What are the best vacuum cleaners for your home? Consumer Reports is your resource for researching best vacuum cleaners. We provide unbiased buying advice and independent, expert reviews you can trust. We’ve lab-tested more than 100 models, including canisters, uprights, small vacuums, and robotic vacuums. Before you go out to shop for a vacuum cleaner, read our reviews to narrow down the optimal vacuum cleaners for your needs. See more on best vacuum cleaners. Our expert lab technicians evaluated and scored various models for their performance on each of the following measures: Carpet: How much embedded talc and sand the machine lifted from a medium-pile carpet. Bare floors: How well a the model picked up sand without dispersing it on bare floors. Tool airflow: Strength of airflow through the hose. Noise: Measured in decibels. Emissions: Quantity of wood-flour particles that a vacuum released when, 1) only the motor was turned on, and 2) while vacuuming.

Handling: How easy it is to push, pull, and carry. Pet hair: How well the model picks up pet hair from medium-pile carpet. Overall score: Out of 100 points, based mainly on cleaning performance and ease of use. Below is a list of the best vacuum cleaners in each of the tests our experts performed. latest vax vacuum cleanersTake a look at our buying guide to discover all you should know before selecting the best model for your needs. oreck vacuum cleaner replacement beltsThen go to the store and try them out before making your final selection.vacuum cleaner for cnc Best vacuum cleaner for overall score Best vacuum cleaner for carpet Best vacuum cleaner for bare floors Best vacuum cleaner for tool airflow

Best vacuum cleaner for noise Best carpet stain removersROBOTIC vacuum cleaners, generally, are not news. Electronics companies such as iRobot, LG and Neato Robotics already make their own versions. Yet even the best on the market offer enormous scope for improvement—and the worst little in the way of suction power. Last September Consumer Reports, an American magazine, even warned purchasers to think twice about buying one. But on September 4th, Dyson, a company famous for its bagless vacuum cleaners, announced in Tokyo that it was launching its first robotic model, the Dyson 360 Eye. It will be available in Japan from early next year. Dyson has so far remained firmly out of the robotic market, despite 16 years of research in the area. It came close to launching a robotic vacuum cleaner in 2001, but the company pulled the device from production at the last moment. James Dyson, the firm's founder, decided the model was too expensive and heavy to be of interest to most consumers.

But since then the company has improved the power output of its robotic cleaner and has reduced the size of its motors and other components. The firm has also managed to marry new technology with academic expertise, by working with researchers at Imperial College London. The final result is a cleaner that Dyson says has more suction power than any other robotic vacuum on the market. The sleek device has a number of innovations that, Dyson claims, put it far ahead of its competitors. Its vision system, with a 360° panoramic camera, allows it to see where it has cleaned in a room and what it has left to do, unlike its competitors which roam about in a seemingly random fashion in the hope that they will eventually cover the entire floor. This means it can clean a given area much faster by prioritising the places it has not yet covered. It also has tank tracks, rather than wheels, which allow it to climb rugs and small obstacles such as carpet edges (see picture). There is even an app to activate the device remotely.

As a result, the Eye is likely to be an expensive, high-end product. This will limit its sales in many places, where the market for vacuum cleaners is ruthlessly price competitive. But the technology-mad Japanese, with their tiny apartments, are likely to be keen. Moreover, if consumers agree that Dyson has managed to create an exceptionally good robotic vacuum, it could expand the market in America—a country which has so far shown limited interest in domestic robots. And even if the new model fails to produce much in the form of direct profits, the smart little device may whip up a storm of interest which will help Dyson promote its other household appliances, such as cyclone vacuum cleaners, washing machines and heaters. But Dyson will be hoping for more than just a whirlwind of publicity: it hopes the Eye will wipe the floor with the competition. Feb. 17, 2006 -- You can't vacuum your allergies away, British researchers find. Experts currently recommend vacuums equipped with high-efficiency particulate air filters -- HEPA filters -- for families with dust mite or pet allergies.

But Robin Gore, MD, and colleagues at the University of Manchester have been testing brand-new, HEPA-equipped vacuums. They recently showed they actually raise personal exposure to cat dander. Now they find that they stir up dust mites, too. "Both HEPA and non-HEPA vacuum cleaners can actually increase an individual's exposure to particles containing cat allergens," Gore says, in a news release. "These latest findings further suggest that there is no significant advantage to using a HEPA vacuum cleaner to reduce exposure to airborne particles like dust mites." The findings appear in the January issue of the European Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. Gore's team got spanking new vacuum cleaners from Electrolux UK, Hoover UK, Nilfisk, Miele, and Stimvak. They also hauled from its closet a 10-year-old used Electrolux, with its original non-HEPA filter. In a sealed experimental chamber, the HEPA-equipped vacuums did not leak allergens -- tiny particles of irritating substances.

The old vacuum did. But when researchers tested the vacuums in actual homes, they got different results. Experimenters wore particle-trapping devices in their nostrils. In terms of how much dust mite allergen got into the nose, the new vacuums were no better than the old one. Gore and colleagues deduce that all the vacuums stirred up dust mite allergens from the carpet. The amount of dust mite particles that got into the vacuumers' noses was small, even when they used the old vacuum. And changing the vacuum cleaner bags -- even on the fancy vacuums -- produced a small cloud of dust. Gore's team concludes that HEPA-equipped vacuums don't reduce allergen exposure and should not specifically be recommended by allergists. So is money spent on a HEPA-equipped vacuum really wasted? WebMD asked the nation's impartial experts -- Consumer Reports. Vacuum tester Mark Connelly is CR's director of appliances and home improvement applications. "If a vacuum has a HEPA filter, but just blows particles to the side and is putting things into someone's nose, that is no help," Connelly tells WebMD.