(Last Updated: April, 2024)
What Changed?
- Added Shark Rocket Ultralight
- Removed discontinued products
- Updated pros and cons on Dyson V7 Trigger
Buyer's Guide Table of Contents (Click To Expand)
Vacuuming itself is a pretty simple chore, but vacuuming the stairs is a whole different story. They’re steep, small spaces with lots of cracks and crevices. But since they’re such high traffic areas, they’re not a spot that you want to neglect. Regular vacuuming is going to help prevent the build up dirt, dust, hair and allergens.
With the right kind of vacuum cleaner, cleaning the stairs doesn’t have to be too difficult and it will ultimately help prolong the life of your flooring. There are plenty of options out there that will help make things much quicker and easier.
Since starting Modern Living 101, we've tested hundreds of vacuums. Some are great on stairs, others, not so much. This is a list of the best vacuums we've tested when it comes to performance on stairs.
According to our tests, the best vacuum for stairs is the Shark Rocket Ultralight. Its a small, but very powerful vacuum that comes with a motorized brush that can easily be used for upholstery or other areas as well.
Top 7 Best Vacuums For Stairs (Handheld & More)
More About The Shark Rocket Ultralight Vacuum
This lightweight, hand vacuum is as easy to use as it is powerful. It weighs less than 4lbs and is perfect for vacuuming stairs and other small areas.
The 15ft power cords lets you clean the whole room without having to unplug or recharge, and you never lose suction power.
Included accessories include the dusting brush, stretch hosel and TruePet motorized power brush. You’ll never have to worry about vacuum bags again - the convenient dust cup makes emptying dirt, hair a debris quick and easy by simply pushing a button.
This vacuum got our editor's choice award because of its lightweight, but powerful motor, ease of use, and overall effectiveness on stairs and upholstery.
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Pros:
- Washable and reusable filters
- Stretch hose allows you to vacuum hard to reach spots
- Perfect for carpet, hardwood floors, upholstery and pet hair
Cons:
- Dust cup fills up quickly if you’re cleaning large mess
RElated Products | |
|---|---|
Dyson Cyclone Lightweight Cordless Cleaner  | MOOSOO Cordless Ultra Light Stick Vacuum  |
Eureka-71C EasyClean Lightweight Handheld  | Oreck Commercial-BB900DGR Compact Canister  |
More About The Tineco A11 Master Vacuum
The Tineco A11 Master vacuum cleaner has two powerful settings to choose from making perfect from getting a deep clean on both hardwood and carpeted floors and stairs. It’s a stick vacuum converts to a cordless hand vacuum and has a convenient wall mounted charging holder for quick storage and charging. Two detachable batteries provide you with up to 50 minutes of runtime so you get the whole house done.
The high-tech 4-stage filtration system captures and traps 99.99% of the dirt and debris, and releases fresh, non-allergenic air back into the environment. It also features a large capacity .6L debris collection chamber so you don’t have to stop to empty it frequently.
Pros:
- Includes two power brushes, one for carpets and one for delicate hard floors
- Charging station can charge both batteries at once
- Easily converts to a handheld vacuum cleaner
Cons:
- MAX suction setting will drain battery much quicker
RElated Products | |
|---|---|
Dyson Cyclone Lightweight Cordless Cleaner | MOOSOO Cordless Ultra Light Hand held |
Eureka-71C EasyClean Lightweight Handheld | Oreck Commercial-BB900DGR Compact Canister |
More About The Eureka Easyclean Lightweight Handheld Vacuum
This handheld vacuum cleaner is lightweight, but has powerful suction for deep, multi-surface cleaning. Vacuuming vertical surfaces, like stairs and upholstery, with ease thanks to the unique shape and conveniently placed handle. A long, 20ft cord makes it easy to clean anywhere in the house without having to stop and unplug. You can even take it out the drive to clean up the inside of your car.
It comes with integrated hose with a build-in crevice tool to allow you to easily get hard to reach spots and edges.
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Pros:
- Brush features on and off switch for carpet cleaning
- Built-in filter with convenient dust canister
- Weighs less than 5lbs
Cons:
- Filter cannot be washed and needs to be replaced
RElated Products | |
|---|---|
Dyson Cyclone Lightweight Cordless Cleaner | MOOSOO Cordless Ultra Light Hand held |
Eureka-71C EasyClean Lightweight Handheld | Oreck Commercial-BB900DGR Compact Canister |
More About The Bissell Pet Hair Eraser Handheld Vacuum
Even well-behaved pets can be extremely messy because of shedding. The Bissell Pet Hair Eraser features a powerful motorized brush that helps to loosen embedded pet hair and dirt from carpets and traps it all in a convenient, high capacity dirt bin to easy dumping. It uses a powerful 14V lithium ion battery for continuous suction and extended runtime.
Along with the brush, it also includes a handy upholstery tool, making it easy to clean all kinds of areas in your home. You’ll also love the pet specific tools it comes with like the crevice and upholstery tools to help you get rid of pet hair.
Pros:
- Three-part filtration system for highly effective cleaning
- Cordless, battery power
- Ideal for multiple surfaces
Cons:
- Battery recharge time is about 8 hours
RElated Products | |
|---|---|
Dyson Cyclone Lightweight Cordless Cleaner | MOOSOO Cordless Powerful Suction Handheld |
Eureka-71C EasyClean Lightweight Handheld | Oreck Commercial-BB900DGR Compact Canister |
More About The Bissell Cleanview Deluxe Handheld Vacuum
This is a simple yet powerful little vacuum cleaner. It requires no bag and has an easy-to-empty .78 liters dirt cup. The tip of the vacuum features a unique rubber nozzle that makes it perfect for cleaning up hair and dirt from and surface, including stairs. It comes with three specialty attachments, including and extension hose for hard to reach spots and a wide mouth tool.
A long, 18ft power cord gives you the freedom to move around anywhere in your home, and the power switch is conveniently located right on the handle so you can easily switch it on and off.
Pros:
- Clear dirt cup so you know when it’s time to empty it
- HEPA Media filter
- Very compact and lightweight
Cons:
- Not ideal for cleaning large areas at once
RElated Products | |
|---|---|
Dyson Cyclone Lightweight Cordless Cleaner | MOOSOO Cordless Vacuum |
Eureka-71C EasyClean Lightweight Hand Vac | Oreck Commercial-BB900DGR Compact Canister |
More About The Shark Navigator Lift Away Professional
This innovative bagless vacuum cleaner quickly converts from a full-size upright vacuum to a handheld vacuum with the push of a button, making it perfect for stairs and other small areas. It features an Anti-Allergen complete seal and a HEPA filter to prevent allergens and dust from escaping into the air. The dust cup can hold up to 12 dry quarts of debris and is very quick and easy to empty. Convenient crevice and upholstery attachments allow you to clean anywhere in your home with ease.
Even at it full size, this vacuum only weighs 12.5lbs, and most of that weight is the extra large dust bin.
Pros:
- Effectively traps 99.9% dust and allergens
- Portable canister lifts away easily
- Ideal for multi-surface use
- Long cord
Cons:
- Hose attachment isn’t very flexible
RElated Products | |
|---|---|
Dyson Cyclone Lightweight Cordless Cleaner | MOOSOO Cordless Vacuum |
Eureka-71C EasyClean Lightweight Hand Vac | Oreck Commercial-BB900DGR Compact Canister |
More About The Dyson V7 Trigger Handheld Vacuum
Get the powerful, innovative technology of the Dyson digital motor in a convenient handheld vacuum. It’s cordless and has up to 30-minutes of no fade suction with the lithium ion battery. The handle is comfortable to hold and has a trigger power button for complete control. It features a unique hygienic dirt ejector that expels all trapped dirt and debris in one, swift motion without needing to be touched by you
It includes a mini motorized tool, crevice tool and combination tool so you can clean anywhere in your home with ease.
Pros:
- 0.15 gallon capacity
- Mini motorized tool is perfect for embedded pet hair and dirt
- Powerful lithium ion battery powered cordless vacuum cleaner
Cons:
- Finger must remain on the power switch
RElated Products | |
|---|---|
Dyson Cyclone Lightweight Cordless Cleaner | MOOSOO Cordless Vacuum |
Eureka-71C EasyClean Lightweight Hand Vac | Oreck Commercial-BB900DGR Compact Canister |
Qualities of The Best Vacuum for Stairs
You could just pick any vacuum out there, but that doesn’t mean that it’s going to most ideal for cleaning those tricky stairs. Some vacuum cleaners will come with certain features and qualities that are going really going to make your life much easier and allow you to get a deeper clean.
Size and Weight
Vacuuming the stairs means pulling and lifting the vacuum up the stairs. You’re not going to want to do this with a 20lb vacuum up the stairs, so it’s you should be looking for something very lightweight and very portable. Some vacuum cleaners, like a few that we mentioned here, can convert from a full-size to a handheld. If you need both a vacuum good for stairs and good for cleaning large areas of floor, this might be a good option for you.
Size is also very important that the vacuum is not too bulky. In order to vacuum the entire surface of each stair, the vacuum needs to be somewhat compact or somewhat slim.
Reach
Whether you go with corded or cordless, reach is going to be an important quality when it comes to vacuuming the staircase. There are pros and cons to both corded and cordless. Cordless vacuum cleaners will require you to recharge the batteries and will die eventually, however they allow you to move and clean freely. Corded vacuums can be a bit restricting depending how long the power cord is, but they allow for continuous power and suction.
If you do end up choosing a corded vacuum, make sure to consider the size of your home and how much space you want to cover. Also consider if there’s a convenient power outlet near your stairs that you’ll be able to plug into.
Type of Vacuum
This factor kind of ties into the size and weight as well. A handheld vacuum will be most ideal for vacuuming stairs as it can be easily moved from stair to stair without much effort. That’s not to say you couldn’t use a full-size vacuum, but it does need to be small enough to properly reach each stair.
Attachments
Two really useful attachments for stairs are the crevice and flathead tool. If you’re able to find a vacuum that includes these at least one or both of these attachments, it’s probably going to be a good one for stairs. The tool for crevices is great for getting a deep clean in the crevices of the stairs, and the flathead tool allows you to quickly clean large areas.
Ways to Vacuum Carpeted Stairs
Thinking about vacuuming the stairs can be a bit daunting if you don’t know where to start or how to go about it. It can be a tricky task, but it doesn’t have to be too bad. Here’s a few tips to help make it a painless process.
Begin at the Top
The easiest way to being is at the top, working your way down. Especially if you’re using an upright, full-size vacuum, this will be the best way to go about it. It’s also going to allow you to vacuum up any dirt of hair you might have pushed down when working on the previous stair.
Not to mention, you won’t feel as strained for fatigued at the end from lifting the whole time and won’t need to hunch over for as long..
Use the Tools and Attachments
Stairs have cracks and crevices that collect hair and dust pretty quickly. The best way to get a thorough clean in these spots is to utilize your tools and attachments. They’ll save you a lot of time and energy when used appropriately. This is the crevice accessory’s time to shine or any attachment with a small nozzle or pointed tip.
Pre-Clean
As with all vacuuming, it’s important to first pick up and large pieces of debris on the stairs and in the crevices - things like hairballs or leaves. This is going to help protect your vacuum and prevent any blockages that might set you back.
Conclusion
Vacuuming keeps your house free of excess dirt, dust, hair and allergens. Vacuuming the living room and bedrooms are a given, but people often forget or just avoid doing the stairs because they can be difficult to clean with a regular vacuum. Remember: stairs are very high traffic areas of your home that need to be cleaned regularly.
Some vacuums will be more ideal others. Look for one that is lightweight, portable, has useful attachments and your preferred power source. The right kind of vacuum will make it a quick and easy task, you just have to know what to look for. Keeping the stairs clean is going to make your home look and feel so much cleaner.