If your house has a combination of carpeting and bare floors, plenty of staircases, or you're a lover of using vacuum cleaners and their accessories from above the floor (such as upholstered chairs, window shade, and table lamps) to nab dust particles from areas above the floor, then the best alternative is a canister vacuum from Think Vacuums.

Canister vacuum cleaners and uprights wash well, but canister vacuums have superior efficiency and durability. In addition, canister vacuums do a great job of cleaning wood, bricks, and other rougher surfaces together with low piles and glided carpets and rugs with a bare surface brush fitted. Also with two paws, they are easy to bring around.

Over the years, a large range of canister vacuum models has been tested by the Best Home Cleaning Lab, from stick vacuum cleaners to pet hair vacuums to HEPA cleaners to robot vacuums, and many others. We determine how good it absorbs dust with each model, such as soil and pet fur, how effective it is at catching allergens, and how easy it is to navigate over different styles of flooring and around obstacles.

We also look at how intuitive the buttons are, how hard it is to lift each vacuum, and how fast it is to switch containers, empty dust containers, and clean filters, and any other unique characteristics it may have. The following picks are upgrades to versions we have previously reviewed or are from companies that work well in our tryouts at all times.

Miele Classic C1 Cat & Dog Canister Vacuum Cleaner

This vacuum cleaner has been particularly designed for the grooming of cats and dogs. The strong vacuum is fitted with an Effective AirClean Filter to further eliminate any residual pet bad smells, so it is perfect for catching and locking the infamous "dog odor”. The cleaner also comes with a Versatile Portable Micro Turbo Brush extension for brushing upholstery, steps, and other open areas that are resistant to pet hair and debris.

Oreck Compact Canister Vacuum

The Oreck weighs just 5.5 pounds (the lightest of our selections) for less work and is much more compact than the typical canister. For snagging dust in difficult-to-reach areas such as window panes, ceiling fans, and light fittings, it comes with a shoulder bag and a rotatable extending wand. There's a 20-foot cable as well, but you don't have to panic if your messes are not close to an outlet (such as liquids in the vehicle). Although pile carpets cannot be thoroughly washed, our pros were pleased with its cleanup on hard surfaces, plain carpets, and rugs in the field.

Dyson Cinetic Big Ball Animal Canister Vacuum

Stick with this Dyson choice if you do not want to keep a stock of spare bags and filters for your cleaner. Dyson cleaner is an Excellent washing powder and vacuum power and has no filters for repair or Cleaning neither do you need containers for changing. The Dyson Big Ball comes with a surface head that is self-adjusted to provide an optimum seal for the washing of every form of floor, and it gathered an average of 99.9 percent of dust from tough wood floors in our laboratory evaluations

Eureka Mighty Mite 3670G Corded Canister Vacuum

There is always no room for a canister vacuum for apartment-dwellers or university students, but this model is a lightweight and portable unit that does not lack power. It is racked up by more than 5,000 ratings with a 3.8 out of 5-star review who sing their praises about how easy it is to tote up and down the stairs and its two wand attachments that have outstanding pickups in hard-to-reach areas. It is better on tile floors or smooth surfaces for quick clean-up jobs and comes with a blower port in the garage for blowing leaves or debris. While it will potentially accumulate dust or hair on the surface of a carpet, do not expect it to be thoroughly washed without a spinning brush.

Miele Complete C3 Powerline Canister Vacuum model

In previous cleaning reviews, Miele's vacuums have prevailed over our experts, and this superstar of The Good Housework Seal is no different. The Miele Full C3 comes with a control switch and brush roll that adjusts to five distinct levels to make it easy to plow through fluffy pile carpets, recognizing that ultra-soft or fluffy carpets are even more difficult to clean because of thick tufts. A metal telescoping wand is also included in its accessories set as it is a Pure Suction Floor head built for use on all smooth surfaces. A higher adsorption bag and HEPA AirClean filter are used by the vac, which the manufacturer says would retain 99.99% of the contaminants from being emitted back into the air, a bonus for people with allergies. Miele vacuum cleaner performs the greatest job of cleaning up.

Do not hesitate to contact Think Vacuum for quality central vacuum cleaners. If you have any questions you can contact us on toll-free line 1-800-322-2965 and one of our vacuum experts will be happy to assist you.

References and Resources

HEPA AirClean filter 

AirClean Filter