It used to be that these loud, heavy, stubborn contraptions were among the least sexy small home appliance. They were annoying to push or pull around, to clean out, and were only good on carpet. But no more. Now, they’re appliances you can fall head over heels in love with. Today’s vacuums are sleek, sexy, colorful, and come with bells and whistles to accompany their signature whirrs. They tackle shedding, trap allergens, and can even tidy up and empty themselves while you’re out to brunch. While you may not know all the best new vacuum features currently available (we will tell you) you do know your personality type and what you need out of a cleaning companion. To make it easy to find your perfect match, we started there to help you find the vacuum that fits your lifestyle. So without any further ado: What’s your type? About your perfect vacuum: If you want unfiltered power and filtered air, there’s a reason the Dyson Ball Animal 2 is legendary. It is so strong I can’t even use mine on my low-pile dining room rug or entryway scatters because it’ll pick them right up. But with the amount of dust and allergens that show up in the bin and the promise of non-fading, powerful suction forevermore, you’ll find you’ll forgive this high-performance, practically self-propelling vacuum pretty much anything. After all, it’s not its fault it doesn’t know its own strength, right? Pro-Tip: Upright vacuums typically offer 100 air watts—a unit of measure that reveals vacuum cleaner efficacy via ratio of output and input—of suction. However, the Dyson Ball Animal 2 provides a whopping 270 AW of suction, which is why it’s our top pick for this category. About your perfect vacuum: Your best match is a connected, smart robotic vacuum like the Roomba i3+ that can anticipate your needs and learn behaviors to support your busy life. It’s self-emptying, self-charging, app-controlled, and intelligent enough to commit your home’s floor plan to memory. It’s also low-maintenance with a bin that only needs to be emptied out every two months on average, and offers personalized schedules. Pro-Tip: Most robo-vacs just go in the directions their bounce-off points push them to, which means repeated and missed spots. Upgrading to a laser or optical sensor version helps you make the most of every minute of their battery’s run time, and is worth the added cost. RELATED: The 13 Best Robot Vacuums That Actually Clean Your Carpet, According to Thousands of Reviews About your perfect vacuum: New to market, the Dyson V15 Detect Plus Gold was engineered just for curious, results-driven you. Not only does this powerful cordless vac pick up every little thing, but it measures what enters it. This allows the vacuum to react and respond to dust levels, increasing suction when higher dust volumes are identified. Best of all, for number-crunchers like you? It has a laser that detects normally invisible particles like allergens, pollen, skin flakes, dust mites, and more, and then displays the totals of how much it’s picked up for scientific proof of how gross your home no longer is. Pro-Tip: The Hyperdymium motor already promises the most powerful suction of any other cordless, so you can be sure of seeing some impressive metrics. About your perfect vacuum: The Shark AZ2002 Vertex DuoClean PowerFins boasts a self-cleaning brush roll. The comb actively removes the hair from the bristles on the brush roll, which—by the way—doesn’t get caught in the silicone fins or soft roller anyway. But it’s far from a one-trick pony. The brand’s most powerful vacuum so far also features a detachable bin so that you can turn it into a canister vac in a couple of clicks. Pro-Tip: Vacuums targeted to address pet hair can also handle human hair, but if yours is on the lengthy side, you’ll want the extra features. Longer hair can easily get embedded into carpet, which makes superior suction a must. About your perfect vacuum: The pricey Miele Blizzard CX1 Cat & Dog Bagless Canister Vacuum is the most covetable, sleek, tag-along vacuum set. This is the prestige German vacuum brand’s first foray into freeing users from the maintenance costs of heavy bags, and it is spectacular. It’s everything you love in a canister vacuum but made better, like a quieter but still powerful engine, a step-to-shift five-level adjustment for different pile heights, and a no-maintenance HEPA Lifetime Filter and self-cleaning Gore CleanStream FineDust Filter that keeps that pesky cloud from puffing up when you empty the bin. Pro-Tip: This is the crème de la crème of the line, but don’t worry—you can treat yourself for less. There are various other colors and models you can opt for without sacrificing too many features. About your perfect vacuum: The BLACK + DECKER Max Flex Handheld Vacuum is a great crevice-digging, small and handheld vacuum with a few more features than your classic Dirt Devil. The four-foot flexible hose makes it versatile, while a charging station and base keep it cute and tidy. The pet brush and washable bowl and filter are also helpful, but most helpful is that it’ll run for about 20 minutes on a charge. (In the context, the average handheld only lasts about 10.) Pro-Tip: When shopping for handheld vacs, make sure you check dust bin capacity and battery life. These are common pain points for these types of vacuums. About your perfect vacuum: The Bissell Cleanview Rewind Pet Bagless Vacuum Cleaner has a lot going on for a price tag that’s a fraction of what the premium bagless uprights cost. The fact that it’s a pet-geared design means that it’s meant to pull up more dirt and hair than your average Jane, and edge-to-edge technology pulls in peripheral debris. Like its fancier brethren, it has multi-cyclonic suction for lasting performance, a washable filter to save you money down the line. If you don’t mind spending a little more, consider also the Eureka NEU522 FloorRover Dash Upright Pet. Although you’re losing the retractable cord, you’re gaining 35 full feet of it, plus swivel steering, deep pile cleaning, and automatic floor type adjustment. Pro-Tip: For a floor partner that pulls its weight and then some, it’s best to pony up a little more from the onset to cut down on maintenance costs for the lifetime of your appliance. That means opting for eco-friendly options like bagless models and reusable filters when available, making it a double win. About your perfect vacuum: A shop vac, then, is your best bet for your hard-surface life, and we like the Craftsman CMXEVBE17595 16-Gallon Wet/Dry Vac for it. Sure, there’s nothing sexy about its name nor tubby design, but your ideal dreamboat is about performance, and this affordable model provides it. It’s heavy duty, offering a 6.5-horsepower motor that can also blow as well as suck. That’s right—you can use it for leaves in the fall without missing a beat. Pro-Tip: Shop vacs are not for in-home, carpet use, but rather for emergencies. You’ll still need a vacuum for your house, but this is a smart, functional appliance to have on hand in case of floods, leaks, spills, and more.
