Best Shark Vacuums of 2025: We Tested Every Shark Vac to Find the Top Performers

Pros

• Powerful suction and excellent cleaning performance on hardwood and carpet (95%)
• Five-year warranty
• Half the price of most top competitors
• Replaceable batteries

Cons

• No self-emptying dock
• Odor neautralizing cartridges need replacement

Best for:

The Shark Stratos is the best Shark vacuum currently available. It works equally well on all flooring types, including hardwood and carpet. We tested it to a 60-minute battery life. It also comes with a generous five-year warranty, replaceable batteries, HEPA filter and $500 price, but it's often less on sale.

Why we recommend it:

The Stratos is a top performer on Shark's lineup. It picked up 97.2% of sand from hardwood, 94% from low-pile carpet, and 94.4% from mid-pile carpet. On average, it was able to pick up 95% of sand during our testing. "The Stratos is definitely the standout," said Schylar Breitenstein, associate lab technician. "I use it to clean the floors in between pick-up tests because it picks up the most debris by far."

Part of what plays into the improved carpet performance is that the Stratos has a two-brushroll system that's able to dig deeper into the carpet to remove dust and pet hair. We didn't have many problems getting pet hair out of our test carpet, and the self-cleaning brushroll never tangled. The Stratos also incorporates some smart features, with Clean Sense IQ able to detect dirt and automatically boost suction power for better cleaning, but you can also manually change the cleaning modes if you prefer. It has a 60-minute tested battery time (we run each vacuum on medium until it's drained and take the average), putting it on the higher end of cordless vacuum battery life.

There are also several useful features like LED headlights for highlighting dust in dim areas, an LED display that shows you the battery time you have left, and a multi-flex wand attachment to help you get the vacuum under furniture and other tight spaces. The Startos folds up so you can put it away in a closet for storage. There's a washable anti-allergen HEPA filter and odor-neutralizing cartridges to prevent the dustbin from smelling.

Who shouldn't buy it:

The Shark Stratos doesn't come with a self-emptying dock or support for mopping. If either of those features is important to you, you'll need to look elsewhere. The odor-neutralizing feature requires cartridge replacements every six months, which will cost you an extra $25.

Pros

• Excellent performance on hardwood floors with 96% sand pickup
• Good carpet cleaning performance at above 50% pickup
• Comes with self-emptying dock
• Can cross obstacles up to 1.5 inches

Cons

• Somewhat pricey without sales
• Takes 21 minutes for a single room

Best for:

The PowerDetect NeverTouch Pro is Shark's response to the top-tier robot vacuums we've tested from iRobot, Dreame, Eufy, Roborock, and others. It was a top-performing robot vacuum on hardwood floors, has mopping with great navigation, and can cross thresholds up to 1.5 inches without having to spend as much as the Dreame X50 Ultra or Roborock Saros Z70. If you love Shark as a brand, the PowerDetect NeverTouch Pro is the best the company has to offer.
Why we recommend it:

In lab testing, it did great picking up sand from hardwood floors, removing nearly 96%, which is one of our highest scores on a robot vacuum. With carpet, we consider anything above 50% to be good; the Shark managed 54.5% from low-pile and 53% from midpile, making it better than average, but nothing spectacular. Pet hair also proved not to be a challenge, with the PowerDetect removing most of it from hardwood and carpet. As mentioned, the NeverTouch Pro has all the modern features you want on a robot, including vacuuming and mopping functionality, a self-emptying dock, improved navigation with 3D mapping, 360-degree lidar and dirt detection sensors.

Navigation was also quite good, with the robot moving around our test room in 21 minutes. The cleaning time is a little higher than some other models, but it was comprehensive, hitting most of the edges and navigating under a multi-legged table. The mopping pads also lift up so they won't drag across the carpet, and they self-clean and dry at the docking station. It missed only a few spots in its passes. Like the Dreame X50 Ultra, the PowerDetect is able to lift itself up over thresholds and obstacles up to 1.5 inches, although it can't go as high as the 2.36 inches I was able to register on the Saros Z70.

Who shouldn't get it:

At $999 at full price, it's one of the pricier robot vacuums on our list, but it's periodically on sale, making it a more attractive option for the right price. As of this writing, it's $770, but that still makes it quite a bit more expensive than more affordable alternatives from Eufy, Yeedi and iRobot.

Pros

• Excellent performance on all flooring types (91.4%)
• Includes self-emptying charging dock
• Generous five-year warranty period

Cons

• Slightly more expensive than better-performing Shark Stratos
• Tested runtime on the shorter side at 26 minutes
• No mopping functionality

Best for:

If you want the power and suction performance of the Shark Stratos with the benefits of a self-emptying dock, the Shark Clean & Empty is your best (and only) choice. It has powerful suction on all flooring types, and the included dock will automatically charge and empty the dustbin after every use. At just $400 at full price, it's usually in the same range as the Shark Stratos, while offering similar great performance. It also comes with the same generous five-year warranty.

Why we recommend it:

The Shark Clean & Empty performed quite well on all our lab tests, putting it close to the Shark Strato in performance. It removed 96% of sand from a hardwood floor, 90% from low-pile carpet and 88% from mid-pile carpet, resulting in an average performance of 91% in suction testing. This is just a few percentage points shy of the Stratos, which hit a 95% average on sand removal across floor surfaces. The vacuum automatically adjusts the brush roll speed depending on flooring type, although it doesn't have the same intelligent dirt detection feature as the Shark Stratos.

Pet hair was also no problem. The Clean & Empty easily removes pet hair from hardwood and carpet, and the self-cleaning brush roll is designed to minimize the hair that wraps around it.

The big selling point for picking the Clean & Empty over the Stratos is the included charging dock with the auto-empty base. The base station lets you dock the freestanding cordless vacuum, and it'll automatically charge and empty the dustbin. You can go up to 30 days without needing to empty the dock's bin. The vacuum and dock have a HEPA filter that Shark claims can lock away dust, dirt and allergens.

Who shouldn't buy it:

If battery life is important to you, the Clean & Empty doesn't last as long as the Stratos. We tested it to 26 minutes of cleaning on medium suction, rather than the 40 minutes claimed by Shark. The Stratos, by contrast, lasted for 60 minutes of cleaning.

Pros

• Excellent hardwood performance (94% pickup) and strong suction on carpets at 90% low-pile and 84.3% mid-pile
• Long five-year warranty period
• HEPA filter and anti-allergen seal

Cons

• Didn't actually do well at removing pet hair despite the name
• Small dustbin capacity at 0.32 liters
• No self-empty dock or mopping

Best for:
We like the Shark Pet Plus for those who want a good vacuum without spending more than $400 (currently $320 at full price). It had strong suction performance on all our test surfaces, has HEPA filtration, and comes with Shark's generous five-year warranty.

Why we recommend it:
The Pet Plus excelled on hard flooring, removing 94% of sand. It was no slouch on carpet either, tackling 90% of sand from low-pile and 84.3% from mid-pile carpets. The scores put it right up there with some of our top performers like our current best overall, the Shark Stratos.

There's no dock or mopping functionality, but the vacuum is freestanding, which is a nice touch because you can leave it in a corner if something calls your attention while vacuuming. It's also easy to maneuver, weighing a little less than 8 pounds. Battery life is middle of the pack at 42.3 minutes, which is less than the 60 minutes we got on the Stratos, but the battery is removable. The Pet Plus also comes with several useful cleaning tools. You get a multi-angle dusting brush, a pet multi-tool and a wide upholstery tool. If you're more sensitive to allergies, you'll be pleased to know that the Pet Plus does have a HEPA filter and an anti-allergen seal to keep dust out of your living space.

Who shouldn't buy it:
Shark Pet Plus didn't actually do well at removing pet hair, making it a bad choice for pet owners. While it did fine sucking it up from hardwood, it left quite a bit of pet hair on our low-pile and mid-pile test carpets. The dustbin is also one of the smallest capacities we've seen on a cordless vacuum at 0.32 liters. Finally, depending on the sales, you may be able to get the better-performing Shark Stratos of the self-emptying Clean & Empty for the same price.

Pros

• 97.53% sand pickup on hardwood floors
• 63.6 minutes tested battery life
• HEPA filter
• Five-year warranty

Cons

• Carpet pickup is good, but not as great as the Shark Stratos (78.43% low-pile and 80.39% mid-pile)
• Small dustbin at 0.32 liters

Best for:

The Shark Vertex is a capable cordless vacuum with a $380 price that puts it in roughly the same range as the Shark Stratos and Clean & Empty. It does great on hardwood floors and offers the longest tested battery life among Shark's lineup.

Why we recommend it:

The Shark Vertex scored the highest hardwood sand pickup score of a Shark vacuum at 97.53% sand pickup, putting it in a dead heat with the Shark Stratos, which managed 97.22%. That makes it one of the best options next to the Shark Stratos for hardwood flooring. Carpet is more of a mixed bag, with 78.43% from low-pile carpet and 80.39% from mid-pile carpet. These aren't bad scores, by any means, but you can get better carpet pickup on the Shark Stratos.
On the plus side, the Vertex has DuoClean PowerFins brushroll which is designed to dig deeper into carpets for dirt and pet hair, and it does a good job of keeping it from tangling. Battery life is one of the longest we've seen on a Shark vacuum, with 63.6 minutes of run time, lasting longer than the 60 minutes that Shark says you should be able to get. The battery is also removable.

Other features include a HEPA filter and various accessories, including a crevice tool and upholstery tool. The vacuum can be folded up to store it and also stand upright on its own. Like all Shark vacuums, it has a five-year warranty.

Who shouldn't buy it:

If you have a lot of carpeting at home, we recommend a better-rounded cordless vacuum like the Shark Stratos or Clean & Empty, which offer stronger carpet pickup performance. The dustbin is also small at 0.32 liters.

Pros

• Consistent performance with 91% pickup from hardwood and 80% or more from carpet
• Solid 45-minute battery life
• Includes removable battery and HEPA filter

Cons

• No LED headlight
• Not as long-lasting as the Shark Stratos

Best for:

If you're looking for something in the mid-price segment, the Shark Pet Pro offers solid performance without breaking the bank. At $300 full price and currently $274 as of this writing, it offers strong performance on hardwood floors and equally capable performance on carpet.

Why we recommend it:

If our lab tests are anything to go by, the Shark Pet Pro is a consistent performer. It scored 91% on sand pickup from hardwood flooring and also did very well on carpet, scoring 81% on low-pile and 80% on mid-pile. This isn't as good as the Shark Stratos or Clean and Empty, which averages 95% and 91% sand pickup, respectively, but it's high enough to keep the Pet Pro in a high tier compared with non-Shark competitors.
Battery life is decent, at 45 minutes tested, which again isn't as long as the Stratos, but better than average and longer than Shark's claim of 40 minutes. Like other Shark vacuums, it has the PowerFins brushroll that's designed to dig into carpet and helps pick up pet hair and dirt better while avoiding brush tangling. The dustbin is also on the larger side at 0.78 liters, letting you store more dust between emptying.

The vacuum stands upright, includes a HEPA filter, has a crevice tool and dusting brush and comes with Shark's five-year warranty.

Who shouldn't buyit:
If you're willing to spend $100 to $150 more, the Shark Stratos offers better performance in every category and the latest features, while the Clean & Empty has a self-emptying docking station. There are also no LED headlights, making it a little difficult to see dust on hard surfaces.

Pros

• Scores above 80% on both hardwood and carpet
• Affordably priced at $180
• Solid battery life at 45 minutes
• Large 0.78 liter dustbin

Cons

• Limited stock availability at many retailers
• No HEPA filter

Best for:
If budget is your primary concern, the Shark Pet is the most affordable vacuum in Shark's cordless lineup, at just $180 full price. It offers great overall performance with consistent scores in all of our suction tests, benefits from a large dustbin, and has Shark's generous five-year warranty. It's hard to go wrong for the price.

Why we recommend it:

The Shark Pet did better than we expected in all of our lab tests, with 89% sand pickup from hardwood. It even outperformed the Shark Pet Pro on carpet performance, scoring 84% on low-pile and 86% on mid-pile. This is a remarkably consistent performance for an affordable cordless vacuum and comes close to matching much higher-end models, provided that you don't need to spend a lot to clean your carpets.

We tested the battery life to 45 minutes, longer than the 40 minutes that Shark claims it can get. We also liked the fact that it is light at just 6.9 pounds, making it easy to maneuver. It comes with LED headlights to help illuminate dust. The large 0.78-liter dustbin is also a bonus.

Who shouldn't buy it:
Supplies of the Shark Pet seem to be dwindling in many retailers, and it's out of stock on Shark's website, which may make it a challenge to purchase. If you're not tied to the Shark brand, we've recently tested many cordless vacuums in the $150 price range that offer similarly excellent performance. There's also no HEPA filter, but it does include a different type of washable filter.