Vacuum cleaner reviews: Choosing a vacuum cleaner
If you're looking for a new vacuum cleaner, the number of options can feel bewildering. Prices range from about £50 to more than £400, and you can choose between upright or cylinder (sometimes known as canister), bagged or bagless – plus specialist vacuum cleaners to help you cope with floorboards, pet hair, or allergy problems.
Upright vs cylinder vacuum cleaners
There are two basic types of vacuum cleaner: upright and cylinder. Both have their pros and cons, though there are some models that buck the trend.
| Vacuums: upright vs cylinder | ||
|---|---|---|
| Type |  Upright |  Cylinder |
| Pros | Better for removing pet hair; particularly good at cleaning large, clear surfaces. | Better reliability than uprights; good under furniture and on stairs. |
| Cons | Harder to use on stairs; noisier and usually heavier than cylinders | Poor at removing pet hair unless motorised brush heads are provided; more difficult to store – unless it’s a compact model. |
Best vacuums for pet hair
Ridding the house of moulted pet hair can be a monumental task with the wrong vacuum, so choose a model we've rated highly for this task.
Upright vacuum cleaners tend to be more effective than cylinders at cleaning pet hair. They have motorised brush heads that are better at prising fur away from carpet fibres.
Cylinder vacs don't usually have motorised heads. Some models have turbo nozzles with rotating brushes that can help to loosen hair as the vacuum cleaner passes over the carpet.
A bagless vacuum
Bagged vs bagless vacuum cleaners
There's no link to cleaning ability, so deciding between bagged and bagless vacuum cleaners is largely a question of preference.
One of the obvious advantages of a bagless vac is you don't have to buy replacement dust bags. This saves pennies and earns you some environmental brownie points.
However, emptying the dust container can be messy and it's easy to spill dust – a big problem for allergy sufferers.
Vacuum cleaners for allergy sufferers
Allergens are substances that cause the human immune system to trigger and fight against them, causing an allergic reaction. Cat and dog allergen particles are often widely found in homes – the Which? test checks the amount of dog and cat allergens retained by each vacuum cleaner.
Regular vacuuming can be part of a wider strategy to minimise reactions to dust mites or pet allergens. And several vacuum cleaners are fitted with Hepa (high-efficiency particulate air) or S-class filters, which are designed to prevent allergens escaping.
But simply having a Hepa filter in your vacuum cleaner isn't good enough – if it doesn’t fit correctly, it won’t be effective at retaining allergens.
For more information about allergies, including details of a product endorsement scheme, visit Allergy UK.