Best carpet cleaners: tested and reviewed by Which? experts

A good-quality carpet cleaner can give your carpets a new lease of life and keep them looking spic and span. 

But as well as making sure you get one that does the job right, it's also worth thinking about whether it's the right fit for your home.

Some are large and bulky, and will be a struggle to carry upstairs or store. Others have features that aim to make regular cleaning easier, or tackle tough everyday spills.

They can also cost hundreds of pounds, so get the lowdown on the useful features to look out for.

The best carpet cleaners from our tests

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The carpet cleaners we tested

All the carpet cleaners we tested are listed in alphabetical order below.

Only logged-in Which? members can view the best carpet cleaners from our tests.

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Bissell CrossWave Multi-Surface Cleaning System 1713

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Type Multi-function wet and dry cleaner

Weight 6.4kg

Accessories A cleaning tray

Need to know 0.8 litre clean water capacity, 0.6 litre dirty water capacity, automatically shifts between hard floors and carpet, carpet cleaning solution, slimmer stick design, digital controls, self-cleaning brushes, and a two-year warranty

Bissell ProHeat 2X Revolution 18583

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Type Carpet washer 

Weight 11.9kg

Accessories Tough stain tool, 2-in-1 crevice tool, nozzle tool, cleaning solutions

Need to know 3.7 litre clean and dirty water capacity, 7.5 metre cord, six-year warranty

Bissell ProHeat 2X Revolution Pet Pro 20666

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Type Carpet washer

Weight 12.5kg

Accessories 2-in-1 pet and upholstery tool, tough stain tool,  3-in-1 stair tool, nozzle cleaning tool, hose, accessory bag

Need to know 3.7 litres clean water capacity, 4.5 litre dirty water capacity, selection of tools and bottle of detergent, quick-dry carpet settings, and a six-year warranty

Numatic Henry Wash HVW 370

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Type Multi-function wet and dry cleaner 

Weight 15.9kg

Accessories 2.5 metre hose, two stainless steel tubes, floor tool, fishtail extraction tool, upholstery extraction tool, wet floor scrub

Need to know 9 litre clean water capacity, 5 litre dirty water capacity, cleans both hard floor and carpet, long 10 metre hose, and a two-year warranty

Rug Doctor Deep Carpet Cleaner

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Type Carpet washer 

Weight 17.8kg

Accessories Upholstery tool kit

Need to know 3.8 litre clean water capacity, 4.2 litre dirty water capacity, washes, rinses and sucks water back up in one pass, two-year warranty

Find out how to choose the best vacuum cleaner

Rug Doctor FlexClean All-In-One Floor Cleaner

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Type Carpet washer 

Weight 12.8kg

Accessories Upholstery tool, carpet and hard floor nozzles, cleaning solution

Need to know 3.7 litre clean water tank, 4.7 litre dirt water tank, cleans both carpet and hard floors, three different spray rates, swappable nozzles for carpet and hard floor, and up to two-years warranty

Swan Dirtmaster Pro Carpet Washer SC17320N

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Type Carpet washer 

Weight 8.2kg

Accessories 2.3 metre hose, extra brush bar, cleaning solutions

Need to know 2.1 litre clean water tank, 1.6 litre dirty water tank, 7m power cord, set of accessory tools included, and a two-year warranty

Tower T146000 TCW10 Carpet Washer

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Type Carpet washer 

Weight 7.6kg

Accessories Nothing

Need to know 1.8 litre clean water tank, 1.7 litre dirty water tank, 6 metre cord, warranty of up to three years

Vax Platinum Power Max ECB1SPV1

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Type Carpet washer

Weight 13.9kg

Accessories Hand scrub tool, upholstery cleaning tool, 2-in-1 antimicrobial wash tool, extendable 4.6 metre hose, pre-treatment wand, three cleaning solutions, hard floor adaptor

Need to know 4.7 litre clean and dirty water capacity, suitable for a mix of floor surfaces, lots of accessories, quick clean mode, 9.6 metre power cord, six-year guarantee

Vax Platinum SmartWash Carpet Cleaner

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Type Carpet washer 

Weight 12.7kg

Accessories Carpet cleaning solutions, 2.5 metre hose, SpinScrub hand tool, 2-in1 antimicrobial tool for upholstery and crevices, accessory bag

Need to know 3.5 litre clean water capacity, 1.9 litre dirty water capacity, no manual trigger, carpet cleaning solution, 2.5 metre hose, SpinScrub hand tool, 2-in1 antimicrobial tool for upholstery, carpeted stairs and crevices, and a six-year guarantee

Vax Rapid Power Plus Carpet Cleaner

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Type Carpet washer

Weight 14kg

Accessories 2.5 metre hose tool, hand tool, crevice tool, 2-in-1 antimicrobial wash tool, pre and post-carpet cleaning solution, storage bag

Need to know 4.7 litre clean and dirty water capacity, rotating brush bar to help lift dirt, set of tools included, 7.5 metre cord, and a two-year guarantee

How we test carpet cleaners

Our independent lab tests focus on the most important qualities you'd expect in a good carpet cleaner, including:

• How clean it leaves tired and grimy carpets After cleaning and drying three soiled carpets, we use a spectrometer to measure how much dirt the machine removes and how much brighter the carpets become. We also check how close each carpet washer cleans to the edges for even results. The picture above shows the difference between an uncleaned carpet on the left, a carpet cleaner that gets one star in our testing in the middle (the carpet is still dirty) and a carpet cleaner that gives a five-star clean. 

• Whether it can clean dried-on stains Carpet samples are stained with 10ml of red wine, coffee and mud, and left to dry for 24 hours. The carpet is then cleaned according to the manufacturer's instructions and assessed to see how much of the stain has been removed. We've found that most machines aren't great at this job - you're usually better off just using a carpet stain remover spray.

• How wet it leaves the carpet Some models struggle to suck up dirty water, leaving carpets soggy and messy. We weigh carpet samples before cleaning, then again at one, five, and 24 hours after to see how much water remains. The more stars a model earns, the drier the carpet will be.

• How quiet and easy the carpet cleaner is to use We ask a panel of three experts to assess how noisy the carpet cleaner is and whether the noise is particularly intrusive or irritating. As for ease of use, we look into a variety of factors such as the length of the carpet cleaner's cord and nozzle; how much water the tanks can hold before leaking; how heavy the machine is; how easy it is to assemble and push around; and the clarity of the instructions.

We regularly revisit the carpet cleaners on sale to see if there are any more popular models that need testing and when we find them we do.

Find out more about how Which? is not influenced by product manufacturers or retailers and how your support helps us to stay editorially independent.

What is the difference between a carpet cleaner and a spot cleaner?

A standard carpet cleaner, of the kind we review on this page, is a relatively bulky machine designed to clean entire rooms and other large areas.

A spot cleaner is a smaller, more compact carpet cleaner, designed for limited areas and specific stains, such as spills or pet accidents. Despite its name, a spot cleaner isn't merely a bottle of cleaning solution.

We recently tested spot cleaners from brands including Karcher, Shark and Vax. But the results (pictured above) were so underwhelming that we couldn't recommend any of them. All the models we tested struggled, especially with coffee stains.

Can I use a steam cleaner on carpet? 

Yes, but if you use it for too long you risk shrinking or damaging the carpet's fibres. 

A dedicated carpet cleaner is preferable – there's a lot less risk and a decent model will do a much better job of refreshing your carpet.

Browse all our steam cleaner reviews to compare models from brands including Karcher, Vax, Shark and Thane

How can I deep clean my carpet myself?

If you don't fancy investing in any kind of machine to clean your carpet, there's plenty you can do with some simple household items and a bit of elbow grease.

Always start with vacuuming. Then tackle any visible stains or spots. You can use a dedicated carpet stain remover, or try a homemade solution.

Once you've removed the stains, freshen up the entire carpet by sprinkling it with baking soda – a natural deodoriser that can help absorb odours trapped in the carpet fibres. Let it sit for at least 15 minutes, or longer for stronger odours, then vacuum it up thoroughly.

Our top tips for tackling stubborn stains

• Act quickly to improve your chances of removing it.
• Carefully remove as much of the spill as you can.
• Work the stain from the outside in to avoid spreading it around and making it worse.
• Test your cleaning product on an inconspicuous area of your carpet first to make sure it won’t damage or discolour the material.
• Avoid using a lot of water, or hot water, as this can make some stains worse and even deepen them through the carpet.

Find out which carpet stain removers removed tough stains including red wine, chocolate and curry in our tests