The 12 Best Vacuums for Pet Hair of 2024, Tested and Reviewed

Table Of Content

• Suction Power
• Best robot vacuum
• How We Pick the Best Pet Hair Vacuums
• Kenmore Upright Bagged Vacuum
• Top-notch canister vacuum, built to last
• The best basic robot vacuum for people with pets: Eufy RoboVac 11S Max
• Are bagged vacuums better than bagless models for pet hair?
• Shark UltraCyclone Pet Pro+ Handheld Vacuum

Though the Dyson V15 Detect vacuum is expensive, it’s worth the splurge because of its lightweight design and the suite of impressive attachments it comes with. Besides the battery life, our favorite detail is that the crevice tool is built right into the vacuum and the motorized tool fits right on top, making it very easy to carry and store the attachments. "The two most important features when looking for a vacuum to clean up after your pets are suction power and filtration," says Ollie Toogood, senior design engineer at Dyson. Consult your user manual for the most accurate information, but most models can benefit from regular filter cleaning, checking the brushroll and removing any debris that's built up.

Suction Power

Each attachment works seamlessly, providing simple attachment and detachment as needed. They come with a five-year warranty for parts and labor, and seven-year coverage for the motor, when you purchase through an authorized dealer. If you register your vacuum, the warranty increases to seven and 10 years, respectively. We don't love that the vacuum is top-heavy and doesn't stand upright on its own.

Best robot vacuum

The vacuum converts to a handheld device, and it comes with two attachment heads to clean upholstery and reach cobwebs in overhead corners. The brush head, along with the other attachments, can be neatly stored within the charging stand, however, so there’s no need to keep track of any small parts. The cordless vacuum separates air and dust as it runs across the floor, helping to ensure that the filter doesn’t get clogged and stop operation. It also automatically detects how dirty the floor is and will adapt its suction based on the amount of gunk it finds. And the anti-tangle tool really works to prevent hair from getting caught in the brush (which was an issue with previous Dyson's we've used). Just like the Dyson V15 Detect, the V10 Animal comes with the corkscrew hair tool, which allows it to pick up pet and human hair without anything getting tangled in the brush roll.

How We Pick the Best Pet Hair Vacuums

While this model does not have a HEPA filter, it does have Dyson's whole-machine filtration that promises to capture 99.99 percent of particles as small as 0.3 microns. When switching out attachments, it makes a satisfying click sound to let you know the piece is properly in place. We did find that heavier particles, like kibble, require more than one pass to fully pick up, but it’s one of the most efficient vacuums we tested and well worth the price. There are three power settings to choose from and with a full charge of the lithium-ion battery, the Cyclone V10 Animal has a runtime of up to 60 minutes at the lowest setting and 35 minutes at the highest. The most powerful suction setting allowed for a much quicker cleaning but also emits a loud whining sound that we found irritating (though nowhere near as irritating as dealing with a hair-tangled brush roll!). "This vacuum's combination of features and tools was ideal for picking up the hair of both small and large pets," said one impressed tester.

Kenmore Upright Bagged Vacuum

We also spoke with Dr. Gary Richter M.S., D.V.M., a holistic veterinarian who’s well-acquainted with pet fur in both his home and office on how to better mitigate your pet's shedding. Based on our rigorous testing process, the Dyson V15 Detect vacuum stood out as the best vacuum for trapping pet hair on a variety of different surfaces, including carpet and hardwood floors. Plus, the cordless vacuum has supremely strong suction, an anti-tangle brush and a laser light that lets you spot and detect even the most dug-in, camouflaged hairs. As an added bonus, it’s easy to clean the vacuums and empty the bin once you’re done vacuuming. If you have an animal that sheds—like a dog or a cat—pet hair can often feel like a never ending chore, but it doesn’t have to. “For pet hair, opt for a vacuum with a furniture attachment since this is where the pet hair collects most often.

Top-notch canister vacuum, built to last

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While in use, the upright device sets a healthy boundary to keep it running efficiently and will automatically stop when the canister is full. Along with the easy-to-empty canister on the slim bagless vacuum, an internal filter helps to clear a space of pet-related particles, but it is not a certified HEPA filter. With its anti-collision sensors, it stays clear of (most) obstacles, including cat toys.

The best basic robot vacuum for people with pets: Eufy RoboVac 11S Max

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The Ryobi 18V One+ HP stick vac’s motorized all-terrain cleaner head works well on all types of floors, grabbing pet hair on rugs, tiles, and parquet. The Black+Decker 20V Max Dustbuster AdvancedClean+ Cordless Pet Hand Vacuum HHVK515JP07 cleans up pet fur better than any other handheld vacuum we’ve tried. It offers great suction, enhanced by a motorized brush that agitates debris and dislodges stubborn fur from grippy upholstery. It also has a built-in extendable crevice tool that helps target fur and other detritus on kitchen counters and between couch cushions. At the end of the testing period, the Furbuster still worked as well as the day we brought it home.

Are bagged vacuums better than bagless models for pet hair?

For starters, its brush head rotates a full 180 degrees, allowing me to reach every nook and cranny in my house with ease. It adeptly picks up dog hair trapped between floorboards, and its slim profile enables vacuuming under low-lying furniture such as my bedroom dresser and my daughter's toy shelf. I found it to be the ideal choice for daily use among all the vacuums I tested due to its lightweight build and minimal storage footprint. Its cordless functionality enables me to seamlessly navigate throughout my entire house without interruption. In contrast, the laser brush head illuminated all the hair I didn’t know I was missing. Though some vacuums I tested, like the Bissell ICON Pet Turbo Edge, had a convenient light on the suction head, this is the only vacuum that projects a laser light at a specific angle to illuminate microscopic particles.

Many vacuums that aren't specifically marketed for pet hair work just fine, but the main features that qualify as the best pet vacuums are strong suction, excellent filtration, and specialized cleaner heads and attachments. The Dyson Outsize is the only cordless vacuum on the market with a half-gallon dust bin, meaning you can cover more ground or pet hair without having to empty it. The Dyson has a trapdoor mechanism for emptying the dustbin, so you can avoid coming in contact with debris. However, you have to remove the attachments before emptying the bin, and you may miss your trash receptacle if you don't position the dustbin just right. The Dyson Outsize vacuum is designed to clean large areas with an 11.5-inch-wide cleaner head that lets you pick up more debris in a single pass. The Outsize batteries last about 67% longer than other Dyson batteries we've tested.

When you first launch the S8 Pro Ultra, it maps out your space going room by room. Each subsequent voyage can be set to automatic mode where the vacuum will traverse each room, or you can instruct it to go to whatever room you desire for it to clean. To full clean up pet hair and other debris, the vacuum can then mop your non-carpeted surfaces. Once the cleaning mission is complete, the robot vacuum heads back to the RockDock Ultra to automatically self-empty. The docking station holds up to seven weeks worth of dirt and dust before you have to tackle the task of unloading it into a trash bag. To prevent mold and unpleasant odors from a damp mop cloth, the dock emits warm air to fully dry components that are wet from mopping.

The RoboVac 11S Max doesn’t connect to an app, but it does come with a remote control for scheduling it to clean and directing it to missed spots. Its navigation system, however, tends to be random, and its bumbling aimlessness gets on some people’s nerves. The Roborock Q5+ performs exactly the same as the Q5 but comes with a charging station that can empty debris from the robot right into a disposable bag.

When it comes to emptying out the dust bin, we loved that this robot vacuum is self-emptying, which means you don’t have to touch any of the debris it picked up on your floor. And since its battery life is 75 minutes, this object-avoiding device will be able to clean multiple rooms at a time without needing a recharge. Luckily, we've tested over 300 vacuums of all kinds, including upright corded models, stick vacuums, and handheld car vacuums, to find the top vacuums for cleaning up fur and fluff.

It earned good scores for its ease of use and powerful suction, but our favorite feature is the mess-free dust cup's easy-to-empty, hands-free design, with a hair spooling system inside the canister that makes it easier to empty. The floor nozzle also contains a tangle-free brush roll that prevents pet hair from clogging the bristles. No matter how much you adore your furry friend, dealing with pet hair can be a constant challenge. It clings stubbornly to surfaces, adheres to clothing, and can worsen allergy symptoms.

I tested this on carpet and hardwood, and it sucked up both natural and artificial dog hair without any issue. I didn’t notice any tangling in the brush head, and it had the battery life to clean the entire downstairs of my home without needing to charge or empty the bin. “The vacuums my clients seem to like the most are robotic vacuums, especially if they have multiple pets, because the vacuum keeps up with the fur every day,” said Dr. Savageau. Most importantly, I loved that this vacuum has a designated mode for vacuuming bare floors. I found the specific hardwood mode to be incredibly efficient for picking up both natural and artificial dog hair. The attachment is cushioned yet flat, so it stays flush against the ground and easily cleans up hairs.

Vacuums for pet hair often have some type of feature—like an anti-tangle brush head, HEPA filter or laser light—that help target and remove pet hair, debris and dander from your home. Many vacuums for pet hair also come with attachments that are specifically designed to clean hair from heavily trafficked areas where pets shed the most, like upholstered furniture, for instance. Although it’s not completely essential to have a dedicated vacuum for pet hair, these features certainly make cleaning up after pets much more efficient. It acts as a detachable pod that transforms the larger vacuum into a more portable option, taking the cord and accessory arm with it. This feature makes it more lightweight and easy to maneuver than other corded vacuums I tested. Once detached, you can carry around the smaller pod to access the hard-to-reach places where pet hair tends to accumulate the most.

In these cases, we use the same testing criteria we use to test the purchased products. You should clean your vacuum whenever you notice any weird smells or feel like it might be clogged, but once a month is a good rule of thumb. Otherwise, you can typically wash removable parts with warm, soapy water and wipe down anything else with a cleaner and microfiber cloth. The Detect Pro uses lidar and 3D mapping technology to create a floorplan of your space and efficiently cleans it. In the Shark app, you can edit your floor plan, create no-go zones, set schedules, and change settings. And while he says that pets tend to shed all year round due to the regulated temperatures indoors, you can also manage their shedding by making sure you’re taking care of their coat in terms of nutrition.