The 9 Very Best Vacuums for Pet Hair

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Attachments:Motorized hair screw tool, combination crevice/brush tool |Dust handling:Bagless |Warranty:2 years

The Dyson Gen5Detect motor produces up to 280 air watts of suction on turbo mode, and lasts up to 70 minutes on eco mode before needing to be recharged, making it one of the most powerful and longest-lasting cordless vacuums ever made. It is quite bulky and heavy compared to Dyson’s other models, which is why it’s not my top pick in ourguide to the best cordless vacuums. Still, I think it’s worth the trade-off for pet owners, who will appreciate its superior suction and larger dustbin capacity.

While other cordless vacuum makers have caught up to or surpassed Dyson when it comes to cleaning floors, Dyson’s above-floor cleaning attachments are still the best around. Their Hair Screw motorized upholstery cleaning tool is especially handy for pet owners because the conical roller brush is very effective for dislodging pet fur from fabric of all kinds, yet never gets tangled. Additionally, the Fluffy Optic head, with its dust-illuminating laser, is convenient for finding and sucking up every last bit of cat litter.

Attachments:Motorized upholstery tool, crevice, brush, flexible crevice |Dust handling:Bagless |Warranty:3 years

Ryobi’s contender in the highly competitive cordless stick vacuum market stands out for the effectiveness of its motorized roller brush attachments. Both the floor cleaning head and the upholstery tool are great at removing hair and fur out of all kinds of textiles, even though the Ryobi vacuum motor only produces half as much suction power as Dyson’s. I also appreciate that it can stand upright on its own without leaning against a wall or dock. And it conveniently shares a battery system with other Ryobi ONE+ 18V power tools. It would be nice if it had an automatic dust-sensing mode to make cleaning more efficient and extend the battery life, but this would add to the cost. Overall, it’s a very capable cleaner at a more than reasonable price.

Attachments:Stationary upholstery tool, crevice |Dust handling:Bagless |Warranty:5 years

Even the most powerful cordless vacuums can’t match the pure suction of a corded vacuum, which can draw upon all the wattage the power grid has to offer. Among these, Shark’s Rotator ZU102 stands out as one of the most affordable options with an anti-tangle motorized brush roller — a common feature on most cordless vacuums, but rarely found on corded models. It does an excellent job of detangling hair from pets and humans alike before it has a chance to wrap around the axle, forming fibrous knots that are a chore to remove (and often requiring a knife). It would be better if the Shark’s upholstery attachment had a motorized roller brush, but it only comes with a stationary one. It’s excusable, given its relatively low price, which is why it’s also my pick for thebest less-expensive corded vacuum.

Attachments:Stationary upholstery tool, built-in crevice/brush tool |Dust handling:Bagged |Warranty:5 years

If you or someone in your household suffers from pet dander or dust allergies, a bagged vacuum is the way to go. Bagless vacuums are convenient, but they release dust and other debris back into the air every time you empty them. With a bagged vacuum that uses self-sealing bags — such as the latest Hyclean bags from Miele — dust only ever goes in and stays in. The Guard L1 is also nice because it’s very quiet. Neither of my cats even bothers to get out of my way when I use it around them. Its wedge-shaped upholstery cleaning tool is reasonably effective, but it would be better if it were motorized. Its floor-cleaning roller brush is very effective, but does not have any anti-tangling features. Instead, it has a little trough that you’re supposed to run a utility knife through every once in a while. This works, but it’s kind of gross to deal with.

Attachments:Motorized upholstery tool, combination crevice/brush tool |Dust handling:Bagless |Warranty:2 years

There are cheaper cordless vacuums out there, but the Levoit is among the most affordable that still includes a motorized upholstery cleaning tool — a must-have feature for dealing with pet hair. Its floor-cleaning head is also motorized and has an effective anti-tangle brush roller. But unlike the Ryobi, it’s not quite powerful enough to clean rugs and carpets. I’d only recommend it for homes with hard flooring.

Attachments:Motorized upholstery tool, crevice, brush |Dust handling:Bagless |Warranty:2 years

As I wrote in my guide to thebest handheld vacuums,the Shark UltraCyclone Pet Pro’s biggest advantage over other handheld vacuums is its motorized roller brush attachment. That said, most of the cordless stick vacuums I recommend also come with this tool, and are much more powerful — albeit slightly heavier. However, this is still a good buy if you have a corded vacuum you like and have no plans to get a cordless one.

Read more:The Best Handheld Vacuums

If you’re lucky, hair is the biggest mess you’ll regularly have to deal with as a pet owner. For those less fortunate days, the Bissell Little Green Machine is great for dealing with the aftermath of moreseriousaccidents. Intheir review of the cleaner, Strategist writer Erin Schwartz describes it as aShop-Vac, with a shampoo trigger. “It’s best at cleaning up small, localized stains, ideally soon after they happen,” writes Schwartz. While they wouldn’t necessarily recommend detailing an entire vintage sofa with this thing, they were ultimately able to get the job done. It’s much better suited to the kinds of small messes pets are more likely to produce.

The Eufy C10 is tech writerJordan McMahon’s top pick from his guide to thebest robot vacuums for pet hair. He writes: “This vacuum managed to pick up all the short fur my dogs shed without a problem, and could suck up small clumps of longer hair without getting tangled. It did struggle with large bundles of long fur, but so did nearly every other vacuum I tested. It’s also been able to pick up stray bits of dog food and all the dirt my dogs — plus my niece and nephew — track in on a daily basis.”

Read more:The Best Robot Vacuums for Pet Hair

When it comes to pets, sometimes hair isn’t the only problem. “Perhaps unsurprisingly, living with five dogs (including one puppy) has resulted in several turf wars and pee-covered floors,” writes McMahon in his guide torobot vacuums for pet hair.Having a robot that can mop in addition to vacuum makes dealing with these situations much easier. Other mopping robots require you to refill the cleaning fluid each time they run, but the Saros has a separate reservoir that only needs refilling every so often. In addition to handling long hair better than any other robot vacuum he’s tested, it’s quiet too: “Even when my dogs were nearby while it was cleaning, the noise never bothered them.”

Read more:The Best Robot Vacuums for Pet Hair