For an upright vacuum that works well on carpets and bare floors, look no further than the Shark NV151 Navigator Swivel Pro Complete Upright Vacuum, which is one of the most affordable models offered by Shark. This vacuum has adjustable suction levels and brush roll speeds to maximize your cleaning efforts. Just don’t expect it to be as light or nimble as a stick vacuum, but know you’ll be pleased with its maneuverability and effectiveness. This model impressed us during testing with how easy it was to push across hardwood floors and carpets of all pile heights. We only docked it for its bulkier design, which made it difficult to reach under lower furniture. It also had poor transfer from a flat surface to a rugged one.
Replacements are priced at $80 each, which is pretty reasonable by cordless vacuum standards. There’s also a handy trigger lock lever to keep the vacuum running without constant bissell crosswave cordless finger pressure. Say hello to the best Dyson cordless vacuum, the Dyson V15 Detect. Many reviewers have also complimented the IONFlex’s ability to tackle pet hair.
But if you know you’ll use your vacuum on bigger messes, you’ll probably want a larger dust bin—one that can hold around 15 ounces—so you won’t have to empty it as often. Hundreds of shoppers have given the Shark cordless vacuum a perfect rating, with some saying that the “small but mighty” cordless vacuum is “excellent for daily cleaning.” Here are the best performers of each type of stick vacuum—corded and cordless—listed in alphabetical order. For all vacuum types, see our full vacuum ratings and recommendations.
The Shark UltraCyclone Pet Pro+ Handheld Vacuum excelled in all of our lab tests, but it really stood out when it came to sucking up pet hair. If you constantly find yourself reaching for a vacuum to zap pet hair off of your couches or rugs, this is the vacuum for you. In addition to brush and crevice tools, this handheld vacuum comes with a pet power brush tool that’s specifically designed to loosen and suck up pet hair.
Best of all, welcome to the cleanest home in the neighborhood, yours. Rachel Klein is a Senior Commerce Editor for Popular Mechanics, where she writes about everything from garden hose reels and patio furniture to mesh wifi systems and robot vacuums. Fast-forward another five years and her area of expertise includes home decor, appliances, tech, and outdoor adventure gear.
The first thing you notice when you start using it is the flexible neck. It quickly becomes apparent what this is used for when you encounter a table, chair or legged sofa – the bissell crosswave cordless stick bends to allow the roller head to reach exactly where it needs to. Pretty clear what each is for, but interestingly it’s a different take to power settings than most cordless vacuums, who tend to opt for a ‘normal’ mode and a ‘turbo’ mode.
If your house has more hardwoods than mine, your run times would be longer. Worth noting is that we didn’t notice a reduction in suction as the battery was running low, at least not as much as other brands. This is something very important that people often don’t consider with cordless vacuums; it’s not so much the time the battery lasts, but how long it lasts at full suction which is really important. Shark don’t really talk much about this in their marketing, but the suction didn’t dissipate much when the battery was running low, so that’s a huge bonus. The Shark cordless stick includes a crevice tool, which makes it fairly easy to reach into nooks of a room, but it isn’t as manoeuvrable in this sense as other brands such as the Vax Blade.