Best vacuum cleaners for 2021

This upright vac is excellent at cleaning carpets and floorboards, and great for removing larger debris and pet hair, so you won't have to spend quite as long cleaning up after your furry housemates. As well as busting dust, it also does a brilliant job of retaining it, which is vital if you’re particularly sensitive to allergens.

This is the best cylinder vacuum we've tested under our current test programme – and one of the quietest too. It's superb at removing dust from floorboards and great for vacuuming pet hair. Plus, it still cleans brilliantly if you need to reduce the suction to make vacuuming your carpet more comfortable.

This cylinder vacuum doesn't clean to Best Buy standards, but we still think it's fantastic value for money. It easily removes dust and debris from floorboards and it comes with pretty decent filters too. And while it might only be average at cleaning carpets, you'll struggle to find a better vacuum at this price.

This corded stick vacuum has the same lightweight design as most cordless models, but isn't restricted by limited battery life. Weighing only 4.7kg, it's a good choice if you're looking for a model that’s easy to manoeuvre around the house. The only thing stopping it from being a Best Buy is its average, rather than excellent, carpet cleaning.

This is the best cordless vacuum we've tested. It's brilliant at cleaning, has a lengthy battery life, and is really easy to use. What's more, it has nifty extras like a digital display that tells you how much cleaning time you have left, automatic suction control so you don't need to worry about changing settings when you switch surfaces, and a little accessory clip so you can take mini tools with you as you clean. It isn't cheap, but it's the one to go for if you want the best of the best.

This vacuum has a staggering 13-metre plug-to-floorhead reach, so it’ll have no problem reaching your car from the plug socket in your house. It comes with a crevice tool for vacuuming particularly hard-to-reach places and an upholstery brush for the dashboard. It can struggle with larger debris though, so you might need to go round with a dustpan and brush after vacuuming if you want your car to be spotless.

This vacuum picks up plenty of dust from hard floors, but its filter is so bad that fine dust and allergens are simply blown back into your freshly cleaned room. As a result, vacuuming is ineffective and may exacerbate allergies or respiratory conditions.

This vacuum struggles to fit under tables and chairs, and the floorhead snags – sometimes causing the power to completely cut out – whenever it comes across a height difference, such as a raised door threshold. As a result, it's exhausting to use in a furnished home.

This vacuum is expensive and it’s also one of the worst models we've ever tested. It can't clean carpets, it can barely clean hard floors, and it lets far too many fine dust particles escape back into the air.