The Shark Rocket Pet Pro is an impressive cordless stick vacuum with a lightweight handheld configuration. Designed with pets in mind, it easily picks up pet hair on all surfaces, and its self-cleaning brushroll helps it to remove hair as you clean. While it also cleans small and large debris from bare floors outstandingly well, it struggles more with smaller debris on carpet but it still does a great job on these surfaces overall. This vacuum also has excellent maneuverability, making it easy to clean under tables or to clean car seats. As it's fairly easy to maintain, and as long as each of its parts is cleaned according to their respective maintenance needs, recurring costs are low. That being said, it has a small dirt compartment that needs frequent emptying and some users may find the included tools and brushes limiting.
Note: Our Shark Rocket Pet Pro IZ162H test unit came with the MultiFLEX flexible hose, though several users have noted that their model only came with a straight wand. This component is only advertised as being standard equipment on the IZ163H variant of this vacuum. We've yet to test this vacuum's performance with a rigid wand, so your user experience may vary.
Our Verdict
The Shark Rocket Pet Pro is great for bare floors. It's a decently-built vacuum that can pick up pet hair as well as small and large debris without a problem. It's also fairly easy to maintain, and as long as the parts are taken care of, there are few recurring costs. This vacuum also has excellent maneuverability.
- Can easily pick up pet hair from all surface types.
- Able to easily clean up small and large debris.
- Excellent maneuverability.
- Small dirt compartment.
The Shark Rocket Pet Pro is great for low-pile carpet. It's able to pick up pet hair and large debris, and although it struggles a bit with small debris, it still can clean a good amount of it up. It has a decent build quality, and you can reconfigure it into a handheld vacuum if you need even more maneuverability. There are only a few parts that need ongoing maintenance but luckily, there are few recurring costs as long as you maintain each part.
- Can easily pick up pet hair from all surface types.
- Picks up most large debris.
- Excellent maneuverability.
- Struggles with small debris on carpet.
- Small dirt compartment.
The Shark Rocket Pet Pro is good for high-pile carpet. It has excellent maneuverability and it's able to pick up all pet hair and most large debris. It has a bit more trouble cleaning up small debris though. That being said, this vacuum has a decent build quality, and it's fairly easy to maintain each of its parts. There are virtually few recurring costs as well.
- Can easily pick up pet hair from all surface types.
- Picks up most large debris.
- Excellent maneuverability.
- Struggles with small debris on carpet.
- Small dirt compartment.
The Shark Rocket Pet Pro is decent for pets. This decently built vacuum captures pet hair on all surfaces and it has excellent maneuverability. It's also fairly easy to maintain, especially as the brushroll is designed to detangle hair wraps on its own. As long as it's taken care of, there are few recurring costs either.
- Can easily pick up pet hair from all surface types.
- No pet grooming brush.
The Shark Rocket Pet Pro is a great option for stairs. As it's a cordless vacuum, you have an unlimited range as long as you have battery life left, and there's even a handheld configuration for hard-to-reach places. It has an overall great performance on all surface types too.
- Excellent maneuverability.
- Struggles with small debris on carpet.
The Shark Rocket Pet Pro is decent for cleaning cars. It has good portability, comes with a crevice tool for getting into hard-to-reach places, and you can even use it as a handheld vacuum, which can make it even easier to clean your car. It does an excellent job cleaning low-pile carpet and it has unlimited range, provided you still have battery life left. It feels like a sturdy vacuum and it's fairly easy to maintain.
- Excellent maneuverability.
- No on-board tool storage.
Changelog
- Updated Aug 26, 2024: We've updated the scores in the Hard Floor Pick-Up, High-Pile Carpet Pick-Up, Low-Pile Carpet Pick-Up, and Pet-Hair Pick-Up tests to align with a broader data set. For more information about the reasoning for this update, you can look at our forum post.
- Updated Jul 02, 2024: We've converted this review to Test Bench 1.3. We've overhauled our floor performance tests and added new 'Hard Floor Pick-Up,' 'High-Pile Carpet Pick-Up,' 'Low-Pile Carpet Pick-Up,' and 'Pet-Hair Pick-Up' tests. You can see the full changelog here.
- Updated Dec 14, 2023: We've converted this review to Test Bench 1.2. This update builds on our previous 'Suction' test with a new 'Airflow' test that more accurately measures a vacuum's ability to generate air movement. If you'd like to see an in-depth look at the reasoning and methodology behind this change, you can see our full changelog here..
- Updated Mar 09, 2023: Added link to the Tineco S10 in the 'Quality Of Life Features' section to provide an alternative with an automatic power adjustment feature.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
There are a few variants of the Shark Rocket Pet Pro, which differ seemingly only in terms of included equipment and wand color. The vacuums are similarly designed otherwise, and we expect all variants to deliver similar overall performance when using the same accessories.
| Model Name | Parts Included | Wand Color |
| IZ163H | MultiFLEX wand, motorized head, crevice tool, upholstery tool/hard bristle brush combination tool | Rasberry |
| IZ162H | Motorized head, crevice tool, upholstery tool/hard bristle brush combination tool | Magenta |
| IZ162HC | Motorized head, crevice tool, upholstery tool | Red |
| IZ165HC | Motorized head, crevice tool, upholstery tool/hard bristle brush combination tool | Iris Blue |
Let us know if you come across another variant of this vacuum so that we can update our review.
Note: We tested the IZ162H variant of this vacuum, and you can see its label here. However, our IZ162H variant came with the MultiFLEX wand, which seems to be unique to our test model, as this component is only advertised as being standard equipment for the IZ163H model. Let us know in the discussions below if you encounter a similar difference in standard equipment.
Popular Vacuum Comparisons
The Shark Rocket Pet Pro is a stick vacuum with a handheld configuration. Thanks to its unique self-cleaning brushroll that helps detangle hair wraps from its bristles while you clean, it's able to effectively clean pet hair from all surface types. Similar to the Shark ION F80 Cord-Free MultiFLEX, the IZ163H variant also uses a flexible hose that can bend so that you can better clean underneath tables or more easily store it away. While it has an impressive performance overall, its battery performance also stands out as it has a shorter recharge time than the Dyson V8 or Dyson V11.
The Dyson V8 and the Shark Rocket Pet Pro are similarly performing vacuums. The Dyson is more portable and comes with more tools and brushes, including a unique 180-degree extension tool designed to help you clean hard-to-reach areas. The Shark is better at cleaning bare floors, feels slightly better built, has a shorter charge time, and is significantly more maneuverable.
Both the Shark Rocket Pet Pro and Shark Rocket Corded vacuums have advantages; one may suit you better than the other, depending on your needs. The Pet Pro is a cordless stick vacuum that allows you to clean far away from any electrical outlets. It's also better built, easier to store, and more maneuverable, and it delivers slightly better performance on all surface types. Meanwhile, the Rocket is a corded vacuum with a virtually indefinite runtime and practically no recurring costs. There are also fewer parts that need regular cleaning.
The Shark Rocket Pet Pro is better than the Shark Pet/Rocket Pro Cordless, though both vacuums are similar. The Rocket Pet Pro has all of the same features as the latter but with a self-cleaning brushroll, an allergen-trapping HEPA filter, and an easily removable and replaceable battery.
The Dyson V15 Detect is slightly better than the Shark Rocket Pet Pro. Both deliver similarly exceptional performance on bare floors, though the Dyson is slightly superior on low-pile carpets and clears noticeably more debris on high-pile carpets. It also has a broader selection of tools and accessories and a longer battery life. However, the Shark takes much less time to charge, feels more solidly built, is less demanding in terms of maintenance, and can maneuver more easily.
Test Results
The Shark Rocket Pet Pro Cordless has a decent build quality. It's mostly made from hard plastic except for the wand, which is made of lightweight metal. It could feel a little more sturdy, and its dirt compartment feels like it could crack if dropped. You may want to take a look at the Miele Triflex HX1 if you're looking for a better-built lightweight cordless vacuum. That being said, the handle has a rubber grip, and the wand is flexible enough to bend for cleaning under tables or for storing. There's also a lint line near the back end of the brushroll, and the brushroll itself uses angled plastic fibers which helps it to detangle wrapped hair on its own. The vacuum is easy to assemble, and the tools and brushes have clips, making it simple to switch between them.
This vacuum is fairly easy to maintain. There are a few parts that need maintenance but most parts are easy to access.
- Dirt compartment: The dirt compartment is small and need to be emptied quite frequently. It can be removed by pressing its release latch. You can wash it with water, but it can be a little challenging to hand-clean the higher area of the compartment.
- Felt screen: This part is located inside the dirt compartment and it can be cleaned by taking out trapped debris by hand, but it can't be removed.
- Brushroll: While the brushroll can't be removed you can access it by using a coin to unlock three clips and removing the base cover. You don't need to use scissors to remove wrapped hair, but you can use carpet mode and the hair dislodges itself. However, if you need to, you can also carefully remove debris by hand. Otherwise, this part doesn't really need much maintenance as it should detangle hair by itself.
- Pre-motor filter: There are two pre-motor filters, one foam and one felt. They're easily accessible when you remove the dirt compartment, and both need to be washed with only water once a month, depending on your usage.
- Post-motor filter: You can only access the post-motor filter after removing the dirt compartment. This part needs to be washed once a month with only water as well, depending on your usage.
You must air dry any part that's washed with water for 24 hours before using it again.
Update 02/11/2021: The recurring cost score has been updated to bring it in line with the scores of other vacuums with similar maintenance requirements. The text has also been updated.
This vacuum has very low recurring costs.
- Pre-motor filters: The foam and felt pre-motor filters shouldn't need to be replaced if they're well-maintained, but they can be purchased as a single kit from Shark's website if necessary.
- HEPA filter: The post-motor filter shouldn't need to be replaced if it's well taken care of. You can buy a replacement from the manufacturer's website if necessary.
While the user manual recommends replacing these parts regularly, no specific service interval is given, and we can only estimate their lifespan relative to parts in similar Shark vacuums like the Shark Vertex Lightweight Cordless.
The Shark Rocket Pet Pro Cordless has okay storing capabilities. The wand is flexible, so you can fold it in half for easier storage. On the downside, there's no on-board tool storage, so you need to find a separate place to put the tools. Unlike the JASHEN V16, it also lacks a vacuum rack to hold the vacuum upright and store its accessories.
The dirt compartment is alright, but it's on the small side, so you need to empty it quite often. If that's a significant concern, the Shark ION P50 Cord-Free Powered Lift-Away has a larger dirt compartment that requires less frequent emptying. There's also an indicator to let you know when the dirt compartment is full, but it's small and can be hard to see.
- Shark Rocket Pet Pro Cordless Stick Vacuum
- Vacuum head
- Vacuum body
- Vacuum wand
- Dirt compartment
- Pre-motor filters (felt and foam)
- Post-motor filter
- Recharge cable
- Rechargeable battery
- Crevice tool
- Upholstery tool
- Hard bristle brush clip-on
- User guide
This is a cordless vacuum, so it has an unlimited range, provided it still has battery life left.
The Shark Rocket Pet Pro Cordless has good portability. It's heavier than alternatives like the Tineco PURE ONE X, but it still shouldn't be too fatiguing to use if you hold it by its carrying handle.
The Shark Rocket Pet Pro's battery performance is decent. While it has a shorter overall battery life than the Shark ION F80 Cord-Free MultiFLEX, it takes under three hours for it to fully charge up again, which is quicker than many other cordless vacuums we've tested so far. Its battery also lasts longest when used as a handheld vacuum, as it uses its default power setting. However, if you're cleaning up a more difficult mess, its "MAX (BOOST)" mode lasts just over ten minutes, so you need to work quickly. Luckily, the vacuum has a battery life LED indicator with three lights that lower to one light when you're running out of battery life. If you want a stick vacuum with a better maximum battery life, consider the Roborock H6 Adapt.
The Shark Rocket Pet Pro has a couple of extra features. There are two floor settings: one for floors and small area rugs, which makes the brushroll spin slower, and a carpet setting which makes the brushroll spins faster. You can also increase its power by pulling on the trigger located near its handle. This activates 'MAX' mode, and you only need to release the trigger to return to normal power. However, unlike the Tineco S10, it can't automatically adjust its suction power mode.
The Shark Rocket Pet Pro Cordless comes with a couple of tools and brushes. The hard bristle brush attaches to the upholstery tool. If you want something with more included tools, check out the Dyson V7.
This vacuum has excellent maneuverability. It's easy to adjust power and floor type settings on-the-go. Unlike the similarly-designed Shark Anti-Allergen Pet Power, it has a flexible wand that is easy to lock and unlock, especially if you need to get under couches or tables. It's really easy to clean furniture, thanks to all of its tools and brushes. It does get stuck on rug tassels though, requiring you to turn the vacuum off to remove the rug from the brushroll.
