Skip to main content area Best vacuum cleaner 2017: Cordless, cylinder and upright top picks and buying guideThere’s no difference between bagged or bagless vacuum cleaners in terms of cleaning power. But bagless cleaners remove the cost and hassle of having to buy bags, which is a major bonus. And whilst it used to be the case that bagged vacuum cleaners were a more hygienic and allergy-friendly way to clean on account of securely holding the dirt, that’s no longer the case. 1. Karcher MV4: £140, John LewisThis efficient multi-purpose machine makes light work of everything from rubble to sawdust to sludge and spills, making it ideal for cleaning up wet or dry mess in your home, garage, car – or wherever you need it, really. A four-hour charge will offer up to 40 minutes of powerful cleaning with this cordless machine. It picks up everything including dog hair, compressing it into bales that can be easily removed, and it does not discharge noticeably between uses.

You can even connect it to your computer to check its condition. 3. Vax Air Cordless: £195, John Lewis This upright cordless model is particularly lightweight and manoeuvrable and is brilliant at picking up dust, dirt and pet hair from all surfaces, whether carpet, floorboards or laminate. It’s awesome at getting into corners and close up to the walls too. 4. Dyson Cinetic Big Ball: £500, John Lewissofa cleaning service miami First they got rid of the bag. air duct cleaning warningsAnd now they’ve got rid of the filters to wash and replace. best ways to clean microfiber furnitureThis is not the only advantage of Dyson’s new model, the first upright vacuum we have tested that never seems to lose suction or clog. best way to clean dust from wooden blinds

It is powerful and durable, and if you buy one now, you will get £75 worth of genuinely useful extra tools for free. 5. Swan SC4010N/MO: £37, John Lewis Great for cleaning the likes of stairs, car and fireplace, this lightweight and compact hand-held vacuum cleaner will get into the tightest and most awkward of corners and its suction is incredibly powerful. It’s got a five-metre cord and comes with a more useful selection of brushes and tools than your average machine.best solution to clean vinyl blinds 6. Bosch Athlet: £249, John Lewislaptop cooling fan nz Bosch is one of the few brands that makes both bagged and bagless models of vacuum cleaner and both varieties tend to be impressive on a variety of floor surfaces. This one is an upright cleaner that is so lightweight that most people could carry it upstairs with one hand.

Don’t expect that “just vacced” look, but it picks everything up and is good at getting under furniture. 7. Miele Scout RX1: £600, John Lewis This is Miele’s first robotic model and given their reputation in the world of vacuum cleaners, we had high expectations, which it lived up to. The smart navigation system, including digital camera, means it was impossible to fault – except, that is, for the price tag. 8. Hotpoint SL D07 BEB UK: £95, amazon This has a good energy rating, great manoeuvrability and decent dust retention. We also like the remote control power control located at the top of the vacuum handle so you can select the power you need without having to bend down. A good budget option. 9. Zanussi Ergo Easy All Floors: £100, amazon Lightweight but powerful, this bagless cylinder vacuum cleaner comes with an anti-allergen HEPA filtration system, two-litre capacity dustbin and a 1500-watt motor to deliver impressive cleaning results.

With the long power cable, this is good for big spaces. 10. Vax Air Revolve: £260, John Lewis Brand new for this year, this machine has a multi-orientation cylinder that revolves around you to clean in one continuous motion in any direction, making manoeuvrability really simple, rolling and flipping as you go. It’s great on stairs and has excellent pick-up, even for stubborn pet hair. It’s easy to carry around and to store. 11. Vax Energise Vibe: £45, John Lewis We wouldn’t recommend this if you have lots of carpet, where it only does an average job, but it’s good on traditional floorboards and laminate flooring. It’s got excellent allergen retention and is very energy efficient, as well as lightweight. It’s nice and affordable and comes with a variety of useful tools including a crevice tool and upholstery tool. 12. Dyson DC54: £460, John Lewis This Dyson never loses suction and it also retains tiny particles as small as pet allergens and dust mite faeces, making this a particularly good option for allergy sufferers.

It also uses patented Cinetic cyclone technology, which means there’s no filter maintenance, so nothing to replace or wash. It’s easy to manoeuvre and get into the smallest of spaces. Verdict: The all-new Dyson Cinetic Big Ball is expensive, but well worth the money, thanks to its outstanding cleaning ability on a range of surfaces, as well as its reliability and lack of filters to replace. The Vax Air Cordless is another stand-out machine. It’s lightweight, manoeuvrable and extremely efficient. No vacuum excels at all types of cleaning— your home’s layout and even décor dictate the type you might need. That will become clear as you get ready for a thorough spring cleaning. Do you have lots of carpet or just bare floors? And it will be especially apparent if you have pets that are leaving little reminders of their winter coats everywhere you look.They’re a vacuum’s toughest job and rank highest on many people’s priority lists. Dirt tends to collect and hide in the carpet, and our feet can grind it in.

The better bagged uprights, with beefy motors and wide brush rolls, clean the most deeply. But you want them to be maneuverable as well. In our tests, no bagged vacuum that was superb at deep-cleaning carpets was especially easy to handle, but five of the top bagged-upright models we recommend weigh less than 20 pounds. One of the lower-cost picks in our Ratings worth a look: the $150 Hoover WindTunnel T-Series Pet UH30310. It gets superb marks for pet-hair pickup and has a manual adjustment for carpet height. At 17 pounds, it’s also light enough to maneuver easily. If you have few carpets and lots of tile, bare wood, or vinyl flooring, you can get a bagless upright—say, the $260 Shark Rotator Professional Lift-Away NV501—and enjoy easy handling in a lighter-weight vacuum. Other full-sized vacuums might do almost as well for carpets while excelling at bare floors, a relatively easy task. A heavy vacuum can be a true liability if you have stairs. The better canisters, led by the bagged Miele S 8590 Marin, $1,000, are heavier than most uprights—but you’re mostly moving just the hose and power head, not the entire machine.

In addition to our vacuum cleaner Ratings, our brand-repair history lists the percentage of upright and canister vacuums that failed or had a problem that was unresolved. Sometimes you need just a light cleaning before guests show up. For that, see our recommended handheld and stick vacuums. None of them can handle carpet deep cleaning, but they do a decent job. Which vacuum for which task On average, these are the lowest-cost way to deep-clean carpets. Bagged models in particular can deep-clean carpets and rugs, and all offer a wide cleaning swath. Pulling, pushing, and carrying them can be hard, especially on stairs. For maximum airflow with both full-sized types, replace the bag or empty the bin before it’s completely filled. They’re superior for cleaning curtains, upholstery, and spots beneath furniture. Canisters are also easier on stairs because you move just the hose and powerhead. The top canisters are pricier than comparable uprights. When retracting the cord, routinely letting it snap can weaken the plug.

Slow down the motion during the last few feet. Quickly picking up dry surface litter anytime you don’t want to or cannot bend. Most don’t pick up as well as hand vacuums, their dirt bin is usually small, and most are noisy. Frequently clean or replace filters, and clean out dirt cup to prevent bacterial growth when using both hand and stick vacs. Light, quick surface cleaning on carpets and bare floors, especially in tight spots that you can’t reach with a stick vac. Some can handle pet hair on upholstery. Like stick vacuums, they don’t have much power compared with a full-sized vacuum. With cordless hand and stick vacs, charge the battery according to the owner’s manual for maximum product life. Top-rated: Kenmore Elite 31150, $350 CR Best Buy: Kenmore 31140, $200 Top-rated: Miele S 8590 Marin, $1,000 CR Best Buy: Panasonic MC-CG937, $330 Top-rated: Dyson DC59 Animal, $500 Top-rated: Shark Pet Perfect II SV780, $60