What is the best Upright Corded vacuum cleaner to buy?
But why buy a corded upright vacuum cleaner?
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Best Upright Corded Vacuum Cleaners
Here’s our short list for best upright (plug-in) vacuum cleaner
Shark® Rotator® ;Professional Lift-Away
Shark® Navigator® Lift-Away Professional
The Shark Navigator Lift-Away Professional NV356E upright vacuum is a great workhorse vacuum. It’s one of the best Shark vacuum cleaners on the market and has been for years.
Bagless and corded, the Shark Navigator Lift-Away Professional has powerful suction. The suction is adjustable which makes it good for small area rugs.
Lift Away
The Lift away canister feature turns this 2-in-1 vacuum from an upright vacuum to a portable vacuum cleaner. This feature makes it easy to vacuum stairs, curtains or on pesky cobwebs up in high corners.
You can detach the power head from the main unit and attach it to the wand allowing you to get under furniture. Neat.
For Allergy Sufferers
For allergy or asthma sufferers, this Shark upright bagless vacuum cleaner has a HEPA filter. And the Anti Allergen completely sealed unit keeps the dust and dirty air within the unit and not all over your home.
Flooring Types
The Shark Navigator Lift-Away Professional NV356E tackles both carpets and hardwood floors easily handling any pet hair or human hair along the way. To switch floor types just select Carpet or Bare floor mode
The manual brush roll on/off switch can be turned off easily on the Shark Navigator Lift Away to protect your hardwood floors from scratching.
At 2.2 quarts, the dust cup is quite large and easy to empty. TIP: don’t let the dust cup get past the MAX FILL line. If you do, you may lose suction power as the dirt will have nowhere to go.
You can see now why this Shark upright was short listed for the best corded vacuum cleaner.
PROS
- Powerful suction with manual suction control
- Easy to manoeuvre with Lift-away mode and swivel technology
- HEPA filter and anti-allergen whole unit sealed technology
- Good price with good build quality
- Handles pet hair and human hair
- Easy to assemble
CONS
- No height adjustment (but can adjust the suction power)
- Brush head narrower than most
- Not ideal for Berber carpet
” .. really didn’t think I’d be using the Lift away feature, but I love it!”
OUR THOUGHTS
The Shark Navigator Lift-Away Professional is a cost effective, easy to use corded upright bagless vacuum cleaner with easy to adjust suction. This vacuum helps you to clean thoroughly, high and low, with its magical Lift away feature.
In our opinion, the Shark Navigator Lift Away Professional NV356E upright vacuum cleaner is the best bagless upright corded vacuum cleaner overall for most flooring types.
Bissell Cleanview Swivel Pet Upright Bagless
The Bissell Cleanview Swivel Pet vacuum is the best value bagless upright vacuum cleaner. It uses multi cyclonic suction to do a terrific job of cleaning carpets. Pet hair is easily cleaned up with tools designed just for that.
The swivel head makes it easy to maneuver under furniture and around your home.
The Bissell Cleanview multi cyclonic is the best budget upright bagless vacuum cleaner for low to medium pile carpets up to 1 inch. This is made easy with the manually adjustable brush which has 5 settings. Being manual, the height adjustment is more reliable than some auto height adjustment mechanisms.
A lightweight design, the Bissell Cleanview Swivel Pet vacuum is great value and better build quality than expected for the price. It’s a capable performer on different carpet types (including shag pile carpet) and other surfaces like upholstery and car interiors.
Tools and attachments
Nearly all attachments (except the Pet Corner Tool) are stored on board the machine The tools can be used with the 6 foot hose and the extension wand.
Attach the crevice tool to the extension hose and clean up high or even inside your car. Pet hair embedded in carpet is loosened and picked up by the Triple action Brush Roll. (The brush roll is an upgrade on the Bissell Cleanview with Onepass technology.)
The pet turbo eraser tool works a treat on furniture upholstery and dog beds. For pet owners, the Bissell Cleanview swivel pet vacuum is the ideal choice.
Edge to edge cleaning means that you don’t have to get out another tool to clean all the way to the edge of the floor and baseboards.
Brush Roll
There is no brush roll shut off so occasionally fine particles can flick out behind the vacuum on bare floors. The brush has gentle bristles for hard floors.
In upright mode it’s not the best at picking up large debris like cat litter or cereal. You can solve this by connecting the hose to the extension wand (stored on the vac) or adjusting the brush height to the highest setting.
Maintenance
Regular cleaning is needed to avoid hair getting caught in the belt and causing issues. Other maintenance will be required, like replacing the belts and filters.
PROS
- Lightweight and manoeuvrable swivel steering
- Great value, affordable price
- Excellent suction on low and medium pile carpets
- Great at picking up pet hair
- Vacuums up pet hair
- Easy assembly
- Every purchase helps gives homeless pets a home by supporting the Bissell Pet foundation https://www.bissellpetfoundation.org/
CONS
- No brush roll on / off – motor runs when unit is just standing
- No HEPA filtration
- No brush roll on / off – motor runs when unit is just standing
- No HEPA filtration
- Hose not that long so not great for stairs
OUR THOUGHTS
The Bissell Cleanview Swivel Pet vacuum is a sound budget friendly choice for single storey, carpeted homes with pets.
- To save money and skip the swivel steering take a look at the Bissell Cleanview bagless Upright 1831
- To upgrade and include cord rewind see the Bissell Cleanview Swivel Rewind Pet 2258
COMING SOON: Bissell Pet Hair Eraser Turbo Vacuum review.
So lightweight !! And fantastic for pet hair !
Dyson Ball Animal 2 Total Clean Upright
The Dyson Ball Animal 2 Total Clean vaccuum cleaner is a sight to behold with a funky and colourful design. Not just about good looks, it’s powerful and has a great reach.
Efficiently getting rid of microscopic particles, allergens and dust, the radial root cyclonic technology is a must for asthma sufferers. To back that up, the Dyson Ball Animal 2 has been approved by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America. Now that’s some peace of mind.
(To find out more about the Asthma And Allergy Foundation program go here
The Dyson Ball Animal 2 has excellent suction and automatically adjusts to different floor types. The suction can be an issue with high pile carpet, though, making the Dyson ball Animal 2 difficult to push. There isn’t any way to adjust the suction which is surprising.
The Ball itself can actually get in the way when trying to vacuum under furniture – so it’s not as manoeuvrable as we expected.
The tangle free turbine tool has counter rotating heads so you can happily pick up pet hair without worrying about clogging.
You can manually turn off the motorized brush bar when cleaning hardwood floors.
What’s the Difference between the Dyson Ball Animal 2 Total Clean and the Dyson Ball Animal 2?
Just accessories and color! That’s it!
The Dyson Ball Animal 2 Total Clean machine is the same as Dyson Ball Animal 2 but with a whole load of extra tools. Jump to the comparison table to see the list of tools.
PROS
- Approved by Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America
- Excellent suction
- Self adjusting Brush head height
- Long reach hose – great for stairs
CONS
- Expensive
- Strong suction can be too strong on high pile carpet
- No suction control
- Can be heavy to handle especially on thicker carpet – not ideal for seniors
- Locking into upright position can be tricky
OUR THOUGHTS
The Dyson Ball Animal 2 Total Clean upright vacuum is excellent on low pile carpet and hardwood floors and has specialized tools for vacuuming pet hair from upholstery.
Yes, it’s on the pricey side, but Dyson is a market leader and well known for their innovative technology and that’s why they tend to be pricier than most vacuums.
We found that it’s not quite as manoeuvrable as the Shark Navigator Lift Away especially when vacuuming under low furniture. Probably not a choice for seniors as it can be a little heavy and the suction is seriously strong.
The Dyson Ball Animal 2 Total Clean upright is the market’s best bagless upright vacuum cleaner and is an excellent vacuum cleaner for pet hair or asthma sufferers.
Picked up so much muck and hair I was disgusted by how dirty our house really was!
Top 3 Upright bagless corded vacuum cleaners - Compared
The corded upright vacuum cleaners reviewed here are all bagless (no more bags to buy) and corded so you need to plug them in. None of these vacuums have auto cord rewind – with no need for cord storage space, the units can be smaller. You need to manually wind up the cord.
Our (Corded Upright) Wrap Up
Which Upright corded vacuum cleaner to buy?
Selecting the best upright corded vacuum cleaner is different for everyone so your needs and your home are what matter. A bagless upright corded vacuum cleaner is a great choice for your main workhorse or one and only vacuum
Corded uprights are suited best to carpeted homes with children, pets or both!
The Dyson Ball Animal 2 Total Clean performs admirably on all floor types. However, the Dyson Ball Animal 2 upright doesn’t outperform the Shark Navigator Lift Away Pro significantly and considering the price, you don’t get that much more for your money.
The Shark Navigator upright does perform a bit better than the Dyson Animal 2 on hardwood floors and with the Lift-away feature is easier to manoeuvre. Our top pick overall for best upright corded vacuum cleaner is the Shark Navigator Lift-away Professional NV356E.
BEST VALUE upright corded vacuum
The Bissell Cleanview Swivel Pet Upright is perfect if you’re on a tight budget, have pets who shed lots of hair on mostly carpeted floors, have no stairs and no allergy or asthma sufferers at home.
PREMIUM corded upright vacuum
A bit on the heavy side (so not suitable for seniors) the Dyson Ball Animal 2 TOTAL Clean upright vacuum cleaner performs effectively on all floor types, especially with pet hair. The long hose is great for stairs. The Dyson Ball Animal 2 is an excellent choice as the best upright vacuum for asthma sufferers.
Love cool styling, plenty of tools and have some cash to treat yourself? Our premium pick, the Dyson Ball Animal 2 Total clean, is the baby for you!
OUR PICK corded upright vacuum
For an all-round vacuum cleaner that’s quiet (but not the absolute quietest), good value for money, a great vacuum for cat hair and dog hair, excellent at bare floors and good on carpet, the versatile Shark Professional Rotator Lift-Away vacuum cleaner is not only good on your pocket it stands out in all aspects.
Other considerations for corded upright vacuums
Best corded Upright vacuum for allergy sufferers?
For allergy or asthma sufferers the best upright vacuum cleaner choice is the Dyson Ball Animal 2 Total Clean. A completely sealed vacuum with HEPA filtrations, it’s backed by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America.
Best corded Upright for stairs?
Need an upright vacuum for lots of stairs? We’d go with the bagless, convertible upright SHARK Navigator Lift Away Professional. With it’s versatility the stairs will be a breeze.
Best corded Upright for hardwood floors?
If you have mostly hardwood floors (say more than half your home), we’d recommend that you go with the Shark Navigator Lift-away Professional.
Looking for more options for an upright for bare floors see our review “Best Upright for Bare floors”
Best corded Upright for deep pile carpet?
Being upright vacuums, none of these models, are the best vacuum cleaner for high pile, deep pile carpet or shag carpet. For that you’ll need a canister vacuum cleaner. See our review of the Miele Complete C3 Marin canister vacuum cleaner (or Best Canister vacuum cleaner review)
So which corded upright vacuum cleaner will you choose?
Whether you’ve short listed the Shark Navigator Lift Away Professional, the Bissel Clearview Swivel Pet upright or the Dyson Ball Animal 2 Total Clean we hope that you’ll be very satisfied with your purchase of the best upright corded vacuum cleaner for you.