The best cordless vacuums for pet hair, wood, and more

Old-school corded vacuums are great because they can run for longer and generally deal with more dust, but they can be bulky and hard to move around, and if you don’t have a lot of outlets, it becomes a fight to find one. That’s where cordless vacuums come in because they not only let you move about freely but can also be much lighter than a corded vacuum. Of course, there are some downsides, too, such as having a limited run time or a smaller dustbin, but those aren’t necessarily dealbreakers, especially if you have a smaller home or are willing to buy a second battery to run a bit longer.

The Best Cordless Vacuums

• Best overall cordless vacuum:
• Best versatile cordless vacuum:
• Best lightweight cordless vacuum:
• Best mid-range cordless vacuum:
• Best budget cordless vacuum:

How to Choose a Cordless Vacuum

There are a few things to consider when it comes to a cordless vacuum, but for the most part, the decision remains relatively similar to buying a more traditional corded vacuum. That said, there are some unique aspects of cordless vacuums, such as battery life, that you should definitely think about. For example, do you care more about portability or capacity? Do you only need something for short bursts of cleaning, or will you need something that can change batteries for extended cleaning?

Suction

Probably one of the most important aspects is how much suction the vacuum can do. For the most part, the power output of a vacuum is a function of its price, so the more money you spend, the more powerful the vacuum will be. That said, if you don’t have to deal with a lot of hard-to-vacuum debris, then there’s really no need to go for the most powerful suction out there, especially for things like light cleaning or dusting. You also have to consider that more powerful vacuums are heavier because they have a larger motor and battery; otherwise, they can’t run as long.

Battery life

As the name suggests, cordless vacuums don’t draw power from an outlet, so they have to rely on an internal battery to power the motor. That means there’s a limit to how long the vacuum can run, and that run time is something you need to consider. For the most part, most cordless vacuums can manage anywhere between 20-40 minutes, depending on how strong you set the vacuuming to, and some have eco modes or larger batteries that let them run longer. Either way, you should consider how long you plan to vacuum and if that will be enough time for you. If you just do a quick light vacuuming regularly that doesn’t take more than 20 minutes, then going for a cheaper cordless vacuum will save you some extra cash you would have wasted anyway.

Features

There are an absolute ton of cordless vacuums out there, each with different and interesting features to take into account. For example, if you have pets or have a lot of shed hair, going for a cordless vacuum that can handle hair is a good idea; otherwise, it’s constantly going to get stuck. Another example is that some cordless vacuums have LED “headlights” that help illuminate the debris in front of you to give you a better sense of where to clean and how clean you’ve gotten things. Yet another feature is a display that shows you data on how much dirt you’ve collected or how often you’ve used the device.

How We Chose These Cordless Vacuums

Suggesting a vacuum is never easy, especially when people are going to spend their hard-earned cash on it, which is why we’ve done our best to pick cordless vacuums we think will give you the best bang for your buck in each category. We do this by using our years of experience in reviewing tech and home appliances like cordless vacuums and combining them with our experience with deals and e-commerce to develop a product that will fulfill your needs at a solid price. The truth is, cordless vacuums can get very expensive, especially if you want the best of the best, so it’s important you know that we’ve done our due diligence and you are safe with the options provided here.

Samsung Bespoke Jet

Best overall cordless vacuum

If you’re looking for the best of the best, then the Samsung Bespoke Jet easily sits at the top, given how many features it comes packed with. Probably the most impressive is the suction, which is one of the most powerful ones on the market, especially in jet mode, which could probably shred your carpet if you aren’t too careful. Luckily, there are several modes to pick from, with the lowest mode, the minimum, being great for light dusting and vacuuming, which is great because you’ll only get about 40-50 minutes of use out of it, with Jet mode going for about 8-10.

As you can see, the more vacuuming power you use, the less time it runs, but luckily, the display lets you know roughly how much time you have ahead of you before needing a recharge. The time it takes to get to a full charge isn’t too bad, being around two hours or so, which you can do on the charging base. Speaking of which, you’ll be happy to know that the base holds a self-emptying bin, which works perfectly, although it can be a little bit finicky to get used to using.

It also has a few other great features, like the Flex tool, which helps you reach hard spots, and the 5-layer filtration system, which means you aren’t kicking up as much dust and debris when vacuuming as you would with other cordless vacuums. The microfilter is also washable, so you don’t have to spend extra money buying new ones, which is an added cost that would make this a dealbreaker.

Dyson V15 Detect

Best versatile cordless vacuum

If you want something that’s pretty versatile, the Dyson V15 is probably your best bet, especially since it includes hair anti-tangling brushes, which means you don’t have to worry about pet or human hair when cleaning your whole house. That said, probably the most interesting added feature is the light bar, which shines a green LED light at ground level to let you see the dust more easily, which is surprisingly useful and a pretty rare addition to cordless vacuums. It also comes with a ton of accessories that let you use it in hard-to-reach places, mattresses, and really anywhere you can think of.

The Dyson V15 is also quite intelligent since it detects how much vacuuming pressure is being used and adjusts it on the fly to make sure you’re getting the most out of the battery and not wasting it on suction that isn’t doing anything. There is also this neat feature that ‘counts’ how much dust you’ve vacuumed up and displays it for you on the LED screen, which doesn’t really give you anything except a warm fuzzy feeling, but we’ll take it. Of course, the screen also gives you information on runtime and power mode, so it’s not useless.

All that said, the Dyson V15 has a couple of problems, with the first main one being that it is a bit heavy, weighing in at 7.6 pounds, which means it might be a bit difficult for some to use, especially when it comes to cleaning the ceiling. The other downside is that it has a smaller canister of just 0.2 gallons, which means you’ll have to clean it out regularly. These two aren’t necessarily dealbreakers, though, and if they don’t bother you, the Dyson V15 is an excellent cordless vacuum otherwise.

Dyson V12 Detect Slim

Best lightweight cordless vacuum

If you’re looking for something that still has powerful suction but is a bit more lightweight than the V15, then the V12 detect is an excellent alternative. Weighing at just 5.2 lbs, it’s much easier to carry around and maneuver and perfect for cleaning those hard-to-reach places where some lifting is required. It also comes with an attachment that can turn it into a handheld mini-vacuum of sorts so that you can use it for small spills or cleaning up a car of crumbs, which the lighter weight certainly helps with.

On the other hand, its battery performance isn’t anything to write home about, and part of that can be attributed to keeping the weight down, so it’s all about compromise. Even so, it’s perfect for smaller apartments where you aren’t going to be spending more than 20 or 30 minutes vacuuming or in situations where you need to have a small and portable vacuum. That’s also partially because the canister is relatively small at just 0.1 gallons, so you won’t be able to vacuum for longer without cleaning out the canister anyway.

The V12 also has a few of the same features as the V15, such as the Laser Slim Fluffy head, which projects a green light so you can see the debris as you clean and is a legitimate game changer. It also adjusts suction based on the pressure it senses, a nice touch that means you don’t have to change modes constantly. And, if you have pets, it can handle pet hair pretty well.

Shark Stratos

Best mid-range cordless vacuum

You don’t have to spend a fortune to get a good and versatile vacuum, and the Shark Stratos is proof of that, as it has a lot of the same features you might find in more expensive cordless vacuums. For example, it has the Clean Sense IQ, which adjusts the vacuum pressure depending on what you’re vacuuming, so it can give you the most out of the battery life. Speaking of battery, you’ll get around 60 minutes on Eco mode and around eight to ten minutes on Boost mode, which is in line with other vacuums in the higher price bracket.

The vacuum head in stick configuration has dual brushes that can dig deep into carpets and floors alike, making this a versatile option. While it does have LED headlights, they aren’t as good as the ones from Dyson, although probably better than nothing. We will also mention that it’s a bit on the heavier side, especially in the stick configuration, but that’s the sort of thing you have to deal with when buying something in the mid-range with a good price, so it’s not a dealbreaker.

We also very much appreciate that it comes with HEPA filtration and one that actually works, which is not something you’ll find in a lot of other cordless vacuums, especially if you go cheaper. That said, the biggest surprise is the LED screen on the top of the vacuum, which gives you all sorts of information, such as battery life and what the Clean Sense IQ is doing.

Tineco A10 Essentials

Best budget cordless vacuum

While a budget option will usually mean you’re getting something that’s not great, this Tineco A10 Essential is a surprisingly excellent option for a cordless vacuum that stays under $200 and even has some more high-end features. For example, the cleaning head has LED headlights, and while they aren’t as helpful as the green laser from Dyson, they’re still pretty bright, so if you have dark areas in your home, it’s pretty useful. Also, while it doesn’t have an automatically adjusting suction function, it does have a max boost button for that really hard-to-get stuff.

Another thing that’s especially nice about going with a budget-friendly cordless vacuum is that it’s much lighter because there aren’t a lot of removable parts. That said, it does also mean you can’t do things like remove the battery to charge it since it’s part of the housing. The same goes with the dustbin, although it is relatively easy to clean out, and if you do get any hairs or dirt stuck at the top, removing the pre-filter is a pretty easy thing to do since it’s so lightweight.

Even so, it does have a HEPA filter, which is great for this price range, and it works pretty well with both hardwood and carpeted floors. It also has an attachment to turn it into a handheld vacuum for any higher surfaces, which is nice. The only big downside is that it doesn’t have a long runtime, around 25 minutes or so, which means you aren’t going to be able to clean a massive house over 2,000 square feet on one charge, and since it doesn’t have changeable batteries, it’s not like you can do that. Even so, that’s not a dealbreaker, especially if you can split your vacuuming over two periods or have a smaller house or apartment.

This article is managed and created separately from the Digital Trends Editorial team.