The 5 Best Vacuum Cleaners With Good Suction - Spring 2023 Reviews

The best suction vacuum we've tested is the Miele Complete C3. This premium canister vacuum has a powerful 1200W motor, allowing it to deal with stubborn messes or debris stuck in cracks. It also delivers fantastic performance on bare floors and does a great job dealing with debris on carpets. Its seven-level power adjustment function lets you tailor its suction force for everything from window curtains to high-pile carpet with a few button presses. The entry-level C3 Calima model has an air-driven turbo brush for cleaning low to medium-pile carpeting. However, you'll want to purchase a powered floorhead separately or simply spring for a pricier model that comes bundled with one if you have a lot of thicker carpeting, like the C3 Cat & Dog, C3 Kona, or flagship C3 Brilliant. Unfortunately, this vacuum's hose is somewhat short, making it hard to clear debris from some hard-to-reach areas.

If you're looking for a canister vacuum with strong suction power that incurs lower recurring costs, look at the SEBO Airbelt D4. It uses larger dirtbags and filters that will last years without needing replacing. It also has a longer power cord that gives it an operating range of roughly 50 feet, so you can easily clean larger areas without swapping outlets. However, it is bulkier, heavier, and has a more rigid hose than the C3, making it harder to maneuver.

The best upper mid-range vacuum with good suction we've tested is the Dyson Ball Animal 3. This bagless vacuum isn't as sturdily built as the Miele Complete C3, with a mainly plastic body that creaks and flexes while in use, which is pretty disappointing for a vacuum at this high a price point. However, it's worth considering if its cheap build quality doesn't bug you and your top priority is raw suction performance. This vacuum's powerful motor enables it to easily clear debris from a wide range of surface types, ranging from bare floors to low and high-pile carpet. Its floorhead features three levels of surface adjustment, letting you quickly adapt from hardwood floors to dense high-pile rugs. The floorhead also features a set of built-in plastic vanes that are remarkably effective in reducing hair wraps.

This vacuum's bagless design incurs minimal recurring costs and is easy to maintain. However, shaking out its dustbin is less hygienic than removing the Miele's self-sealing dirtbags. It's on the bulky side, even for an upright vacuum, and can be a hassle to take out of your closet and use for quick clean-ups. Its strong suction power can still make it a little hard to push and pull around on shag carpeting, though thankfully, it's still much better than its predecessor, the Dyson Ball Animal 2, which could tear up carpet fibers.

The Miele Classic C1 is a great option for a mid-priced vacuum with strong suction power. There are a few downsides when comparing it to the pricier Miele Complete C3; it doesn't feel as robust, lacks an on-board tool storage compartment, and has a shorter range, so you'll need to swap outlets when vacuuming larger rooms or faraway areas. It uses the same 1200W suction motor, resulting in a similarly great overall debris pickup. You can use the dial at the back of the canister body to toggle through six levels of power adjustment, enabling you to adapt to a wide variety of surface types. The entry-level Pure Suction variant only has a straight suction floorhead and is best suited for bare floors and low-pile carpeting. The C1 Pure Suction also lacks a power socket at the base of its hose, so it's completely incompatible with powered floorheads. If you have a lot of thick carpeting and need a C1 variant compatible with powerheads, you'll want to spend more on a pricier variant like the C1 Cat & Dog or C1 Home Care.

While it's exceptionally easy to maintain, it uses fairly small 2.5L dirtbags, and you'll have to swap in a new one periodically, along with its pre and post-motor filters. The similarly powerful Airsign HEPA Vacuum is a great alternative if you're worried about recurring costs, as you can buy it with a subscription package that ships a four-pack of dustbags and a new filter to your door every six months. The Airsign's default dirtbags are biodegradable, which is great if you're worried about the environmental impact of throwing them out. However, it feels less well-built than the Miele and has a shorter overall range.

The best vacuum with good suction we've tested in the budget category is the Eureka Mighty Mite. This compact canister vacuum feels cheaply built and lacks many quality-of-life features on pricier models like the Miele Classic C1, like a self-winding power cord and allergen-sealed body. However, it's hard to beat if you're looking for good suction performance for a bargain price. Its relatively potent 12-amp motor lets it easily clear solid debris from bare floors and perform well on carpet, even with a basic straight-suction floorhead. Its compact, lightweight construction also allows you to pick it up and carry it wherever you need it, though its power cord is short, so you'll probably need to swap outlets when vacuuming far-away rooms.

The simple design makes it easy to swap in a new filter and replace its dirtbag whenever it gets full. Still, if you want to avoid swapping out dirtbags and don't mind a less hygienic means of debris disposal, the Eureka Whirlwind Bagless Canister could be worth a look. It delivers a similar overall cleaning performance to the Mighty Mite but doesn't use disposable dirtbags, resulting in minimal recurring costs.

The best cordless vacuum with good suction that we've tested is the Dyson V15 Detect. With 230AW of suction power, this vacuum is one of the most potent household-oriented cordless models on the market. However, it falls slightly short of higher-end corded models like the Miele Complete C3 and Dyson Ball Animal 3 in this regard. That said, its main advantage over more powerful machines is its comparatively lightweight, compact design, which makes it much easier to grab for quick clean-ups around the house. It also still delivers exceptional debris pickup performance on various surface types. Its surface detection system lets it automatically adjust its suction power to match surfaces, increasing power on carpets and lowering it on hard floors. It also has an onboard particle sensor that counts and measures the size of debris being sucked into the vacuum, which is handy for keeping track of allergens in your home.

Unfortunately, no matter your power setting, its strong suction force can still cause it to drag around some lighter rugs and get bogged down in shag-pile carpeting. If you're looking for a stick vacuum that costs significantly less and still exerts a fairly strong suction force, the Samsung Jet 75 is worth considering. It doesn't have the Dyson vacuum's automatic power adjustment capability, an onboard dirt sensor, or a wide variety of attachments. However, with a potent 200AW motor, it isn't too far off of the much pricier V15 when it comes to debris pickup performance.