Vacuum cleaners have come a long way from the massive beasts of yesteryear. Gone are the cumbersome electric cords, unwieldy size and weight. Today’s cordless vacuums are light, easy to use and boast high-performance rechargeable batteries. In fact, many provide the strong suction once limited to upright vacuum cleaners. Some can even tackle multiple types of flooring including hardwood, bare floors, stairs and carpets. And once you factor in the various attachments, wands and tools these machines come with, you’ll soon appreciate just how convenient cordless vacuums really are.
Dyson pioneered this field with its lineup of capable — and pricey — Cyclone V series stick vacs. A host of companies now offer their own cordless vacuums. In some cases, these are shameless clones of Dyson products. In others, they’re unique takes on the cordless vacuum, providing novel features all their own.
Is any cordless stick vacuum worth buying over Dyson’s premium models? And if so, which cordless vac makes the most sense for you? To find the answer, we selected eight current cordless vacuums. On our buyer’s guide list are stick vacs from well-known vacuum cleaner heavyweights including Hoover, Bissell and Shark. We also included a few options from vacuum newcomers Moosoo and Onson, both popular, low-cost Dyson cordless vacuum cleaner alternatives sold through Amazon.
Read more: Best robot vacuum of 2020: iRobot Roomba, Neato and more
We then put them all through a rigorous battery of floor-care tests on hard flooring, carpet and other surfaces. The process took over 150 hours to complete. It also consumed multiple pounds of sand and rice, plus hundreds of handfuls of pet hair. After that, we’ve determined that these products are our picks for the best cordless vacuum for 2020.