The Best Cordless Vacuums for Your Whole House (2026)

After testing nearly two dozen stick vacuums, ranging from hard-floor-only models to powerful Dysons, these are the best cordless vacuums I've tried.

My current favorite is the Shark PowerDetect Cordless Stick Vacuum ($450) , which not only has impressive power but also bends to make it easier to vacuum under furniture and low surfaces.

If you've got room to splurge, you can upgrade to the Dyson V15 Detect ($650) for the best power I've seen in a cordless vacuum.

Read on to find out which cordless vacuum cleaners the Reviews team and I have tried and which ones I keep reaching for.

Looking for more cleaning gadgets?

Don't miss our guides to the Best Dyson Vacuums , Best Robot Vacuums , Best Vacuums for Pet Hair , and Best Handheld Vacuums .

Looking for more information about vacuums and how often to vacuum?

Catch our stories about How Often You Should Vacuum and How Long Vacuums Really Last .

Updated April 2026: I've added a new intro to this guide and a section on the new Dyson PencilVac Fluffycones, moved some previous picks to Honorable Mentions, and ensured links and prices are up to date.

We're currently testing Dyson's PencilWash and Clean+Wash Hygiene wet cleaners for the next update.

Shark's PowerDetect is honestly a fantastic vacuum, and you're getting a lot for the price.

There are three cleaning modes, lights on both the front and back of the vacuum head to spot debris, detection technology to sense when you're edge cleaning or when an area is dirtier than the rest, 70 minutes of run time, and a HEPA filter, and the central stick can even bend so you can vacuum under furniture without crouching on the ground.

It comes with two attachments, and you can upgrade to a model with a self-emptying docking station ($550) .

For the price, you're getting a lot.

It's also a powerful vacuum that actually beat the Dyson Gen5 Detect in some of my tests, specifically with rugs.

This vacuum was actually better at getting debris like sand and cereal pieces off carpet than the Dyson.

When it's vacuuming over carpet, it kicks into a mode that glides over carpet and almost pulls away from you, as if the vacuum were a puppy pulling on its leash.

But I liked that it didn't just get stuck to my living room rug, which the Dyson tends to do.

I do like the Dyson for getting cat hair out of my stairs and bedroom carpet, but if you're more of a rug household and don't have pets, this vacuum will be plenty for your needs.

Before Dyson was famous for its hair tools , it was (and still is!) famous for its vacuums.

We've got an entire guide to the Best Dyson Vacuums , and my favorite is currently still the Dyson V15 Detect.

It's a pricey upgrade compared to others, but it not only comes with Dyson-level air power, but also a sensor that counts dust particles, displaying the count on the LCD screen while automatically adjusting the power level for proper suction.

You probably don't need laser beams and micron calculators, but they can be helpful if you have severe allergies.

It's also just an all-around reliable vacuum that comes with an array of handy accessories, even a wall mount for a more elegant charging setup.

It's easy to convert to a hand vac for cleaning up the couch.

I was impressed by how much dust and dirt it pulled up from my carpet, especially since I regularly vacuum with the different picks in this guide.

The V15 Detect has serious power if you're looking for great, deep carpet cleaning.

It works on hard floors, too, though it did feel like a waste compared to how deep it cleans carpets and rugs.

PowerClean Cordless Stick Vacuum
The non-pet-focused version of our previous top pick, the regular Bissell PowerClean is basically the Fur Finder with fewer lights and a less-fancy upholstery tool.

As a result, it costs a little less.

Like the Fur Finder, it can stand up on its own, has HEPA filtration, can convert to a hand vacuum, and features Bissell’s proprietary tangle-free brush roll.

(My long hair did still get wrapped around it, but it never affected the roll’s performance and was easy to pull off.)
Best Cordless Vacuum for Pet Hair
This versatile cordless vac is one of my favorite products I’ve ever tested.

It has multiple heads for different jobs, can be handheld- or stick-style, and is lightweight and portable while still being powerful enough to suck up dander and pet hair on all types of surfaces.

It’s incredible on pet hair—Dyson claims it has the most powerful HEPA filtration of any cordless vac on the market, trapping particles as small as 0.1 microns.

It even has a digital screen that tracks particle size, and during cleaning, the indicator bars rise and fall, depending on the amount of debris detected, and afterward, the screen displays the summary of collected particles.

There’s a Digital Motorbar cleaner head for carpets that has 56 detangling vanes, ensuring pet hair never gets stuck in the bar for a mess-free clean.

There’s also a Fluffy Optic cleaner head for hard floors: It has a super-soft rotating material and an angled green blade of light to illuminate invisible pet hair and dust invisible to the human eye.

Plus, there’s a crevice tool and a smaller hair screw tool attachment that can be used as a handheld vacuum to get pet hair in hard-to-reach places.

—Molly Higgins
If you have hard floors, you might be looking for something cordless that can mop as well as suck up debris.

A great option is the Narwal S30 Pro.

We loved the first generation, and the newest generation is just as great.

There are five cleaning modes (AI mode, wood floor mode, suction mode, max mode, and quiet mode) to give you the best clean for your space or needs that day, and the clean and dirty water tanks are easy to manage.

It did a good job scrubbing away stains on my hard floors, and sucked up cat food and other dry debris with ease as it went.

It has 20,000 Pa of suction and almost pulls away from me as I use it, so I'm more guiding the vacuum than pushing it along my floors.

It turns really nicely, making it easy to clean around rugs or furniture legs.

There's a disposable dry debris bag you can install (the S30 Pro comes with 10; you'll have to purchase more after that) if you want to keep dry debris away from the wet and make cleaning easier.

As someone who found other designs a nightmare, I find this one virtually painless.

You do want to clean the vacuum immediately so it doesn't smell or grow mold, and you can toggle on self-cleaning mode afterward, too.

My only complaint is that there is some setup to get started, and I don't think the instructions are clear enough.

I had to pull up a YouTube video (I liked this one ) to see where I was supposed to install the dry bag and deodorant block, since the instructions skipped the key step of which piece I had to open up.

Besides that, it's been a breeze to use.

What About the Dyson PencilVac?

I'm separating the Dyson PencilVac Fluffycones (yes, that's the full name) because, while it's still a stick vacuum, its design is so different that it stands apart from any other stick vacuum I've tried.

The primary difference is that the motor, dustbin, and battery are all contained in the slim handle.

No more bulky, top-heavy build that these cordless vacuums are known for.

The body and feel remind me of using a Swiffer, but it's a vacuum instead of just a slapdash mop.

The PencilVac uses Dyson's Hyperdymium motor—the same one that's usually in the brand's hair tools —and has a tiny 0.08-liter dustbin, but compacts the debris to make that small amount of space last.

It also has a short battery life of only 30 minutes.

It has much lower power than the other vacuums in Dyson's lineup and can only be used on hard floors.

It has four fluffy rollers, aptly named Fluffycones, on the cleaner head, and they're designed to keep hair from getting tangled.

It works, but instead of getting tangled, the vacuum sometimes balled up my hair and spat it back out instead of sending it into the dustbin.

It was great for quick cleans for things like litter, dust, and cereal, but it's a high price to pay for something that's more limited than cheaper vacuums.

We haven't tried a vacuum yet that we absolutely hate.

The ones below are solid vacuums and, in some cases, much cheaper than our top picks, but we didn't like them quite as much.

Bissell IconPet Turbo Edge for $200 : Bissell's OG stick vacuum is a popular model that's been around for a while.

It does a good job picking up hair and cat litter, and easily turns into a handheld vac too.

The battery lasts a little longer, but former WIRED reviewer Medea Giordano wasn't impressed by its Cheerio-gathering skills, and it can't stand up on its own.

Bissell's PowerClean FurFinder for $200 : This is a great stick vacuum, and it was our previous top pick.

It does an all-around good job on all kinds of flooring, comes with a nice range of accessories, and has the FurFinder tool to help with pet hair.

It's still a great vacuum, especially if you have pets, but unless you're using the FurFinder tool frequently, you can get the slightly cheaper regular Bissell PowerClean for a similar experience.

Bosch Unlimited 10 Cordless Stick Vacuum for $699 : This vacuum has six cleaning modes and can bend in the middle, but it didn't always contain the debris after I was done cleaning.

It does have a 10-year warranty on the motor, which is more than other brands offer.

Dirt Devil Power Swerve Pet Cordless Stick Vacuum for $72 : We previously recommended this as a budget pick.

It's a good vacuum for the money, but there were questions about how long the battery lasts and the build quality.

Dyson V12 Detect for $550 : The V12 Detect is worth considering if you want something even slightly cheaper and lighter than the V15 (though it's less powerful and has a smaller bin).

Eufy Robot Vacuum 3-In-1 E20 for $500 : WIRED reviewer Adrienne So was stoked to try Eufy's E20 , which is a stick vacuum, handheld vacuum, and robot vacuum all in one.

It's a handy, well-designed device, but it's only good for light cleaning.

Eureka Stylus Elite for $280 : This is a good stick vacuum with a self-emptying bin at a reasonable price.

It cleaned up a litter mat especially well, and there are specific settings for carpet and hardwood.

However, to suck up larger pieces like Cheerios, I had to lift the vacuum up and place it directly on top of them.

Ryobi 18V One+ HP Advanced Stick Vacuum Kit for $399 : This is our runner-up cordless vacuum pick for the best pet hair vacuums.

It has powerful suction, cyclonic filtration, a brushless motor, an easily removable roller bar, and lights on the vacuum head to better see pet hair and dander.

Tineco Pure One Station 5 for $459 : I love that this vacuum has a self-emptying base station.

It's a solid vacuum overall, but my favorite part about it was the docking station.

You don't need to choose Tineco to get that, though; Shark has a few models now with self-emptying stations, and Dyson has one due out this year.

Worx 20V Cordless Stick Vacuum for $250 : This is a fine vacuum, but the dustbin was more difficult to clean out than those of other models I tested.

How Long Do Cordless Vacuums Last?

Overall, vacuums tend to last around five years, but that depends on the frequency with which you vacuum and the vacuum's build quality.

Some cheaper stick vacuums might last only about a year or two, though, according to Eufy, so it's worth investing in a good-quality stick vacuum.

If you're curious what signs might indicate your vacuum needs replacing, check out our guide to how long vacuums can last .

If you're curious whether you're vacuuming enough, check out our guide to how often you should vacuum .

How Does WIRED Test Cordless Vacuums?

The best way to test a vacuum is to use it like you usually would.

So, for a few months, we lived with these cordless vacuums, rotating through them to handle day-to-day messes and weekly deep cleans on hardwood floors, area rugs, and carpets.

We charged them, asked our partners to use them, and even took some to a retail store to clean up after antique furniture and heavy foot traffic.

We also performed head-to-head testing, comparing how each picked up piles of Cheerios and cat litter, seeing if they blew debris around or needed several passes.

We also took heaps of already matted dust and dirt from inside the vacuum bins to see how easily the vacuums could suck them back up in their thickened state.

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