Compare the Best Vacuum CleanersMay 2018

There is a huge variety of vacuum cleaners available today. Buyers have a choice between upright and cylinder vacuum cleaners for average cleaning tasks and more specialised hoovers designed to pick up dog hairs or help allergy sufferers.

Finding the right vacuum cleaner may sound daunting but understanding what advantages and disadvantages the different technologies and features provide goes along way in finding the best hoover for your needs.

Upright Vacuum Cleaners

Upright vacuums are ideal for cleaning larger spaces and are particularly suited for cleaning carpeted areas. A rotating brush in the vacuum’s head combs the carpet to loosen dirt and dust. They are also very effective in picking up pet hair. Most models have a carpet height selector to adjust the cleaning head according to the carpet pile.

Uprights allow you to work in a comfortable position without the need to bed over a lot. They are ideal for those with lower back pain. Most models are very easy to manoeuvre and come with a set of tools for corners and stairs. Most upright vacuums are bagless as the bin is more accessible and easier to remove than in cylinder cleaners.

Benefits:

Rotating brush bar helps to loosen dust & dirt

Less motor power required

Easy to store

Great for large areas

Ideal for carpets

More difficult to use on stairs

Cannot be used on upholstery

Larger & heavier

Cylinder Vacuum Cleaners

Cylinder vacuum cleaners are usually smaller and lighter than uprights and therefore easier to move around. They are ideal for smaller spaces and the flexible hose and removable head let you clean corners and hard to reach spaces with ease. Because the distance between the cleaning head and dust bag is longer compared to upright vacuum cleaners, cylinder cleaners require a higher motor power in order to generate the same amount of suction.

Cylinder cleaners can be bagged or bagless. Bagless cleaners will be slightly more expensive but will save you money in the long run.

Benefits:

Cheaper

Well suited for smaller spaces

Smaller and lighter

Can be used on upholstery & stairs

Ideal for hard floors

Requires higher motor power

Less suitable for carpets

Smaller dust capacity

Wet & Dry Cleaners

Usually aimed for use in workshops, garages and environments that can get dirtier than the average household, wet & dry vacuum cleaners are robust and can handle a variety of cleaning tasks. They can hoover up sawdust, leaves, wet mud and even water.

Wet & dry vacuums are available from a number of manufacturers like Karcher, Vax, deWalt and Bosch. These multi-purpose vacuum cleaners have a robust construction and a large container volume. Filters can usually be washed and tools and accessories are stored within the industrial vacuum cleaners.

Bagged vs. Bagless Vacuum Cleaners

Since James Dyson invented the cyclone bagless vanccum cleaner, bagless models have become more and more popular. The dust bin can be emptied easily when full. There is no need to purchase bags, which is also more environmentally friendly and cost effective over time. Most upright vacuums are now bagless.

Filters may be replaced and cleaned after extended periods, but this is easier and cheaper than re-purchasing bags at regular intervals. Bagless vacuums don’t suffer from reduced suction, which can be a problem with bags as they fill up.

Some people prefer vacuum cleaners with bags is because there is less potential for dust accidentally being released into the air when emptying it. More care needs to be taken with bagless cleaners and the dust bin should also be washed regularly.

Filters

A vacuum cleaner’s filtration system makes sure that the potentially harmful particles that get sucked up are removed from the air before it is expelled from the machine. Due to the large volumes of air a hoover sucks in, all the bacteria, fungal spores and other allergens that are being sucked up will create an indoor health hazard, which is quickly spread around the whole property unless the air is cleaned effectively.

Even if the air expelled from a machine looks clean, it might contain millions of microscopic particles that can transmit disease and cause allergies. Vacuum cleaners filter the air in several stages in an attempt to trap dust, hair and other particles. The number of stages can vary between 3 and 7, although this does not indicate how effective a hoover is a trapping unwanted particles.

Micro filtration usually refers to hoovers with at least 4 levels of filtration. It is important to remember that the number of stages advertised does not indicate the vacuum cleaner’s effectiveness at removing small particles from the air.

A ‘HEPA’ (High Efficiency Particulate Air) filter removes at least 99.97% of particles which are 0.3 Micons or bigger from the air. Bacteria are between 1-10 Micons in size, so the exhaust air of a HEPA vacuum cleaner is considered biologically clean. Vacuum cleaners with HEPA filters are specifically designed to reduce the number of microscopic particles emitted when hovering, making them ideal for people suffering from allergies and asthma. Some HEPA vacuum cleaners are approved by the British Allergy Foundation.

Cleaning Efficiency

In a drive to ensure greater energy efficiency, the EU banned vacuum cleaners with a motor power above 1600W in 2014.

It is important that a vacuum cleaner’s power rating is not the only factor affecting the amount of suction it produces.

Less powerful models regularly outperform those with a higher power rating. Design, how full the bag is and how often filters are cleaned all contribute to how good a vacuum clear is at its job.

Look out for independent reviews that measure a vacuum cleaner’s suction power in relation to how full the dust bag or container is to get a better understanding of the suction power it produces.

Attachments & Accessories

Most vacuum cleaners come with a number of accessories to clean upholstery and to reach narrow spaces and corners. Some models car store accessories inside the vacuum cleaner while some cylinder models have a holder attached to the telescopic tube.

Pet accessories

Pet hair can be difficult to remove from carpets are upholstery. To make cleaning after your furry friends easier, pet models are specifically designed to make lifting cat and dog hair easier.

Pet vacuum cleaners come with cleaning heads that include rotating brush bars, sometimes called power tools. They also use strong suction power to tackle even the most stubborn hair.

Other Considerations

Capacity

If you have a large home, you might want to choose a vacuum cleaner with a larger capacity. This allows you to clean more of your home before needing to be emptied. But keep in mind that a larger capacity also means the vacuum cleaner is bigger, heavier and more difficult to manoeuvre.

Cable Length

A longer cable makes cleaning easier as you won’t need to switch plugs as often. Check the cable length of a vacuum cleaner before buying, as there can be significant variations between models. If you want to avoid the hassle of having a cable altogether, consider a battery powered vacuum cleaner. They can be a great alternative, especially if your home is relatively small.

Noise Level

Larger vacuum cleaners and particularly uprights can get quite noisy as their motors work extremely hard. It’s worth checking the operating noise level before buying to avoid any unpleasant surprises.

Vacuum Cleaner Prices

We currently list 199 vacuum cleaners ranging from $42 to $1,419. A new vacuum costs on average $288 and 80% of vacuums are priced between $67 and $586. The Black & Decker WD7210N is the cheapest vacuum cleaner at only $42, and Miele Classic C1 PowerLine is the most expensive at $1,419.

Vacuum Cleaner Brands - Price Range

Kirby vacuum cleaners range in price from $995 to $995, and the average price of Kirby vacuum cleaners is $995 which is the highest average price of all vacuum brands.

The average price of Sebo vacuums is $703 which is the second highest average price of all vacuum brands. Sebo vacuums range in price from $399 to $989.

The average price of Miele vacuum cleaners is $586 which is the third highest average price of all vacuum brands. Miele vacuum cleaners range in price from $250 to $1,419.

Vacuum Brands - Average Ratings

We have analysed 411 expert reviews and 45,892 user reviews for vacuum cleaners written online and used these reviews to determine the average rating for each brand of vacuum. The top three vacuum cleaner brands are Shark, Miele and Numatic. Shark has an average rating of 94%, Miele has an average rating of 92% and Numatic has an average rating of 92%.

Biggest Vacuum Retailers

We found 191 current offers for vacuums from eBay making it the biggest vacuum cleaner retailer. That is over 4 times bigger than the second biggest retailer, Walmart for whom we found 45 current offers for vacuums. The third biggest retailer is Target with 31 current vacuum cleaner offers.

When Are Most New Vacuum Cleaners Released?

October to November is the most common period for new vacuum cleaners to be released in. For the latest vacuum cleaner features you may want to think about waiting until October 2018. It's also worth keeping in mind that the price of the current vacuum cleaners tend to drop off when the next models are released. 136 new vacuums were released in November 2017 making it the biggest month that year for new vacuum releases. In 2016 most new vacuums were released in October, with 170 new vacuums released that month. The biggest month in 2015 for new vacuum cleaner releases was August, with 111 new vacuums released that month.

How Fast Do Vacuum Prices Drop After Release?

In the first 6 months after release, vacuum cleaners drop in price by 8% on average. If you are prepared to wait then you could save an average of $23 on a typical $288 new vacuum cleaner by waiting 6 months before buying.

Maximum Input Powers

This measures the power level of the vacuum cleaner, rated in watts.

The maximum input powers of vacuums range from 10.8W to 8,580W. The maximum input powers of the majority of vacuums range from 600W to 900W. The vacuum with the highest maximum input power is the Vacmaster VOC1210PF, which is a 3,728W vacuum and is on sale for $69.06. The vacuum with the lowest maximum input power is the Dyson 360eye, which is a 100W vacuum and is on sale for $899.99.

Types

We found 2,319 vacuum cleaners that are cylinder vacuum cleaners, which makes this the most frequently found type amongst new vacuum cleaners. We found 376 vacuums that are drum vacuum cleaners, making drum the second most popular type amongst new vacuums.

Cleaning Types

Way in which device cleans something or itself.

Amongst new vacuum cleaners, the most popular cleaning type is dry. We found 2,654 vacuum cleaners that are dry vacuums. Wet & dry is the second most popular cleaning type amongst new vacuum cleaners. We found 271 vacuum cleaners that are wet & dry vacuums.

Weights

The weight of the vacuum cleaner, including all attachments that fit onto the device.

The weights of vacuum cleaners range from 300g to 90kg. The weights of the majority of vacuum cleaners range from 4.5kg to 5.5kg. The vacuum cleaner with the heaviest weight is the Sealey PC460, which is a 16kg heavy vacuum cleaner and is available at $506.87. The iRobot Braava Jet 240, which currently retails for $139.95, has the lightest weight and is a 1.2kg heavy vacuum.

Energy Efficiency of Vacuum Cleaners

The Energy Efficiency Class of a vacuum cleaner shows how well it uses energy, and how much is unnecessarily wasted. Products are ranked from G to A++ in terms of how little energy they use compared to the norm.

The most popular energy efficiency rating amongst new vacuums is A. We found 972 vacuums that have an energy efficiency rating of A. The second most popular energy efficiency rating amongst new vacuum cleaners is B. We found 184 vacuum cleaners that have an energy efficiency rating of B.

Which Are the Cheapest Retailers for Vacuum Cleaners?

The chart below helps you decide which retailer is normally cheapest for buying vacuum cleaners. For each retailer it shows the total number of vacuum cleaners where they currently have a market leading price. The chart below helps you decide which retailer is normally cheapest for buying vacuum cleaners. For each retailer we took all of their prices and looked at what proportion of those prices where the cheapest on the market. The cheapest retailer that we found was eBay. 167 of their vacuum cleaner prices were the cheapest that could be found anywhere.

Proportion of Vacuum Cleaners for Which Each Retailer is Cheapest?

Assessing how cheap each retailer is for vacuums by counting the number of cheapest prices for that retailer, makes the retailers that offer the greatest number of vacuum cleaner prices more likely to offer the greatest number of cheapest prices. The chart below considers the proportion of each retailer's vacuum cleaner prices that are the cheapest compared to other retailers. The cheapest retailer that we found using this approach was eBay. 87.4% of their vacuum prices were the cheapest that could be found anywhere.