We've Tested Over 300 Vacuums, and These are Our Favorite Cordless Stick Options for Pet Hair (2024)

The Levoit Vortex 1Q 40 earned the top spot as the best cordless vacuum for pet hair due to its incredible performance and user-friendly design. It’s a relatively simple vacuum, with a few tech-friendly features like an intelligent auto-adjust mode suction that tweaks the suction depending on how much debris is detected and an LED light to help you see into dark corners or underneath furniture. But it doesn’t have many flashy features that might otherwise drive up the price, making it pretty affordable.

However, don’t let the simplicity dissuade you. The vacuum earned perfect 5/5 ratings during testing for effectiveness, maneuverability, and value. Pet owners, take note—the vacuum sucked up hair in well under a minute on hard floors and carpet. Even with the dust cup full of hair, the suction power never diminished. When used as a handheld model to clean upholstery, the vacuum performed better than corded models we’ve used. While some vacuums bounce the crumbs around on the cushions, this one scooped all the debris in one swipe.

We found the vacuum head effective enough on its own for most tasks, though it does include a few accessories like a crevice tool. It was seriously so powerful that we needed to lower the setting on the high pile carpet because the higher level of suction slowed us down. This is hardly a downside—it simply means the vacuum packs a punch no matter the mode, which is great because the battery life (just under eight minutes on high, 31 minutes on low) leaves something to be desired.

Still, we found the shorter battery life a small tradeoff for such an effective and useful vacuum. Noise-wise, it was on the quiet side; we didn’t think it would interrupt conversation or television viewing while running. At 6.66 pounds, it’s not the absolute lightest option, but is still manageable for moving between floors.

Price at time of publish: $180

Product Details: Type: Stick | Noise Level: 69 to 78 Decibels| Weight: 6.66 Pounds | Battery Run Time: Up to 31 minutes | Attachments: Telescoping crevice tool, 2-in-1 dust brush, charging dock

This is one of the best cordless vacuums for pet hair 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.

Price at time of publish: $95

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

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.

Price at time of publish: $495

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

We appreciated this vacuum’s ability to work on various surfaces and types of pet messes. During our tests, it removed all traces of hair from high-pile rugs, tile, and hardwood floors. It also worked well on upholstery, but we found it challenging to move “against the grain” of the fabric’s texture, and picking up all the hair took a few passes.

Still, this affordable model by Bissell impressed us for a variety of other reasons. It comes equipped with a crevice tool, a motorized brush, and an upholstery tool, and it’s easy to operate with just an on/off button and a button to empty out the tank. It should be noted that you need to remove the filter in order to empty the dustbin, which requires two hands. However, we rated it highly for overall ease of use.

The vacuum’s simplicity, three-pound weight, and a comfortable handle are all additional reasons we consider it one of the best cordless vacuums for pet hair. Though it only has one power mode, we certainly found it effective enough, and it gives the user up to 17 minutes of cleaning time before needing a recharge. The main downside is that it’s super loud—one of the loudest on our list.

Price at time of publish: $80

Product Details: Type: Handheld | Noise Level: 91 decibels| Weight: 3 pounds | Battery Run Time: Up to 17 minutes | Attachments: Motorized brush, crevice tool, upholstery tool

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.

Price at time of publish: $229

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

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. The 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. This detail, combined with a shorter battery life of up to 21 minutes on low, we think it’s best for smaller spaces.

Price at time of publish: $499

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

The Tineco Pure One S15 is our multipurpose pick for the best cordless vacuum for pet hair 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 also 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.

Price at time of publish: $500

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

We loved the Toppin Cordless vacuum, noting that the incredibly strong suction made it superior to some of the more expensive models that we’ve tried. While the suction is strong, the Toppin vacuum is lightweight and simple to maneuver. It did have more trouble picking up debris from high-pile carpet, so you may need to help it along if you have deeply embedded gunk to clean.

Still, it’ll get the job done in a few passes and also works great on small and large clumps of hair. Some of the larger clumps of hair got stuck in the bristles during testing, but we found them easy enough to remove before getting back to cleaning. This could be a small price to pay for a model that’s quite a bit cheaper than some of the others on the list.

The attachments–particularly the crevice tool–functioned quite well, and we were impressed with how it worked on the tight cracks between couch cushions, as well as on the cushions themselves. The dust bin is relatively simple to empty, and you don’t need to remove the attachments to empty it out, which earned it high praise from us. Though it’s not super heavy to carry around, it is top-heavy, so set it down carefully or it will topple over.

Price at time of publish: N/A

Product Details: Type: Stick | Noise Level: 45 to 85 decibels | Weight: 5 pounds | Battery Run Time: Up to 34 minutes | Attachments: Floor brush, extension hose, 2-in-1 brush, crevice tool, cutter