The top performers in our review are the Dyson Cinetic, the Gold Award winner; the Bissell C4 Cyclonic 1233, the Silver Award winner; and the Samsung Motion Sync VC-F700G, the Bronze Award winner. Here's more on choosing a canister vacuum to meet your needs, along with detail on how we arrived at our ranking of the top 10 canister vacuums. When it comes to cleaning large houses, a canister vacuum is your best bet. In overall vacuuming performance, they're comparable to upright vacuums, and they excel at the most difficult tasks. Canister vacuum cleaners are easier to maneuver around, and with long, adjustable hoses, they are versatile enough for cleaning stairs, upholstery and drapes. Most are excellent at cleaning bare floors but struggle with carpet. However, the best canister vacuums are powerful enough to dig into thick carpets without a lot of extra work. Most full-sized canister vacuums are heavier than uprights and, overall, more expensive. The canister rolls around on wheels, so finding a vacuum with high clearance and smooth wheel movement is a must.

If you have a midsized house or apartment, consider an upright vacuum instead. Check out our rankings of the best uprights. For more information, you can see the vacuum cleaners we tested in action and learn more from our articles on canister vacuum cleaners. With canister vacuums, the most important factors are performance, convenience and design. At our testing facility, we put these vacuums through the ringer, simulating all the messes you come across in a busy household. For performance, we measured the vacuums' ability to pick up fine dust around your home, using flour in place of dust. The flour had the same consistency, but allowed us to see precisely how much was left after each pass. To simulate bigger messes, we spread kitty litter and tested the vacuums to see if they struggled with larger debris. Our tests focused on hardwood and low- and medium-profile carpet. For convenience, we ran these lightweight canister vacuums through a series of maneuverability tests and created a subjective percentage score.

We gave high scores to vacuums that did better moving up and down levels, turning in tight radiuses, and reaching hard-to-clean areas. The weights of the vacuums reflect our in-house measurements, not those provided by the manufacturers. We also checked the volume of the vacuums in decibels, scoring high for quiet performance. Bagless canister vacuums are powerful and tend to be loud, especially on hardwood. Top Ten Reviews seeks, whenever possible, to evaluate products in hands-on tests that simulate as closely as possible the experience of the typical consumer. Our testers offered unbiased opinions on the subjective tests. The companies had no input or influence over our test methodology, nor was the methodology provided to any of them in more detail than is available through reading our reviews. Results of our evaluations were not provided to the companies in advance of publication. Portability: How Easy Is the Vacuum to Carry & Store? Maneuverability scores measure the movement of the vacuum when it's in use, but the ease of carrying it around is nearly as important.

Since canister vacuums are heavier than uprights, a body you can lift and carry with ease is especially important for homes with multiple floors. best dryer vent cleaning kitThe position of handles is important, as well as the length of the hose and power cord. duct cleaning services in indiaA canister with a large capacity is important to cleaning performance, but a large canister can be less portable. clean laptop fan dellThe best canister vacuums strike a good balance of capacity and portability.fan on laptop running constantly We considered whether the canister was designed for storage, if it fit well in a standard closet and how many attachments it came with. best way to clean stains off car seats

Some vacuums come with a variety of attachments. While these help you with specific jobs around your home, they also add to the bulk of the vacuum and may require extra storage space. best vacuum cleaner with suctionThe best vacuums have clips on the base for the attachments to reduce the storage space they need. Versatile Canisters: Cleaning & Maintenance The best canister vacuums require the least amount of energy on your part. We tested both bagless and bagged cleaners, though we docked points on those that require replacement bags. Bagged vacuums are harder to attach and cost more in the long run. Bagless vacuums have detachable canisters that you have to empty by hand, which might lead to spreading of dust or digging if the design isn't perfect. We scored the vacuums on whether the debris came out easily or we had to put in more effort. Some of the top-performing canister vacuums use cyclonic filtration, which constantly filters out allergens and reduces strain on the internal filter.

The filters in these vacuums never need to be replaced. The majority, though, do require that you replace the filter at least once every six months. We included the price of these filters in our rankings. Help & Support: Peace of Mind From the Manufacturer Vacuums can often be the most troubled appliances in your home. We've all heard that crunching noise running over the wrong toy or loose screw. A good warranty and available customer service are important. The best canister vacuums offer at least a five-year warranty, though others offer as little as one year. We reviewed the online experience, giving extra points for companies that have readily available live chat service and easy-to-find phone numbers and email addresses. Three canister vacuums – the Dyson Cinetic, the Bissell C4 Cyclonic 1233 and the Samsung Motion Sync VC-F700G – stood out from the other canister vacuums we tested. The Dyson Cinetic was nearly perfect in our tests, scoring high marks for its vacuuming performance and outpacing the competition with its versatile design.