In this review of the best cordless vacuums, we’ll put the 30 most popular cordless vacuums we’ve tested into tiers depending on performance, from best to worst. We’ll have six tiers; the best vacuums are put in the S tier, while the worst are put in the E tier. Most will fall somewhere in between.
Tineco A10
We start with the Tinco A10. The A10 has above-average power and deep cleaning ability for a budget-grade cordless vacuum, but it failed our flow clock test and our debris containment test. In our flow clock test, the A10 picks up debris without issue, but much of the debris it picks up deposits on its pre-motor filter. In our debris containment test, it exhausts much of the fine debris it picks up into the air. This is a D tier cordless vacuum.
Tineco A11
The Tinco A11 also has good airflow and suction for the price, and it picks up surface-level debris and deep cleans very well. However, it too failed our flow clock test. Like the A10, it picks up debris without issue, but much of it deposits on its pre-motor filter. Compared to a vacuum that passed this test, such as the Dyson, the Tinco A11’s lack of multiple cyclones results in quicker suction loss and more filter maintenance. Overall, the Tinco A11 is only a C tier cordless vacuum.
Tineco Pure ONE S12
The Tinco Pure One S12 has a good amount of power and picks up surface-level and embedded debris very well with clean filters. Like other Tincos, it also adds an auto-cleaning mode which increases suction and battery usage only when necessary. However, it too lacks a multicyclonic design and performed poorly in our hard floor crevice test, in addition to having a small dust bin. This puts it again only in the C tier of cordless vacuums.
Shark Cordless Pro
The Shark Cordless Pro cleans hard floors very well and performed excellently in our hair tangling tests. However, it has low tested suction, even with brand new filters, and it failed our flow clock test. It also struggles with cleaning fine surface-level debris and fine embedded debris on carpet, making it another C tier cordless vacuum.
Shark Pet IX141
The Shark Pet Cordless vacuum is highly affordable and agitates carpet very well for good deep cleaning performance. However, it failed our debris containment test, releasing much of the fine debris it picks up into the air. It also has low tested airflow and suction, performing poorly in our hard floor crevice test. Overall, it’s only a D tier cordless vacuum.
Shark Stratos
The Shark Stratos is one of the most expensive Shark cordless vacuums on the market. With clean filters, it performed very well in most of our tests, picking up surface-level and embedded debris well on carpet and cleaning hard floors excellently. However, it also failed our flow clock test due to its lack of a multicyclonic design, resulting in fine debris passing onto its pre-filter. This puts it in the B tier.
Shark Vertex
The Shark Vertex is one of the more popular Shark releases in recent years. Although not multicyclonic, it adds a baffle to its bin to reduce airflow and limit fine debris getting to and accumulating on its pre-motor filter. The Vertex picks up surface-level debris very well and is highly resistant to hair tangling. However, it has low tested airflow and suction, performing poorly in our carpet deep cleaning test and our hard floor crevice test. Considering all aspects, it’s another B tier cordless vacuum.
Shark Vertex Pro
Compared to the Vertex, the Shark Vertex Pro removes the plastic baffle from its bin, increasing airflow but allowing more debris to accumulate on its pre-filter. While it performed well in most tests, it did worse in our airflow and suction tests and our hard floor crevice test compared to the standard Vertex, putting it in the C tier.
Shark Vertex Pro Lift-Away
The Shark Vertex Pro Lift-Away has an entirely different infiltration system compared to the Vertex Pro, allowing it to pass our flow clock test. However, its versatility comes at the cost of weight and bulkiness. It also failed our debris containment test, putting it in the C tier.
Samsung Bespoke Jet
Unlike Tincos and Sharks, Samsungs are multicyclonic. The Samsung Bespoke Jet uses multiple cyclones to filter out fine debris, demonstrated in our flow clock test. It picks up all debris without issue and passed our debris containment test, offering good pickup performance on both carpet and hard floors. However, it’s not as powerful and doesn’t deep clean as well as top-rated competitors, making it an A tier cordless vacuum.
Samsung Jet 75
The Samsung Jet 75 is one of the cheapest cordless vacuums on the market that passes both our flower clock test and our debris containment test. It also has excellent battery life and performs well on medium power, picking up debris well on carpet and hard floors. However, its multifloor cleaner head struggles with large debris on hard floors and tangles easily with long hair, placing it in the B tier.
Orfeld v20
The Orfeld V22 is highly affordable and picks up smaller size surface-level debris reasonably well on both carpet and hard floors. It’s lightweight and easy to handle, but it has very low tested airflow and suction, losing suction quickly due to its pre-motor filter clogging up easily with fine debris. Despite its low price, it’s an E tier cordless vacuum.
LG CordZero
Like Dyson’s and Samsung’s, the LG CordZero is also multicyclonic, using cyclones to filter out fine debris and keep it from accumulating on its pre-filter. It picks up surface-level and embedded debris well on carpet, with excellent battery life on medium power. However, it struggles with picking up large debris on hard floors and tangles easily with long hair. Most importantly, it failed our debris containment test, placing it in the C tier.
Kenmore Elite CSV Max
The Kenmore Elite CSV Max is the only budget-priced cordless vacuum we tested that passed our debris containment test. It also deep cleans better and is more resistant to hair tangling than most budget-priced competitors. However, it failed our flow clock test and has very low battery life compared to other cordless vacuums, earning it a spot in the C tier.
Inse N5s
The Inse N5S is usually even cheaper than the Kenmore, picking up most types of surface-level debris fairly well and being very light and easy to use. However, it failed both our flow clock test and our debris containment test, with very low tested airflow and suction and poor deep cleaning performance. Compared to other cordless vacuums, it’s an E tier.
Hoover ONEPWR Blade+
The Hoover One Power Blade Plus agitates carpet well and picks up most types of surface-level and embedded debris well on carpet. However, it failed our debris containment test, releasing fog instead of containing it inside the vacuum. Overall, it’s a D tier cordless vacuum.
Eureka RapidClean Pro
The Eureka NEC 180 Rapid Clean Pro was the only budget-priced vacuum we tested that passed our flower clock test. It picks up most types of surface-level debris well on both carpet and hard floors, with excellent maneuverability and easy-to-use controls. However, it has very low tested airflow and suction, impacting its deep cleaning ability, and it tangles easily with long hair. It also failed our debris containment test, making it a D tier cordless vacuum.
Dyson V8
The Dyson V8 is one of the cheapest Dysons on the market, picking up most types of debris just as well as more expensive models. It passed both our flower clock test and our debris containment test, but lacks a medium suction setting, impacting its versatility. It’s a B tier cordless vacuum.
Dyson V10
The Dyson V10 is more expensive than the V8 but adds a medium suction mode for excellent battery life and performance. It also offers slightly better deep cleaning performance and a larger dust bin, pushing it up into the A tier.
Dyson V11
The Dyson V11 has several advantages over the V10, including a back display showing battery life remaining in minutes and seconds, swappable battery, better battery life on high power, and more measured airflow and suction. However, it falls just short of the S tier, also going into the A tier.
Dyson V12 Detect Slim
The Dyson V12 sacrifices some power for weight and adds a soft roller cleaner head, but disappoints with a small dust bin. It’s a B tier cordless vacuum.
Dyson V15 Detect
The Dyson V15 offers exceptional power and performance, earning it an A tier rating. The Gen 5 Detect improves upon the V15 with additional features but stays in the A tier.
See more: https://homeappliancereview.com/dyson-v15-detect-review/
Dyson Gen5outsize
The Gen 5 Outsize stands out with a large dust bin and cleaner head, securing the top spot in the S tier.
The standard Dyson Outsize also offers excellent cleaning efficiency with the same size dust bin and cleaner head as the Gen 5 Outsize. It’s an A tier cordless vacuum.
Dyson Omni-glide
The Dyson Omni Glide performed very well in picking up surface-level debris on hard floors but failed our flow clock test. It also struggled in our hair tangling tests and our hard floor crevice test, with the smallest dust bin of any cordless vacuum we tested. It goes in the E tier.
Bissell AirRam
The Bissell AirRam has a unique design that combines the main body of the vacuum with its cleaner head, making it heavy on the ground but light in the hand. However, it performed poorly in our carpet deep cleaning test and failed our debris containment test, placing it in the D tier.
Bissell Featherweight
The Bissell Featherweight is highly affordable, lightweight, and stands up on its own, but is highly susceptible to clogging. It performed poorly in picking up debris and failed our debris containment test, making it an E tier cordless vacuum.
Black+Decker Powerseries
The Black & Decker Power Series Cordless Vacuum is highly affordable and easy to use, but clogged up in our regular stress tests and has very low tested power. It also failed our debris containment test, going into the E tier.
Black+Decker Powerseries Extreme
The Black & Decker Power Series Extreme picks up surface-level debris well on carpet and deep cleans carpet well for the price. However, it struggled with large debris on hard floors and has very low tested suction. It also failed our debris containment test, making it an E tier cordless vacuum.
