What’s the Best Vacuum for Pet Hair? (2024)

It’s a great all-purpose cleaner, and it’s especially effective on fur. The HHVK515JP07 picked up fur better than any handheld model we tried. The only area where it struggled was in removing fur from the grippy upholstery of a car floor and trunk, though all the handheld vacuums we tested performed poorly at this task. (If you already own a handheld vacuum and struggle with this issue, we recommend the Uproot Clean Pro pet hair remover.)

This vacuum effortlessly sucks up other kinds of debris, too, including glitter, crumbs, and dust. It has two suction modes, but we found the low mode to be strong enough for most cleaning scenarios.

It has an extra-large dustbin. The HHVK515JP07’s 25-ounce-capacity dustbin is the largest of any handheld vacuum we tested. This capacity comes in handy when you’re vacuuming lots of pet fur, which can quickly clog smaller bins.

But it can be awkward in tight spaces and tricky to empty. The vacuum’s built-in, extendable crevice tool gets into most nooks and crannies, but the tool is too large and stiff to fit into extra-tight spots and often slides back into place unexpectedly. The filters sometimes slip out when you’re emptying the bin.

It has a long run time. This model has an impressive run time of 25 minutes on the low suction mode, sufficient for most furry situations. Its battery—which you can’t replace—charges in about three hours.

It’s sturdy and reliable, and it has an average warranty. The HHVK515JP07 comes with a two-year warranty, average for handheld vacuums. I’ve used mine daily for almost four years. The suction hasn’t diminished, and the vacuum has withstood being dropped and knocked over. Many of its parts, including its washable filters, belt, and charger, are replaceable.

Read more about the Black+Decker 20V Max Dustbuster AdvancedClean+ Cordless Pet Hand Vacuum HHVK515JP07 in our guide to handheld vacuums.

The powerful, versatile, and whisper-quiet SEBO Airbelt K3 Premium canister vacuum is specifically great for people with pets thanks to its superior cleaning performance and useful attachments. It also offers top-notch filtration, which may be a blessing for people who have pet allergies.

It has excellent cleaning power. Whether it was tackling sand, fur, kibble, or hay (hello, bunny!), the Airbelt K3 Premium was a top performer in our cleaning tests. It attacks fur with an electric, height-adjustable cleaner head that’s equally good on hard floors and low- to high-pile rugs and carpets. And its brush roll releases with the push of a button, so you can remove tangled fur in seconds.

Its electric cleaner head is the best among the vacs we’ve tested. The Airbelt K3 Premium’s 12-inch electric cleaner head has a motorized brush roll that lifts and agitates dirt into the tube. Because it’s self-propelled, the cleaner head glides easily on different types of flooring and over thresholds, and the whole unit requires less effort to push than the other canister vacuums we tested—in fact, sometimes it’s so speedy, you have to play catch-up.

This model also comes with a parquet brush for delicate floors, which effectively cleans corners that the electric brush misses.

It offers excellent filtration. A terrific choice for those with allergies, particularly pet allergies, the Airbelt K3 Premium has three filters: a bag, which captures virtually all the debris and dust that the vacuum sucks up, an S-class pre-motor filter, which is a bit better than HEPA filtration, and an exhaust filter.

It’s comfortable and convenient. The Airbelt K3 Premium’s wand is height-adjustable, its ergonomic handle fits comfortably in the hand, and the controls are conveniently located on the handle. It’s also easy to carry, and it’s outstandingly quiet, issuing a hum that didn’t rattle my bunnies.

It has useful attachments, including an optional grooming kit. You can outfit the Airbelt K3 Premium with three useful attachments: a thin, extra-long crevice tool that’s great for cleaning radiators and along baseboards, an upholstery tool for fur-covered couches, and a triangular horse-hair dusting brush that swivels 360 degrees and is handy on bookshelves and in tight corners.

SEBO sells more attachments online, including a pet kit with a mini turbo brush and a grooming tool. We haven’t fully tested the kit, but we did try the pet-grooming brush. Test cat Tula grudgingly tolerated the brush, though it took a lot of treats. (The other two cats and the rabbits bolted.) Respect your pet’s wishes when trying one of these, and don’t force it.

It’s repairable, and it has a long life expectancy. SEBO machines are tested to last for 20 years. 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.

It’s an efficient cleaner. 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. It has a headlight that illuminates dust bunnies in dark corners.

It has an extra-large dustbin. With a capacity more than double that of our other favorite cordless stick vacuum, this Ryobi vacuum’s dustbin can hold a decent amount of fur without needing frequent emptying—a problem we encountered with most other cordless stick vacs.

Its boost mode works well on stubborn pet accidents. The 18V One+ HP vac has two cleaning modes: eco, which allows for a 35-minute run time, sufficient for most cleaning scenarios, and boost. We appreciated boost mode when confronted with a dry, set-in hairball in a Tibetan rug.

It morphs into a handheld vacuum and has useful attachments. The 18V One+ HP stick easily transforms into a handheld vacuum. Its crevice tool and pivoting brush are ideal for upholstery and awkwardly angled nooks. Its motorized mini brush was one of the few tools we tested that made a dent in the thick layer of fur on clingy car-trunk upholstery.

It has a sturdy construction—but it’s a bit heavy. The robust 18V One+ HP stick is made from thick plastic and metal. Though it doesn’t feel quite as bulky as it looks, its heavy battery is positioned right behind its handle, and its motor is directly below that, which caused us to switch hands frequently while vacuuming. The vacuum stands unsupported, so no need to scramble to find a place to prop it up if you get pulled away.

It has a solid warranty, and it’s versatile. Ryobi covers the 18V One+ HP stick with a three-year warranty, a longer period than the coverage on most cordless stick vacuums we tested. Its battery is replaceable (like many of its parts) and fits with a variety of Ryobi tools. The battery recharges in less than two hours—faster than that of any other vacuum we tested in our latest round.

If your pets are shedding as if planning to join a nudist colony, and you’re too tired to drag out the ol’ plug-in vac, a robot vacuum is a great sidekick for midweek cleanups. The Roborock Q5 and Roborock Q5+ (the Q5 with a self-emptying dock) ranked among the most thorough and quietest cleaners we tested, and they have useful smart features and mapping technology to boot.

The Roborock Q5 cleans quickly and well. In our tests, the Q5 cleaned better than any other robot in the $300 to $450 price range, sucking up almost 90% of the debris we put down. With its laser-nav system and speedy processing, it mapped and vacuumed a multi-pet, 600-square-foot apartment in about half the time as most of its competitors. (Remember to remove cables and cat toys, though. Despite company claims of obstacle avoidance, robot vacuums still get trapped and confused easily.)

It’s quiet. Both the Q5 and the Q5+ were considerably quieter than other robot vacuums with similar cleaning performance. The noise of some louder bots made all the animals in our test house skedaddle.

It has a superior app with a great mapping system. Among the app-controlled robots we tested, we liked Roborock’s app the best. It is user-friendly and intuitive, it learns your floor plan in a single mapping session, and it can store multiple maps for different levels of your home in both 2D and 3D. Via the app, you can turn on auto-boost mode—good for fur-covered carpets—and schedule cleaning sessions. Compatible with Alexa and Google Home, Roborock’s app generally responds well to voice commands, too.

The affordable Eufy RoboVac 11S Max is about as effective as the pricier Roborock Q5, but it lacks mapping technology and other smart features.

It cleans well and has a large bin. In our tests, the RoboVac 11S Max cleaned about as well as the much pricier Roborock Q5. It effortlessly removed rice, Cheerios, cat litter, and even baking soda sprinkled close to baseboards (a rarity among even the most expensive robot models). As of early 2024, the 11S Max has one side brush (the model we originally tested had two). During testing, this vacuum efficiently ferreted out an unholy amount of fur and swept the whole batch into its extra-large dustbin.

It’s quiet and relatively nimble. The RoboVac 11S Max is so quiet, you could easily forget that it’s running. It skips over half-inch door thresholds and is able to avoid stairs and drops. With its anti-collision sensors, it stays clear of (most) obstacles, including cat toys. Its low height allows it to smoothly glide under furniture and into dark corners to chase down dust bunnies.

It doesn’t have Wi-Fi connectivity or smart features, but it offers other helpful options. Though the RoboVac 11S Max doesn’t connect to an app and can’t create maps, it does come with a remote control that lets you schedule cleaning cycles and direct it to spots it may have missed.

A good vacuum cleaner is a good vacuum cleaner, regardless of whether you own a pet. But to zero in on the models that handle pet fur especially well, we looked at all of the vacuums we recommend and focused on the following attributes:

Cleaning power: We tested each of our picks in a multi-pet household to see how it performed on tiles, vinyl, and hardwood floors, as well as on different rugs and upholstery. Even the cheapest vacuums could pick up pet hair from bare floors in our tests, but the excellent models—with powerful airflow and suction, plus optimized nozzles—eradicated fur from even the clingiest rugs and furniture.

Multiple attachments and an electric floor brush: We tested each vacuum’s attachments and cleaning modes and noted whether it had an efficient upholstery tool or a mini turbo brush for pet-hair removal. We compared turbo (propelled by airflow) and electric (motor-powered) cleaner heads and attachments to see whether their plastic or rubber bristles managed to pull pet hair off rugs, couches, and car seats.

Maneuverability and versatility: We tested the comfort and maneuverability of each vacuum. Those that caught our eye were able to reach into nooks and crannies and easily capture dust bunnies under furniture. Some full-size vacuums, such as our cordless stick vac pick, can convert into handheld models for above-floor cleaning (a plus). For robot vacuums, we assessed how well they navigated around furniture and toys.

Pet-grooming tools: Some newer models come with pet-grooming tools, usually a brush that attaches to the vacuum hose. We are wary of them: Many pets, particularly cats and rabbits, are terrified of the sound of vacuum cleaners, and trying to groom them with one is sure to distress them.

Run time: We compared advertised run time with real-life run time in battery-powered test models and noted how long each machine operated before running out of juice.

Tim Heffernan and Liam McCabe wrote a previous version of this guide, which we first published in 2018. This article was edited by Ingrid Skjong and Courtney Schley.