If you want your floors to sparkle, a quality vacuum with strong filtration and great suction is essential. While we have recommended highly-rated brands like Dyson and iRobot in our other guides to vacuum cleaners, they can be pricey. Since price is high on many people’s priorities list, we collected seven different kinds of vacuums, all under $100.
SKIP AHEAD The best affordable vacuums | How to shop for an affordable vacuum
Our top picks
- Lowest price: Bissell Featherweight Stick
- Best affordable canister vacuum: Eureka WhirlWind
- Best affordable cordless vacuum: Black + Decker Handheld CHV1410L
How we picked the best vacuums under $100
We’ve written about vacuums before. In our guides to the best vacuum cleaners and the best cordless vacuums, we spoke with experts on what to look for in a great vacuum for your living space. Using their guidance, we selected affordable vacuums using the following criteria:
Price: We only selected from vacuums that cost under $100.
Top-rated: We picked vacuums with over 2000 positive ratings on Amazon.
Type: We included a wide variety of vacuums, as different types of vacuums are better suited to different living spaces.
Related
The best vacuums under $100
The best vacuums under $100 came from familiar brands like Eureka, Black + Decker, Dirt Devil and more.
Lowest price: Bissell
Bissell Featherweight Stick Lightweight Bagless Vacuum
What we like: Versatile design
This Bissell vacuum has a three-in-one design — it can clean carpets and hard floors and converts into both a handheld version and a shorter, stair vacuum (via a floor nozzle attachment). The bagless vacuum’s canister can be emptied directly into your trash can. While it does have to be plugged in, the vacuum has a 15-foot cord, giving you room to maneuver. It comes in multiple colors, and has a 4.4-star average rating across more than 94,000 reviews on Amazon.
Type: Multi | Bags: No | Weight: 2.6 lbs | Cord length: 15 feet | Battery life: N/A, wired | Bin volume: 0.67 liters
Best affordable canister vacuum: Eureka
Eureka WhirlWind Bagless Canister Vacuum
What we like: Powerful and lightweight
With swivel steering, this canister vacuum is meant to be easy to maneuver around furniture and up and down stairs. You can choose between three different suction controls on the handle, depending on the surface: carpet, upholstery or hard floors. The vacuum also has an automatic cord retractor and quick dust release on the side of the canister. This top-rated variant is bagless and includes a filter the brand recommends rinsing as needed.
Type: Canister | Bags: No | Weight: 8.2 lbs | Cord length: 16 feet | Battery life: N/A, wired | Bin volume: 1.2 liters
Best affordable upright vacuum: Eureka
Eureka PowerSpeed Pet Turbo Upright Vacuum Cleaner
What we like: Large bin capacity
Another top-rated vacuum from Eureka, this classic upright vacuum has the largest bin capacity on our list at 2.6 liters, making it a good fit for anyone looking to clean a large space. The vacuum’s roller is height adjustable, with five settings between high carpet and bare floor. The vacuum comes with tools like a dusting brush, crevice tool, upholstery tool and pet brush, which can be stored within reach on the vacuum itself.
Type: Upright | Bags: No | Weight: 10 lbs | Cord length: 25 feet | Battery life: N/A, wired | Bin volume: 2.6 liters
Best affordable cordless vacuum: Black+Decker
Black + Decker Handheld Vacuum CHV1410L
What we like: Super portable, great for cars
This top-rated bestseller on Amazon weighs just 2.6 pounds and has a crevice tool, which pulls out to provide an extra-long reach to get into high spaces and under appliances. It also comes with a removable slim nozzle that can rotate 180 degrees to give you more control as you clean, according to the brand. Its one-way flap valve keeps debris securely inside the vacuum.
Type: Handheld | Bags: No | Weight: 2.6 lbs | Cord length: N/A | Battery life: Up to 10 minutes | Bin volume: 0.6 liters
Best affordable stick vacuum: Dirt Devil
Dirt Devil Power Swerve Pet, Lightweight Cordless Stick
What we like: Powerful and portable
If you want a cordless option with a bit more power, consider this top-rated Dirt Devil stick vacuum. It has a large brush roll that the brands says is great at cleaning everything from hardwood floors to thick carpeting. The brush nozzle swivels, making it more maneuverable than a large upright vacuum. It has a built-in LED indicator light that tells you batter status as your charge. The canister is also decently large at 0.7 liters.
Type: Cordless | Bags: No | Weight: 5.5 lbs | Cord length: N/A | Battery life: Up to 15 minutes | Bin volume: 0.7 liters
Best affordable vacuum mop: Shark
Shark VACMOP Pro Cordless Hard Floor Vacuum Mop
What we like: Space efficient, two tools in one
This Shark model can both suction up dirt and debris and mop wet messes too. But keep in mind, similar to a Swifter pad, the disposable mop pads need to be replaced after two to three uses, according to the brand. This vacuum is cordless, lightweight and has headlights on the roller to light up cleaning in front of you.
Type: Cordless, vacuum+mop | Bags: No | Weight: 3.34 lbs | Cord length: N/A | Battery life: Undisclosed | Bin volume: 0.67 liters
Best affordable robot vacuum: Eufy
Eufy RoboVac 11S
What we like: Automated cleaning means less chores
This product retails for well over $100, but we have seen it on sale often for around $100. Even so, the Eufy 11S costs much less than most other robot vacuum cleaners, and is our top budget pick in our guide to the best robot vacuum cleaners. Robot vacuums automatically roam around your space, picking up dust and debris as they go. CNBC Select reporter Ana Staples has used this robot vacuum for over a year, and while it may not have a ton of smart mapping features, it gets the job of automated cleaning done well enough.
Type: Robot | Bags: No | Weight: 8.6 lbs | Cord length: N/A | Battery life: Up to 100 minutes | Bin volume: 0.6 liters
Related
How to shop for an affordable vacuum
Before purchasing any vacuum, think about your living space — including how large it is, how open the space is, what kinds of surfaces there are and where outlets are located. According to our experts’ guidance from previous reporting in our guide to the best vacuums, one of the following types of vacuums is likely better than the others for your specific needs:
Canister vacuum
Canister vacuums have a separate canister that contains the motor and receptacle and equips a long hose that can be fitted with interchangeable attachments. This is a great option for the homeowner who has a mixture of stairs and surfaces to clean because canister vacuums are much lighter and far easier to maneuver than upright vacuums. But with all its extra parts, it may be difficult to store.
Upright vacuum
Upright vacuums are a great option for homes that have large, wide-open spaces, since they are typically easier to maneuver than canister vacuums. Uprights also tend to be heavier than canister vacuums—weighing as much as 20 pounds—making it difficult to lift them up and down the stairs. Some, but not all upright vacuums come with a wand attachment, which can clean vertical surfaces, like walls, upholstery and curtains.
Stick vacuum
Stick vacuums are slim and lightweight, making it a good option for both quick cleanups and homes with minimal storage space. These are best for people with smaller spaces to clean, since they’re not as powerful as canister vacuums. Sticks are also good for those who have kids and are constantly cleaning up spills and messes.
Handheld/cordless vacuum
Handheld or cordless vacuums are typically the most compact, portable option. They are a great fit for vacuuming out your car or spot cleaning but are typically less powerful than traditional models. For that reason, handhelds should not replace a larger, heavier-duty vacuum for all your home cleaning but instead be used as an extra option.
Robot vacuum
Robot vacuums are a "smart" counterpart to the traditional vacuum and can run at any time — even when you’re not home. They help tackle forgotten corners and clean under furniture that larger models may not be able to. However, they tend to be slower than most other types of vacuums, so they’re not the best option if you’re looking for a quick cleanup.
Bag type
All of our recommended picks are bagless. Bagless vacuums employ a container, called a dustbin, that collects the dirt and debris that you need to empty. Bagless models are great for those who don't want to have to worry about buying and changing out bags, but they are not the best option if you have severe allergies.
Bagged vacuums, on the other hand, keep the particles contained in a bag, which can be useful for those with strong allergies. But these bags need to be replaced after they are full, so it is an additional investment. Both canister and upright vacuums come in bagged and bagless models.
Why trust Select?
Ambar Pardilla is a former reporter for Select.
Harry Rabinowitz is a reporter at Select who has covered consumer tech for over three years. For this piece, he referenced past interviews with experts in both the cleaning and electronics industry to better understand the strengths and weaknesses of different kinds of vacuums. He then performed intensive research online into top-rated, affordable vacuums of varying types.
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