The 7 Best Cordless Vacuums for Pet Hair, Tested by BHG

Best Overall

Ryobi ONE+ HP High-Capacity Stick Vacuum Kit

$279 $215 at Home Depot View on Ryobitools.com

The Ryobi 18V One Plus HP High-Capacity Stick Vacuum out-performed the competition in the lab and at home. Unlike most vacuums, it performs equally well on all floor types. This is due to variable brushroll speeds, which can be adjusted lower for carpet and higher for hard floors. It does take more effort to push on carpet.

Both in the lab and at home with three dogs (including two black labs who shed constantly) we found that it picked up all types of debris with ease—cereal, pet hair, human hair, rice, and more. We used it most often on tile, hardwood, and a low-pile rug.

The vacuum maneuvers easily thanks to an articulated head that slides under furniture and fits against walls. It did have some trouble fitting under the perimeter of our couch at home due to the placement of the dustbin. Another favorite feature for pet owners is the hook-shaped tool to cut tangled hair out of the brushroll.

Aside from the hair tool, the vacuum has minimal accessories and no attachments, which was the biggest downside in our opinion. Unlike a lot of other options, it's not able to convert to a handheld, either.

How it Performed After Six Months

We used the vacuum every other day to eliminate pet hair and debris from surfaces in our home. It's suction power and ability to easily whisk up dirt and hair remained unchanged throughout testing, as did the battery life. We ended up removing the filter because we didn't find it effective, and the vacuum performance remained the same.

Product Details: Type: Stick | Weight: 9.94 pounds | Battery Life: Up to 12 minutes on high, up to 42 minutes on low | Accessories: Charger, 18v Ryobi battery, hook-shaped maintenance tool

Best Budget

Innova Cordless Stick Multi-Surface Vacuum

$289 at Amazon $230 at Walmart

This vacuum by Innova has two modes for hard floors and carpets, and it works great on both, removing dust, debris, and hair without any strands or fibers getting caught in the roller. It picked up about 95% of all debris during our tests in under one minute. 

It’s great for stairs and shelves, working with ease around corners and chair legs or tables—the included crevice tool is a must-have, as some of the debris would get pushed against the wall when we used it to clean medium- or high-pile carpet.

The 1-liter dust cup is quick to empty by punching a button, and there’s an LED screen with touch controls. The vacuum can lie completely flat in order to go underneath couches or other pieces of furniture. 

Additionally, the vacuum easily converts to a handheld for work on curtains or couches. It also runs for quite a long time (up to an hour), so you’ll be able to clean the whole house with one charge, and we didn’t notice it losing suction power as the battery drained.

That said, it’s on the heavier side at over 8 pounds, and we found it uncomfortable to hold for long periods. 

Product Details: Type: Stick | Noise Level: 92.2 decibels| Weight: 8.14 pounds | Battery Run Time: Up to 23.5 minutes on high, up to 60 minutes on low | Attachments: Motorized anti-tangle pet hair attachment, crevice tool, dust/upholstery brush

Best Splurge

Dyson Cyclone V10 Animal Vacuum

$506 at Amazon $480 at Walmart $550 at Dyson.com

We found the Dyson Cyclone V10 Animal so easy and functional it almost got us excited about vacuuming. If that’s not enough to convince you it’s one of the best cordless vacuums for pet hair, allow us to highlight some standout features. 

It comes with so many helpful attachments, like a hair screw tool, a conical brush that quickly sucks up all the excess hair, a dusting head, and an ultra-precise crevice tool to get between couch cushions or stairs.

A lever allows you to remove dust and debris from the filter (mostly) hands-free, although you might have to reach in and grab leftover detritus, and the filter removes dust particles as small as .3 microns. 

Three suction modes are meant to switch between hardwood and carpet easily, and the powerful motor won’t lose suction as the battery goes down. Additionally, we found it easy to maneuver around at all sorts of odd angles, and even easier to switch out attachments.

It worked great on carpet and upholstery to get out pet hair, but it took us a few passes to get all the kibble.

How it Performed After Six Months

This is the best stick vacuum we've ever used (and an improvement over previous Dyson models). It's an especially great choice for pet hair because of the anti-tangle tool that works to prevent hair from getting caught around the brush roll. It's easy to empty, so we find ourselves reaching for it when we previously might have grabbed a broom.

Product Details: Type: Stick | Noise Level: 75 to 81 decibels | Weight: 5.86 pounds | Battery Run Time: Up to 60 minutes | Attachments: Cleaning head, hair screw tool, crevice tool, combination tool, mini soft dusting brush

Best for Hard Floors

Dyson Omni-Glide+ Vacuum

View on Target $350 at Wayfair $350 $289 at Home Depot

If your home mostly consists of hard floors, consider this the best vacuum for pet hair you’ll find. The main head on the Dyson Omni-Glide has brush bars covered in nylon to easily pick up larger pieces of debris like kibble, while the carbon fiber filaments are made to pick up hair and dust particles.

The vacuum is meant to function equally well moving forward or backward for superior maneuverability. It also features four 360-degree casters and an articulating neck that allow it to move around corners and odd angles and lie flat. We found the swiveling feature made it especially easy to maneuver.

A powerful motor creates strong suction on hard floors, which we noticed worked as well when tackling small messes as it did on hair. The vacuum also notably features LED lights that provide visibility in dark corners and other areas where debris might hide. 

There are some quirks to consider, particularly around the dust cup: removing the canister was not so intuitive (we had to refer to the manual to figure it out), and the dust cup filled up relatively quickly, although we found that it still performed well once it hit the max fill line.

Due to these details, combined with a shorter battery life of up to 21 minutes on low, lead us to believe the vacuum is best for smaller spaces.

How it Performed After Three Months

We found that the Dyson Omni-Glide lives up to its name—it really does glide! It's amazing on wood floors, seamlessly picking up dog and cat hair, kids' craft supplies, and tracked-in dirt. On the few occasions we forgot to collect larger debris before vacuuming, it sucked them up with no problem.

Product Details: Type: Stick | Noise Level: 80 to 86 Decibels | Weight: 2.52 pounds | Battery Run Time: Up to 21 minutes on low | Attachments: Cleaner head, light pipe crevice tool, mini motorized tool, combination crevice tool

Best Handheld

Black+Decker Dustbuster Furbuster Handheld Vacuum

$100 $92 at Amazon $99 at Wayfair $99 at Lowes

This is one of the best options if your biggest issue is keeping upholstery clean. The Black+Decker vacuum will deep clean everything from curtains to dog beds to couches. While it does work after a few passes on larger debris like kibble, it’s most effective on hair and fur. 

The motorized, anti-tangle rubber bristles pull up the hair without it getting stuck, and the power boost mode (one of two modes) makes quick work of particularly gnarly messes.

There’s only one attachment, an extra-long crevice tool. Though we found it worked well on all surfaces we applied it to and especially liked it for cleaning couch upholstery, we do wish it included at least one other attachment for jobs like cleaning underneath the couch or in tight corners.

The vacuum may not come with techy features, but it has great add-ons nonetheless; in addition to the crevice tool, there’s an extra-large dustbin that holds 750 milliliters and a washable filter that we found easy to remove.

The dustbin needs to be emptied fairly frequently, and, because it's handheld, you’ll need to get down on your hands and knees to clean floors. But it’s a fantastic, affordable option that helps you maintain your furniture and keep it looking clean.

How it Performed After Six Months

We found ourselves reaching for the Black+Decker consistently to spot clean small messes between bigger vacuum cleans. It's so easy to pick up and move around, and the fact that the accessories are stored directly on the vacuum body makes it even more portable. Plus battery life is fantastic, even with the motorized tool.

Product Details: Type: Handheld | Noise Level: 62 to 68 decibels | Weight: 2.6 pounds | Battery Run Time: 20+ minutes | Attachments: Extra-long crevice tool

Best Multipurpose

Tineco Pure One S15 Pro

View on Tineco.com

The Tineco Pure One S15 is our best multipurpose for a few reasons: its easy maneuverability, effectiveness at handling messes on different surfaces, and powerful filter.

We were especially impressed with how lightweight and portable it was, and its ability to efficiently transition from hard flooring to carpet. The filter opens and closes with a magnet and is constructed so hair won’t get easily tangled. The lever made for a mostly hands-free experience when we tested it, too.

Besides its ability to thoroughly remove hair from couches and rugs with only a few passes, there are some smart features that make the stick vacuum worth the price. Our favorite is the ability to quickly convert it into a handheld model in order to properly clean upholstery. 

There are V-shaped bristles on the main brush head to help to avoid tangles, and an LED light allows the user to easily see into small crevices and tight corners to ensure an area is thoroughly clean. A powerful 5-stage filter removes allergens and separates air and dust to prevent the loss of suction power as the vacuum fills up.

An LED screen allows you to switch easily between the three modes (max, auto, and manual), increase or decrease suction with a touch bar, and utilize voice commands once you connect to WiFi. 

As with most WiFi-enabled vacuums, it also connects to an app with the ability to track cleaning progress and connect to product support. Worth considering: we found the vacuum most effective on its highest setting, which did cut into battery life.

How it Performed After Six Months

All components of the vacuum continued to work as they should over the course of six months at-home testing. The battery life and suction are great, and it charges quickly. We used it less often on carpet once we incorporated an upright vacuum into our routine, but we love it for hard floors and quick cleans.

Product Details: Type: Stick | Noise Level: 75 to 80 Decibels| Weight: 6.80 Pounds | Battery Run Time: Up to 40 minutes | Attachments: Brush head with LED light, mini power brush, 2-in-1 dusting tool, crevice brush