The Shark Stratos Cordless is the flagship model in Shark's 2023 lineup of cordless stick vacuums. Compared to the older Shark Vertex Pro Lightweight, it features an upgraded anti-tangle floorhead, an automatic power adjustment feature that increases its suction power when passing over an area with a lot of debris, and, like the related Shark Stratos UltraLight, an odor-neutralizing cartridge that plugs into its floorhead.
The Shark Stratos Cordless is good for bare floors. It easily clears away small and bulky debris on this surface type, though a small amount of debris can get trapped in its floorhead and fall out once the vacuum is shut off. Its Clean Sense IQ system is effective in increasing its debris pickup performance. While it's a little heavy for a stick vacuum, it feels well-balanced, and the folding wand makes it easy to clean under most obstacles.
The Shark Stratos Cordless is a good option for low-pile carpet. It can handle a wide variety of debris on this surface type, thanks to its effective automatic power adjustment system. However, there's no brushroll off switch to prevent it from getting caught on obstructions like rug tassels. Its asymmetrical floorhead design can also cause it to drag around a small amount of small debris. Thankfully, it offers decent battery performance, feels fairly sturdy, and is easy to maintain.
The Shark Stratos Cordless is great for cleaning high-pile carpet. Its dual-roller floorhead, Clean Sense IQ automatic power adjustment feature, and reasonably strong suction motor allow it to draw away debris from deep within carpet fibers. Its ergonomic design makes it pretty easy to maneuver, though the lack of any brushroll height adjustment means it can get bogged down in plush carpeting.
The Shark Stratos Cordless is a decent choice for cleaning pet hair. It excels at clearing away pet hair on bare floors and carpets, but its limited selection of attachments makes it impractical to clean pet hair from larger upholstered surfaces. While its secondary soft roller is easy to remove and clean, the primary brushroll is not and still tends to collect pet hair despite its self-cleaning design. On the plus side, its odor-neutralizing cartridge helps tamp down unpleasant scents as you clean.
The Shark Stratos Cordless is an excellent choice for vacuuming stairs. Its cordless design ensures you won't trip over a power cord while climbing or descending stairs, and you can easily reconfigure it into a handheld vacuum to deal with messes in hard-to-reach areas. It also delivers strong performance on a wide variety of surfaces. Unfortunately, the lack of on-board storage means you can't easily switch attachments while you're on the move.
The Shark Stratos Cordless is good for cleaning the inside of your car. Since it's cordless, you don't need to park close to an outlet to clean every part of your car's interior. To clean tight spots, you can quickly reconfigure it into a smaller handheld vacuum. On the downside, its selection of attachments is a little limited, with only a pair of soft-bristle brushes and a crevice tool for cleaning tight spots but no upholstery tool or turbo brush to deal with messes on upholstered surfaces.
The Shark Stratos Cordless is mediocre for workshop cleaning, but that isn't its intended use case. While it does a fantastic job of clearing household debris from hard surfaces and crevices, it isn't meant to handle liquid spills or heavy-duty material like wood or metal shavings.
We've added the IZ840H and UZ865H models to the Differences Between Sizes And Variants section of the review.
We've added a link to the RYOBI PCL720K in the Battery section of the review to provide an alternative that recharges a lot faster.
The Shark Stratos is available in a few variants, which differ only in minor ways.
Model Name | Color | Included Attachments |
---|---|---|
IZ682H | Ash Purple | Duster Crevice Tool, Anti-Allergen Brush |
IZ840H | Rose Gold | 8" crevice tool |
UZ865H | Dark Gray | Duster Crevice Tool, Anti-Allergen Brush |
We tested the IZ682H model, and for those interested, here's the label.
Let us know in the comments if you come across another variant of this vacuum.
The Shark Stratos is a cordless stick vacuum. It's a pretty big step up from its predecessor, the Shark Vertex Pro Lightweight, with an automatic power adjustment system that allows it to adjust its suction to match required demand, an odor-neutralizing feature, and better overall build quality.
If you're searching for an alternative, look at our list of recommendations for the best cordless stick vacuums, the best cordless vacuums, and the best vacuums for tile floors.
The Shark Stratos Cordless is a step up from the Shark Vertex Pro Lightweight. The Stratos feels better built, weighs fractionally less, and delivers better overall cleaning performance. It also packs in a wide variety of convenience features, including an effective automatic power adjustment feature, an odor-neutralizing system, and a self-cleaning floorhead that's a little better at trapping hair. On the other hand, the Vertex has an upholstery nozzle, which is better suited to cleaning furniture than the Stratos' attachments.
The Dyson V8 and the Shark Stratos Cordless each have their own advantages. The Dyson is easier to pick up and carry. Its single roller head also does a better job clearing away pet hair embedded within carpets. The Shark is the more feature-packed vacuum; it has an automatic power adjustment system, a folding wand, a higher-capacity battery, and a larger dustbin that holds more debris.
The Shark Stratos Cordless is slightly more premium than the Shark Detect Pro. The Stratos is a bigger, heavier, better-built vacuum with a more powerful suction motor, resulting in better debris-pickup performance almost everywhere. While the Detect Pro is lighter, its weight feels poorly balanced, making it difficult to maneuver. That aside, the Detect Pro does have a more advanced automatic power adjustment system that responds not only to quantities of debris but also to changes in surface type and proximity to walls. Unlike the Stratos, it's also fully compatible with a self-empty dock.
The Shark Stratos Cordless and the Dyson V15 Detect each have advantages. The Dyson has a tool storage rack, lasts slightly longer on a full charge, weighs significantly less in its stick configuration, and comes with a wider array of attachments, most notably a turbo brush tool that makes it a better option for cleaning pet hair on furniture. Conversely, the Shark feels sturdier, has a flexible wand that makes it easier to clean under furniture, and comes with an odor-neutralizing cartridge.
The Shark Stratos Cordless is a complete upgrade over the Shark Cordless Pro. The Stratos has a more powerful motor, yielding improved carpet performance and a higher-capacity battery. The Stratos also comes bundled with a folding wand to easily clean under tables and chairs, though you can find the same accessory on some variants of the Cordless Pro. The cheaper Cordless Pro does have its advantages. It's noticeably lighter and slightly easier to maintain by virtue of its removable brushroll, which makes it much less of a hassle to clear out any tangled hair.
The Shark Stratos Cordless and the Dyson V12 Detect Slim each have advantages. The Dyson is easier to maintain, comes with a storage rack and an onboard tool clip, takes much less time to recharge, weighs less, and has a wider array of attachments. It also features an allergen detection system. On the other hand, the Shark feels sturdier, has a larger dustbin, and delivers better performance on carpeted floors.
The Shark Stratos Cordless and Shark PowerDetect Cordless trade blows in terms of strengths. The Stratos has a higher-capacity dustbin that's easier to empty manually, and it loses less suction to its floorhead, allowing it to clear away debris more easily in cracks and crevices. Meanwhile, the PowerDetect is compatible with a self-empty station, which can take some of the sting out of daily maintenance for an additional cost. The PowerDetect is also more maneuverable when used as a handheld vacuum.
Despite their similar names, the Shark Stratos UltraLight and Shark Stratos Cordless target slightly different audiences. The UltraLight is a corded model that represents a good portable substitute for a mid-range conventional upright, while the Stratos Cordless is an upper mid-range cordless stick vacuum. Both vacuums feature Shark's new odor-neutralizing cartridge and upgraded PowerFins floorhead. However, the cordless model also has an automatic power adjustment system, better build quality, and a flexible wand.
The Shark Stratos Cordless is a more feature-dense vacuum than the RYOBI PCL720K. The Shark's Clean Sense IQ system allows it to automatically adjust its suction power setting depending on how much debris is being sucked up, and its folding wand allows you to clean under tables and chairs without having to bend too deeply. The Shark is also more efficient in clearing away debris than the RYOBI. However, the RYOBI does feel more solidly built, and it does a better job of dealing with pet hair. The RYOBI's 4Ah battery also charges a lot faster while providing a comparable runtime to the Shark.
This vacuum feels well-built. Similar to many other cordless stick vacuums, it's made mainly from plastic, though it's of a higher grade than most. Like the Shark Stratos UltraLight, its wand is made from nonmagnetic metal. However, unlike the UltraLight, you can fold the cordless model's wand in half. The hinges for this mechanism feel pretty sturdy and are covered with textured plastic trim pieces. In addition, the Stratos Cordless' floorhead is made of a denser plastic than its corded sibling. Unfortunately, its dirt compartment is somewhat fragile.
This vacuum is decently easy to maintain.
Any part you wash with water must be left to dry for at least 24 hours before reinstalling it.
Note: While there are no specific maintenance instruction requirements for the odor-neutralizing cartridge, it's important to note to only use the vacuum if a cartridge is inserted in the floorhead, even if it's completely depleted.
This vacuum incurs few recurring costs.
This vacuum's dimensions are almost identical to those of the Shark Vertex Pro Lightweight, with a MultiFLEX wand that folds in half to reduce its vertical footprint. While there isn't any onboard storage for its included attachments, it still doesn't take up that much space.
The dirt compartment is well-sized. It's on the bigger end of the scale for a cordless stick vacuum, being larger than alternatives like the Dyson V11 and only marginally smaller than that of the Samsung Jet 90 Complete. It's made of clear plastic, so you can quickly tell how full it is at a glance.
Since this is a cordless vacuum, its range is limited only by the remaining battery life and the room left in its dirt compartment.
This vacuum is pretty portable. At just under nine pounds, it's considerably heavier than other cordless stick vacuums like the Dyson V15 Detect. However, its weight is well-distributed, and even though its motor unit and dirt compartment are fairly large, it doesn't feel too heavy when held in your hand.
The battery performance is decent. When the vacuum is set to its most powerful 'Boost' suction mode with its wand and vacuum head attached, it supplies a little over 10 minutes of runtime. Using it as a hand vacuum in its most energy-efficient 'ECO' mode increases its runtime to roughly an hour, which aligns with the manufacturer's advertised battery life. The LED display shows a percentage estimate of the remaining battery life, so you won't run out of charge unexpectedly.
Unfortunately, it takes quite a while to recharge, leading to a lot of downtime between cleaning sessions. If that's a major issue, consider the RYOBI PCL720K.
The Shark Stratos has a few quality-of-life features. There are three suction power settings: the energy-saving 'ECO' mode, the high-power 'Boost' mode, and the default 'Clean Sense IQ' mode, which uses the infrared sensors inside the wand to detect dirt and automatically modulate the vacuum's suction power between those two other settings depending on the quantity of dirt being sucked up. An LED strip on the floorhead serves as a visual indicator of how clean the floor is. Unfortunately, there's no way of changing the brushroll height or shutting it off. There's also a headlight mounted inside the vacuum head to illuminate dark areas. There's also an odor-neutralizing cartridge mounted in the floorhead, and you can adjust its intensity by twisting the cartridge in its slot; do note that it can become overwhelming if you leave it at its highest intensity level.
This vacuum has a couple of tools and brushes. It has an Anti-Allergen Dust Brush for cleaning fine debris from delicate surfaces or cleaning ceiling fans, a crevice tool, and a slide-on soft-bristle brush. Note that the vacuum's connection point is rectangular in shape, which is somewhat unusual as far as vacuums go.
This vacuum does a great job of dealing with messes on hard floors. Its twin-roller head does a good job of collecting a wide mix of debris, from fine material like sand to bulkier debris like cereal, in a single pass. Unfortunately, a small amount of debris can get caught in the floorhead instead of being sucked into the dustbin, and it could spill back out once you shut the vacuum off.
This vacuum's debris pickup performance on high-pile carpet is satisfactory. The Clean Sense IQ system does a good job of responding to large amounts of debris, quickly boosting suction to match the required load. While it clears away the large debris like cereal on this surface type as well as medium-sized material like rice, you'll need to make another pass to deal with finer debris embedded deep into carpet fibers. Its asymmetrical floorhead can also cause it to drag around a small amount of debris on the left side of its cleaning head.
This vacuum performs well on low-pile carpet. It clears away the majority of large debris like cereal and medium-sized debris like rice, though it can push some debris to the very edges of its head rather than suck them up. It'll also take more than one pass to fully clear away fine debris like sand embedded deep within carpet fibers.
This vacuum's real-world suction performance is reasonably good. Its twin-roller floorhead diffuses its suction over a larger area than most alternatives with single-roller floorheads. However, it still exerts enough force to draw away debris deep within carpet fibers and most cracks and crevices.
As Shark's flagship cordless stick vacuum, it'll come as no surprise that the Stratos' airflow performance is fairly good as far as cordless vacuums are concerned. It doesn't move as much air as the best models from other brands, like the Dyson V15 Detect, but it still delivers sufficient airflow performance to easily lift away most kinds of solid debris.
This vacuum isn't too loud. It's a little louder than alternatives like the Dyson V11, with the sound of its operation crowding out nearby normal conversation. However, it's unlikely to be too disruptive if you use it in a partially enclosed room.
The Shark Stratos is impressively maneuverable. Like its predecessor, the Shark Vertex Pro Lightweight, it has a flexible wand that allows you to clean under tables and couches without crouching too deeply. It takes some getting used to this design, but cleaning under furniture becomes a lot more comfortable once you do. Its pivoting head also makes it easy to maneuver in between obstacles. It's easy to reconfigure into a handheld vacuum and attach any of the included accessories. However, the lack of a turbo brush or even a wide aperture upholstery nozzle means that cleaning cloth furniture is a slow process. There's also no onboard tool storage, so you'll have to set down its two included attachments somewhere else as you clean. Since there isn't a brushroll on/off switch or floorhead height adjustment, it can occasionally get stuck on rugs and some tassels.
This vacuum is decently effective when cleaning furniture with its crevice tool. The tool does a good job of handling hair, but its narrow nozzle size makes cleaning large areas pretty impractical. This vacuum would perform better in this regard if, like the Shark Stratos UltraLight, it came with a miniature turbo brush tool. Since the dirt-detecting sensors are found inside the upper part of the wand, the 'Clean Sense IQ' system still works when you use the vacuum handheld. It does help increase its suction when passing over an area with a lot of hair. However, the system can also cause the vacuum to shut off automatically, as it may perceive a brief moment of full contact between the suction inlet and contact surface to be a blockage.
This vacuum is quite effective in trapping fine allergens. While its onboard HEPA filter and allergen-sealed construction ensure most fine particles won't escape from the dustbin while cleaning, a small number of lightweight allergens can be blown forward from its floorhead.
The Shark Stratos does a great job of cleaning crevices. Its secondary soft roller helps dig into shallow and medium-depth cracks and dig out any lightweight debris. While its Clean Sense IQ feature won't increase its suction power when passing over perpendicular crevices, it does recognize debris when moving the vacuum parallel to them. Still, you can use the crevice tool to clear out any deeper cracks.