Pet hair and smells around your home can seem like a constant battle for many pet owners. With certain breeds comes what can feel like a never-ending tide of animal hair, and when it's coat casting season it can seem like you’re drowning in a sea of fur! Thankfully, a good pet vacuum cleaner can make this much easier to deal with.
With so many different options available – upright, bagless, and cordless, to name but a few – it's worth thinking about your own specific requirements before you buy. We’ve looked at pet hoovers from Amazon, John Lewis and Argos to give you our top recommendations from brands like Dyson, Shark and Vax, so you can hopefully rid your home of pet hair for good.
Quick List - Top Pet Vacuum Cleaners
Bissell
The Ultimate 3-In-1 Cleaning Solution for Pet Owners
Shark
Effortless Cleaning No Matter the Situation
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Generally speaking, corded vacuums have stronger suction which is great as far as pet hair is concerned, and they won't lose any of this suction during use. Another thing to consider is that corded cleaners generally have a large dust capacity, so you won't have to empty them very often.
Though their cord can limit where or how far you take them, you also won't have to worry about running out of charge, which is better if you have a larger house. However, corded models are much heavier than their cordless counterparts, which may be unappealing to some.
Cordless vacuums, of course, offer much more freedom and flexibility. They tend to be much lighter too, and allow you to clean anywhere you wish – including pet hair hotspots like the car, for example – without cumbersome power leads.
All this convenience does unfortunately have its downsides, as cordless cleaners only last as long as a battery charge, with some taking up to 16 hours to recharge. This does vary rather a lot, so both of these figures are worth noting when browsing cordless models. They can also lose suction as the battery starts to run out, so the total time you need it to run to vacuum may affect how good a job it does.
Cordless vacuum cleaners are taking over the market - Browse our favourites!
Vacuums with bags can be good for fur or dust allergies, as allergens that the cleaner picks up are contained in the bag and are less likely to be released again into the air. They can be emptied mess-free, and a lot of manufacturers use not only self-sealing bags, but bags with incorporated filters to make sure all of the hair and dirt stays contained inside.
However, the bags used are also an extra expense, and you'll need to remember to keep a constant supply of them at home, especially if you have lots of pet hair to contend with and need to vacuum often.
With bagless vacuums, on the other hand, there's no extra expense for buying bags, and they are much simpler to empty as you simply tip the contents into your rubbish, albeit with the risk of free-flying dust and fur. For those who are environmentally conscious, you also don’t have the added waste of disposing of a bag, and you can also compost the collected pet hair, dirt and dust.
However, the bins on these cleaners tend to have a much smaller capacity, so they'll need emptying more regularly, sometimes even mid-clean. You can check this if it's important to you – those under 0.5 litres (such as robot vacuums) will probably need emptying every clean, whereas over 2 litres is considered to be high capacity.
If you're looking for bagless vacuum cleaners, we have a top 10 suggestion too!
Buying the right vacuum for the floors in your house is half the battle in the war against pet fur in your home, as different types of flooring trap and hold onto the fur in different ways. Suction is very important for homes with a lot of hard floors such as wood and tile, as if the vacuum doesn’t have strong enough suction it can blow the fur around rather than picking it up.
Homes that have a lot of carpet and rugs will need a vacuum with a rotating brush head, as the brushes get into the nap of the carpet to grip and remove the hairs. Happily, there are vacuums that are capable of adjusting to the type of flooring, so that everything is picked up on hard floors but the brushes can be lifted up as to not damage wood floors. Choosing a vacuum that can adjust means you can be sure you’re maximising the hair removal on nearly any type of surface.
Attachments can allow you to de-fur every nook and cranny of your house, and even your car. These tools attach to the vacuum hose and are designed to maximise suction and draw out any embedded dirt and hair. Some vacuum cleaners even come with pet tools, allowing you to vacuum the dead fur and dirt straight off your pet before it even has a chance to hit the floor!
Consider the specific areas you need to clean when looking at the included attachments, but the most common are a crevice tool (for getting into hard-to-reach places such as between the sofa cushions), an upholstery tool (for cleaning fabric furniture and curtains), and a brush attachment for dust and cobwebs.
To get into the cracks and crevices when cleaning your car, a car vacuum cleaner will be your best option.
Filters are added to vacuum cleaners to help prevent the dust captured in the bag or container from being recirculated back into the air, making your home cleaner and the air within it clearer. The most popular type of filter is a HEPA (high-efficiency particulate air) filter, and these are to either be replaced every 3-6 months or washed thoroughly to restore it.
These are particularly important in homes with pets, as it stops any dust and dander from recirculating in the air which can potentially cause allergies and sensitivities. European standards require HEPA filters remove 99.95% of particles (of 0.3 microns or larger) from the air, making them a must-have inclusion for any pet-owning households.
Products | Image | Click to purchase | Key features | |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Bissell CrossWave Pet Pro 3-in-1 Multi-Surface Floor Cleaner | ![]() | The Ultimate 3-In-1 Cleaning Solution for Pet Owners | |
2 | Shark Powered Lift-Away True Pet Vacuum Cleaner|NV681UKT | ![]() | Effortless Cleaning No Matter the Situation | |
3 | Dyson Cyclone V10 Animal Cordless Vacuum Cleaner | ![]() | One of the UK's Best Selling Cordless Pet Vacuums | |
4 | Miele CX1 Blizzard Cat & Dog Vacuum Cleaner | ![]() | A Top-Rated and Powerful Pet-Specific Vacuum | |
5 | Vax Air Stretch Pet Upright Vacuum Cleaner|U85-AS-PME | ![]() | A Vacuum That Makes Everything Within Easy Reach | |
6 | Duronic Bagless Cylinder Vacuum Cleaner|VC7020 | ![]() | A Good Value Bagless Vacuum Cleaner | |
7 | Hoover Enigma Pets Bagged Cylinder Vacuum Cleaner|TE70/EN21 | ![]() | A Hygienic Vacuum Cleaner With Pet-Specific Tools | |
8 | iRobot Roomba i7 | ![]() | A Nifty Vacuum Cleaner for the Time Poor | |
9 | Gtech AirRam Cordless Vacuum Cleaner|MK2 K9 | ![]() | Designed to Be Lightweight With Great Cleaning Power | |
10 | Henry PET200 | ![]() | A Classic Vacuum Cleaner With Pet Hair Cleaning Power |
This vacuum goes the extra mile and not only vacuums your floors, but scrubs them too. The CrossWave Pet Pro is a digitally-operated multi-surface cleaner that vacuums, washes and dries floors, leaving them looking as good as new.
The 3000 rpm brush scrubs and washes for a deeper clean, whilst keeping the dirty water entirely separate in its own dedicated tank. It also promises to clean up after your pet quicker than using a mop and bucket! This offers great value for money and looks to be the pet owner's secret weapon in the fight against dirt and hair.
Whilst this vacuum is quite heavy, it easily converts into a fantastic lightweight lift-away handheld cleaner offering continuous power to the brush head, so you can give tight spaces such as under-beds and stairs a thorough clean.
The pet attachment also offers great animal hair removing power from carpets and upholstery, making this a really adaptable cleaner. Other notable features include side suction for edge-to-edge cleaning, adjustability to many flooring types, and a long 1.8 m hose reach. For the price, you can't fault its excellent cleaning power and versatility.
This updated version from the Dyson Animal cordless range has a 40% larger dust capacity, so you can clean for longer without stopping to empty it. Dyson report that the digital V10 motor generates the same suction power of a full-size vacuum, and this newer model has a longer-lasting battery life with no loss of suction.
The HEPA filtration captures allergens and expels cleaner air back into your home, meaning that this vacuum has been certified asthma- and allergy-friendly. Although this is by no means a cheaper vacuum, it is a universally popular choice with reviewers awarding it over 90% of 5-star reviews.
This vacuum has been designed with pet owners in mind as it promises to banish pet odours and allergens from your home with the HEPA filter, while the Turbobrush reliably picks up pet hair from your carpets. It also features a 4-stage power dial, meaning you can tailor the suction to your floorings and textiles.
Whilst this is towards the top of the price scale of this listing, it has earned many complimentary reviews, commenting on how well it deals with large amounts of pet hair and how strong the suction is.
This upright cleaner is high-performance with multi cyclone technology giving it strong suction to pick up anything in its tracks. The hose on this vacuum has a massive 17m reach, meaning that even if you leave it at the bottom of the stairs you'll be able to clean at the top of them without moving it.
The power cord on this vacuum is 9 m, which means that coupled with its 17 m hose reach you have a fantastic cleaning range without having to change power sockets. It also has an excellent HEPA filter and comes with plenty of useful attachments.
This bagless cylinder is great for any floor type, and its 700 W power (can go up to 800W) and cyclone technology is sure to provide strong and consistent suction to get rid of any trace of pet hair in your home. The 2.5 litre capacity means you can do a thorough clean without having to empty it, and the attachments it comes with will be sure to help you get into every nook.
Glowing reviews report that this is a great value vacuum and is very quiet with a noise level of 72dB. It also energy efficient at A+, and has excellent HEPA filter to keep allergies at bay. At 4.6kg, its compact design makes for easy manoeuvrability, with multiple handles there to further assist you.
The self-sealing bags in this vacuum mean that when it comes to emptying the bag, all the dirt and dust is sealed inside minimising the risk of anything escaping. The powerful rotating pet turbo brush loosens and lifts stubborn pet hair leaving your carpet and upholstery perfectly clean.
With a 9 m power cord and a hose reach of 1.5 m, this vacuum gives a great cleaning range without having to unplug from the power socket. While it's excellent value for money, some users have reported that it feels a bit plasticy and flimsy, and that it isn't quite as powerful as some of its competitors.
This robot vacuum uses a three-stage cleaning system with dual brushes to make sure that every hair is picked up from your floors. It works using Imprint Smart Mapping technology to map out all areas of your house, and its cleaning schedule can be set using the iRobot HOME app and also through your Amazon Alexa device.
As convenient as this technology is, it comes at a premium with this being the most expensive vacuum on our list, and while the cost is high it may be worth the money to anyone short on time to clean. However, you still need to remember to clean and empty the dirt bin after every vacuum.
The Gtec AirRam is super lightweight, making it easy to manoeuvre and clean all those hard-to-reach spots where pet hair gathers. It compresses the dirt as it cleans so that when you come to empty the container, the compressed dirt falls out easily and cleanly with the help of a slider.
While it is lightweight, it doesn't come with any attachments so if you need upholstery cleaning, for instance, you will need to buy their handheld vacuum cleaner to do so. The battery life is only around 40 minutes depending on the settings used, so this may not be suitable if you have a larger home to clean.
The Henry PET200 has a HairoBrush cleaning attachment to make sure that even the most embedded of pet hair is sucked up into its self-sealed 9 litre capacity bag. While it isn't fitted with a HEPA filter, it does have a MicroFresh charcoal air filter to make sure all those awful pet smells are kept sealed within.
Whilst this machine is undeniable powerful, it's 8 kg weight and large capacity mean it's very heavy and bulky, making it hard work to manoeuvre when cleaning tight spots such as the stairs.
Written and researched by Catherine Torrance
No. 1: Bissell|CrossWave Pet Pro 3-in-1 Multi-Surface Floor Cleaner
No. 2: Shark|Powered Lift-Away True Pet Vacuum Cleaner|NV681UKT
No. 3: Dyson|Cyclone V10 Animal Cordless Vacuum Cleaner
No. 4: Miele |CX1 Blizzard Cat & Dog Vacuum Cleaner
No. 5: Vax|Air Stretch Pet Upright Vacuum Cleaner|U85-AS-PME
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