at removing cleaning solutions from carpets, leaving them dry. We also gave it a very good score for convenience, which combines cord length, weight, and ease of filling and emptying. It comes with a 57-inch hose and other attachments, including pet tools.

The corded Shark PowerDetect HZ4002 offers top-notch cleaning for bare floors and pet hair and performs above average on carpet. It features an auto-detect mode that adjusts the brush roll speed to the surface, transitioning efficiently between carpet and hard floors. It also has two brush rolls: one with rubber fins for optimal contact with surfaces and a soft roller to capture small particles. It can be pulled apart for compact storage, allowing it to stand on its own and take up minimal space. This model even boasts the ability to deliver powerful suction in the reverse direction for more efficient cleaning in both forward and backward motion. In our member surveys, Shark corded vacuums earn a top-level mark for predicted reliability and a near-top-level mark for owner satisfaction.

The Shark Rocket HV301 comes with a 30-foot cord and can be converted into a hand vacuum, adding to its convenience. You can hang the hand vacuum on the bottom of the wand for easier storage. We found this vacuum to be excellent at sucking up debris from bare floors and picking up pet hair. It also does a decent job of cleaning carpets.