The Best Vacuum Cleaners Of 2025, Reviewed By Home Experts

Style: Stick | Weight: 6.8 pounds | Corded: No | Dustbin capacity: 0.2 gallons | HEPA filter: Yes | Attachments: Anti-tangle laser brush heads, hair screw tool, crevice tool | Warranty: 2 years

What you’ll love:

• Cord-free, lightweight body helps with cleaning tricky areas
• Laser highlights dust you wouldn’t normally see
• Suction adjusts automatically based on mess level
• Comes with a wall mount

Keep in mind:

• Not ideal for larger homes or those with high-pile carpeting

We’ve tested dozens of vacuums over the years, and the Dyson V15 Detect still stands out as the best all-around option. It’s lightweight, powerful and built to handle everyday messes and deeper cleans. Also our home editors’ pick for the best Dyson vacuum overall, the V15 Detect comes with two cleaning heads—one for carpets and one for hardwood—along with attachments for pet hair, fine dust and tight spaces.

But possibly the most outstanding feature is its dust illumination, according to Brinda Ayer, editorial director of Forbes Vetted and a weekly user of the V15 Detect. “It shines a green laser light in the vacuum’s path that illuminates the floor—and all of the gnarly debris that is hard to see with the naked eye—so you can really make sure you are getting a good clean.” This is particularly helpful for pet owners like senior strategy editor Katie Simpson, who lives with her English cream golden retriever: “It’s super easy to see hair accumulation on our hardwood floors.” Plus, the real-time dirt tracking lets you see how much dust and debris is being picked up on the digital display.

Style: Upright, bagless | Weight: 15.9 pounds | Corded: Yes | Dustbin capacity: 0.2 gallons | HEPA filter: Yes | Attachments: Upholstery tool, crevice tool | Warranty: 5 years (limited)

What you’ll love:

• Strong suction and auto brushroll shutoff for various floor types
• Lift-away canister makes stairs and upholstery easier to clean
• Fully sealed HEPA filtration system helps with allergies
• Lighter than many other vacuums in its class

Keep in mind:

• Hose could be longer
• Long pet hair may wrap around the brushroll

If you want a solid upright vacuum that doesn’t cost a fortune, the Shark Navigator Lift-Away Deluxe is one of the best values out there due to its powerful, consistent suction. In fact, this is a standout feature for Margaret Badore, Forbes Vetted’s baby and kids gear editor: “I’ve been impressed by the Shark Navigator’s suction, particularly its ability to pick up cat hair from rugs and upholstery.” 

Another big highlight is the lift-away canister that detaches from the base, which, combined with this vacuum’s handy swivel steering, makes cleaning stairs, furniture and other hard-to-reach areas a lot simpler. And while one drawback is that the hose for the handheld attachment isn’t as long as it could be, Badore says it’s a minor con. She also appreciates how easy it is to empty the dust canister without spilling.

Style: Upright, bagless | Weight: 17.3 pounds | Corded: Yes | Dustbin capacity: 0.5 gallons | HEPA filter: Yes | Attachments: Tangle-free turbine tool, pet groom tool, tool holder, stair tool, combination tool | Warranty: 5 years (limited)

What you’ll love:

• Powerful suction lifts hair from carpets and hard floors
• Self-cleaning brushroll prevents tangles
• Whole-machine HEPA filtration traps particles and allergens
• Pet groom tool lets you remove loose fur directly from your dog

Keep in mind:

• Heavier than most vacuums
• Might be too strong for thin rugs or carpets

Most vacuums can handle pet hair, but few are actually built for it. The Dyson Ball Animal 3 Extra falls into the second category, picking up fur, dander and dust with industrial-strength suction. Our top-choice vacuum for pet hair is especially effective on plush carpets and large areas that need a deep clean. And unlike most uprights that struggle with long hair, this one actively prevents tangles: Its brushroll clears itself as you vacuum so you don’t have to stop and cut out knots of fur.

It’s not just for floors, either. The tangle-free turbine tool easily pulls pet hair from couches, car seats and other upholstery, while the pet groom tool actually lets you remove loose fur directly from your dog. (If your pup isn’t a fan of loud noises, this attachment might not be for you.) Dyson’s signature whole-machine HEPA filtration also helps trap pet dander and allergens, keeping the air cleaner as you vacuum. At 17 pounds, this isn’t the lightest vacuum we’ve ever used, and the ball-style steering can take some getting used to. But for pet owners dealing with relentless shedding, it’s one of the most effective tools for deep cleaning every area of your home. 

Expert tip: If you’re looking for a robot vacuum for pet hair to pick up fur in between deep cleans, we recommend the self-emptying iRobot Roomba j7+. During our testing, this model scored top marks in obstacle avoidance, steering clear of toys and pet messes with ease.

Style: Upright, bagged | Weight: 14 pounds | Corded: Yes | Dustbin capacity: 0.8 gallons | HEPA filter: Yes | Attachments: 3-in-1 combination tool, pet tool, dusting brush | Warranty: 5 years (limited)

What you’ll love:

• Powerful suction and attachments make it particularly effective on rugs, upholstery and pet hair
• Lightweight and easy to maneuver, thanks to lift-up technology
• Easily transitions between floor types
• Hands-free bag emptying

Keep in mind:

• Position of dust bin makes fitting under furniture tricky
• Not as effective on hard floors as it is on carpets

The Kenmore Intuition’s combination of versatile design, slew of additional features and ample suction power makes it one of the best-value vacuums for those with carpeted homes. Our tester experienced this power firsthand: “During testing, I could feel the vacuum’s strong suction forming a solid seal with the carpet, easily picking up debris of all sizes in a single pass—making it one of the top performers among all the vacuums I tried,” she reports. Further, the Intuition’s strong suction is designed to remain even as the bag fills up, so you’ll get efficient cleaning up until the “empty bag” indicator light turns on. And while you might expect this vacuum cleaner to be quite heavy considering its impressive power, the Intuition only weighs 14 pounds. Its light weight, swivel steering and “lift-up” technology (which turns the machine into a portable pod, similar to Shark’s Lift-Away vacuums) lets you clean stairs, elevated surfaces and tricky-to-access areas much more easily. 

Pet parents will also appreciate this bagged upright’s no-touch (read: mess-free) emptying process; the dust bags are self-sealing, so the only thing you’ll touch is a button to discard the contained dirt and debris. Furthermore, it’s equipped with an AllergenSeal HEPA filtration system, meaning it captures 99.97% of allergens like pet hair, dander and pollen. (Bonus: You’ll also get a year’s worth of replacement HEPA bags with your purchase.) We’d be remiss not to highlight the Intuition’s other helpful tools that offer a lot more value than its price tag suggests: Its LED headlight illuminates hard-to-see dirt and debris, and the oversized upholstery brush, according to our tester, “is nearly 8 inches wide—twice the size of most other brushes I tested. This made it much faster to clean my sofa and other furniture.”

Style: Upright, bagless | Weight: 17.6 pounds | Corded: Yes | Dustbin capacity: 0.5 gallons | HEPA filter: Yes | Attachments: Crevice tool, extension wand, hose, nozzle, pet grooming tool, upholstery tool | Warranty: 5 years

What you’ll love:

• Excellent suction across various surfaces
• DuoClean Detect technology automatically adjusts suction and brushroll speed
• Highly effective at capturing dirt and pet hair embedded in carpets
• Includes four helpful attachments and headlight

Keep in mind:

• It’s the heaviest vacuum on this list
• Cord could be longer and isn’t retractable

The Shark PowerDetect Upright Vacuum “blew away” our panel tester thanks to its cleaning performance and versatility, excelling on both carpets and hard floors. “It never needed more than two passes to pick up any type of debris, thanks to Shark’s dual-brushroll design,” she reports. Specifically, the PowerDetect Upright made easy work of uncooked grains of rice and cat litter on hard surfaces without scattering them; it also sucked up a “surprising amount” of pet hair and debris from an area rug that another upright she tested had missed. Our panelist adds, “Despite collecting multiple canisters full of dog hair from my two golden retrievers, the brushroll never got tangled, and the dustbin was always easy to empty.”

One of the PowerDetect’s unique features is the so-called DuoClean Detect nozzle, which uses multiple sensors to pinpoint hidden dirt, then automatically increases suction and adjusts brushroll speed accordingly—regardless of floor type, whether you’re cleaning edges or corners, or vacuuming forward or backward. Beyond this intelligent cleaning, this vacuum offers three other cleaning modes that target either hard floors, low-pile carpet or high-pile carpet. Several features will also please pet owners, in particular: This upright vac is equipped with a self-cleaning brushroll, odor-neutralizing technology and an Anti-Allergen Complete Seal with HEPA filtration. And our tester highlights Shark’s Lift-Away technology, which let her detach the canister body from the base while still using the floorhead: “This made it simple to clean under low-profile furniture like my sofa—a task most full-size vacuums struggle with.”

Style: Stick | Weight: 7.7 pounds | Corded: No | Dustbin capacity: 0.2 gallons | HEPA filter: Yes | Attachments: Digital motorbar head, Fluffy Optic head, hair screw tool, built-in crevice and dusting tool | Warranty: 2 years (limited)

What you’ll love:

• More powerful than previous Dyson cordless models
• LCD screen tracks dirt levels and battery life in real time
• Hair screw tool helps remove pet hair without tangles
• On/off button instead of trigger-style button prevents hand cramps

Keep in mind:

• Cleaner head wheel isn’t as durable as other parts
• The most expensive vacuum on our list

Dyson Gen5detect takes battery-powered vacuums to the next level with more power and smarter features. It has even stronger suction than previous Dyson models and up to 70 minutes of run time, which is a decent jump from the Dyson V15 Detect. “It easily tackled large and small debris in just one or two passes,” says Forbes Vetted home and kitchen editor Sholeen Damarwala. 

The Gen5detect also takes the guesswork out of cleaning: For instance, the Digital Motorbar head automatically adjusts to rugs, and the laser head (like the V15 Detect) highlights hidden dust on hardwood. Its LCD screen also tracks the volume of dust being picked up in real time, as well as battery life and whether the filter needs to be replaced. 

Style: Stick | Weight: 9.3 pounds | Corded: Yes | Dustbin capacity: 0.2 gallons | HEPA filter: Yes | Attachments: Crevice tool, upholstery tool, onboard storage clip, pet power brush | Warranty: 5 years

What you’ll love:

• Equally powerful suction on carpets and hard floors
• Three types of smart sensors let you customize cleaning
• Vacuum is self-standing and weighs less than 10 pounds
• Built-in odor control is effective

Keep in mind:

• Dust bin is relatively small
• Cord feels thick and stiff, which may affect maneuverability

Shark’s PowerDetect Ultra-Light Corded Stick Vacuum offers a lot of the benefits its upright version (above) does—powerful suction, Detect technology, HEPA filtration and a self-cleaning brushroll—but in a more compact form. Just like the upright, this 9-pound corded stick model uses various sensors to automatically adjust the brushroll spin speed based on floor type while maintaining suction strength, whether you’re pushing or pulling the vacuum. And compared with cordless stick vacuums, this corded model is both more powerful and won’t need mid-clean recharging, not to mention it can stand upright on its own.

Beyond its power and smart technology, the PowerDetect Ultra-Light is also designed to help keep your home free of smells and allergens, making it another great pick for pet parents. For instance, this model has an odor neutralizer (helpful when vacuuming things like cat litter) as well as an Anti-Allergen Complete Seal with HEPA filtration to capture particles and allergens like dust and dander. Other features that contribute to this vacuum’s versatility are its low-profile design, swivel steering and detachable body for cleaning hard-to-reach spots. Note, however, that the one thing you’d be sacrificing by going with this version versus the bagless upright is its comparatively small dust bin—that said, it’s quite intuitive to empty.

Style: Canister, bagged | Weight: 16.1 pounds | Corded: Yes | Dustbin capacity: 1.2 gallons | HEPA filter: Yes | Attachments: Turbo Brush floorhead, Parquet Twister floorhead, dusting brush, upholstery nozzle, crevice tool | Warranty: 3 years (limited)

What you’ll love:

• Strong, adjustable suction for carpets and hard floors
• HEPA filter and sealed bag system minimizes allergen exposure
• Large dustbin capacity of 1.2 gallons
• Extra-long 36-foot cord makes it easy to maneuver 

Keep in mind:

• Bulkier than a cordless or upright vacuum

While canister vacuums don't always get the most attention, they offer serious cleaning power—and the Complete C3 Calima from the trusted German appliance brand Miele is proof.". According to Kessman, canister vacuums tend to be among the most versatile; indeed, the C3 Calima is well equipped for both carpets and hard floors, with a Turbo Brush floorhead that lifts pet hair and debris from rugs and a Parquet Twister head that’s gentle on wood and tile. Canister vacs are also ideal for deep-cleaning hardwood floors, Kessman says: The C3 Calima achieves this with its suction power controls (which you can conveniently adjust with a foot switch) and two floor heads, depending on whether you’re cleaning smooth floors or low-pile carpets.

This model also demonstrates just how seriously Miele takes filtration. Its sealed HEPA system captures fine dust and allergens before they ever have a chance to escape, making it an especially good choice for allergy sufferers. The self-sealing bag system also means you’ll have less mess (and floating particles) when emptying, since all the debris stays contained. And while canister vacuums can be bulkier than other types, the C3 Calima is surprisingly easy to maneuver. It features a 36-foot operating radius, smooth-rolling wheels and a flexible hose that lets you reach under furniture and around corners without too much effort.

Style: Robot vacuum and mop | Weight: 25 pounds | Corded: Dock only | Dustbin capacity: 0.1 gallons | HEPA filter: Yes | Attachments: Side brush (2-pack), antimicrobial mopping pads (2-pack) | Warranty: 1 year

What you’ll love:

• Effectively cleans a variety of debris, from cereal to syrup
• Advanced tech features are more user-friendly than similar competitors
• Excellent mopping compared to other vacuum-mop hybrids we tested
• Great value, considering its combo capabilities

Keep in mind:

• Mop pad drying function is noisy and could be more thorough
• App sometimes lags

With a price tag hovering around $1,000, Shark’s PowerDetect 2-In-1 hybrid robot vacuum and mop seems like a splurge—but our tester, who scored it highest of the 10 robots she tested, reports that it actually punches above its weight. Specifically, it efficiently handled various types of debris, from Cheerios to chocolate syrup to hair. Further, after mopping, she reports her floors feeling genuinely clean, thanks to the dual mop pads (“You can wash one and have one ready to go,” she says), and the fact that they actually remove messes instead of just wiping and smearing liquids. Our tester adds that its advanced technology—including 360-degree LiDAR mapping, obstacle avoidance and the aforementioned Detect technology—works effectively in tandem with those core features. For instance, during the coffee debris test, “I thought the Shark was going to leave behind a bit of a debris trail, but it came back and completed the job. … It seemed that the sensors detected the remaining mess and ensured it was cleaned up before heading back to the dock,” she reports. And in addition to using sensors to self-adjust its vacuuming and mopping performance depending on how messy or stained an area is, the robot can also lift its mop pad over carpets to prevent wet messes; it also uses air blasts and an extending mop pad for edges and corners. 

Lastly, it has other nice-to-have features like an intuitive and straightforward app, which our tester praises in comparison to interfaces from competitors like iRobot, Roborock and Dyson. It also offers hands-free features like a self-emptying dust bin and self-washing/drying mop pads, plus odor-neutralizing and HEPA technologies.

Style: Upright, wet-dry | Weight: 12.5 pounds | Corded: Yes | Dustbin capacity: 0.1 gallons (dirty tank), 0.2 gallons (clean tank) | HEPA filter: No | Extras: Tangle-free brushroll, multi-surface pet formula | Warranty: 3 years (limited)

What you’ll love:

• Steam function helps loosen dried-on messes
• Nice-to-have features like self-cleaning cycle and LED light
• Separate tanks keep clean and dirty water from mixing

Keep in mind:

• Quite loud at 85 decibels
• Requires more manual maintenance after each use than typical vacs

Most vacuum-mop combos can handle everyday spills, but the Bissell CrossWave HydroSteam is built for tougher messes. One of our panel testers reports, “It delivers impressive stain removal and suction power … and a solid cleaning performance.” That’s because this wet-dry machine vacuums, mops and uses the added power of steam to break down sticky or dried-on debris, so you don’t have to scrub by hand. That makes it especially useful in kitchens, entryways and other high-traffic areas where spills and grime build up. Because it’s designed for both hard floors and area rugs, this mop-vacuum combo can transition from tile or wood to carpeting without leaving behind excess moisture. The dual-tank system keeps clean and dirty water separate (so you’re never mopping with murky water), and the self-cleaning cycle helps prevent buildup inside the machine.

Pet owners in particular will appreciate the tangle-free brushroll, which helps prevent hair from wrapping around the roller, as well as the LED headlights, which make it easier to spot dust and debris. Just keep in mind that it’s on the heavier side, especially while using the mop feature, so it’s best suited for deeper cleans. It also operates quite loudly at 85 decibels, our tester notes.

Style: Handheld | Weight: 2.6 pounds | Corded: No | Dustbin capacity: 0.2 gallons | HEPA filter: Yes | Attachments: Motorized beater bar, crevice tool, dust brush | Warranty: 3 years (limited)

What you’ll love:

• Strong suction for pet hair and upholstery
• Motorized brush lifts debris from fabric and carpet
• Fast 45-minute recharge time

Keep in mind:

• Handle is larger than most handheld vacuums

Most handheld vacuums are designed for quick cleanups, but this one has the power to do more—garnering it the title of Best Handheld Vacuum in Forbes Vetted’s Best Product Awards this year. The motorized beater bar works like a mini upright vacuum, pulling up stubborn dirt and pet hair from upholstery, stairs and car seats—something most handhelds struggle with. Our tester reports, "[It had] flawless performance during suction tests and the ability to handle tough messes like spilled baking soda on a medium-pile carpet without faltering.” It also includes a crevice tool and dust brush for tackling corners and baseboards.

The Ryobi 18V One+’s battery life is another plus. It runs for up to 18 minutes per charge (longer than many handheld models) and recharges in just 45 minutes; that’s a fraction of the time it takes most competitors to power back up. The washable HEPA filter is another thoughtful touch, keeping fine dust and allergens from recirculating. The design takes a little getting used to—the handle is bigger than most, and the battery placement shifts some weight toward the wrist. But if you want a handheld vacuum that goes beyond just picking up crumbs, this one gets the job done.