Since the launch of our very first edition in the 1920s, Ideal Home has been recommending household products to readers across the UK. And after launching the website in 2016, we have dedicated a huge amount of time to perfecting our detailed testing guidelines. This also includes how we test pet vacuum cleaners.
Today, the best vacuum cleaners for pet hair make up a considerable portion of our best vacuum guide. After all, innovative engineering and new technology have allowed vacuum cleaner manufacturers to hone in on what pet owners really want and need in their homes, from pet hair pick-up to odour and dander removal. And to ensure we’re only recommending the best products in these buying guides, we ensure that every Ideal Home tester follows a strict reviewing process.
To maintain validity across the board, every vacuum cleaner for pet hair is tested in a home with pets for over two weeks, and sometimes even longer. Its cleaning abilities and features are then assessed with a fine-tooth-comb from people who know what it’s like to live with animals - and the cleaning concerns that come with it. For more information, you will find the exact methodology we follow to test pet vacuum cleaners below.
How we test general functionalities
Although the best vacuums for pet hair are ideal for cleaning hair-covered sofas and carpets embedded with pet dander, they must also be practical for everyday cleaning outside of these pet-specific conundrums. Because of this, we first test every pet hair vacuum using the same methodology we’d follow to test non-pet-specific vacuum cleaners.
Each tester follows the same rigorous process, which is made up of scored and non-scored parts, and is required to fill out the same detailed form and provide visual evidence of the undertaking.
You can read a detailed run-through of how we test vacuum cleaners in our guide, but, in short, each vacuum will be put through its paces to assess the following:
- The eco-friendliness of the packaging and the unboxing process.
- The ease of assembly, how long it takes to assemble the vacuum and its overall weight.
- Whether the vacuum can stand up independently or needs to be propped up.
- How the vacuum is stored.
- If it’s one of the best cordless vacuum cleaners, how long the battery lasts, how long it takes to charge and how this compares to the manufacturer’s claims.
- If corded, how long the cord is and how this impacts the portability.
- How maneouverable the vacuum is, and how it copes with changes of direction, surfaces, stairs, and furniture.
- The ease of emptying, whether it can be emptied with one hand, and how messy the emptying process is.
- How to vacuum picks up cereal, flour, and coffee grounds (to mimic mud) on multiple flooring types, including hard flooring and carpet.
- How effective the vacuum attachments are and how they are stored.
- The size of the dust bin, and how long it takes to fill up.
- The anti-odour features (if any).
- How noisy it is, taking into account nervous pets and those with sound sensitivities.
- How to clean and maintain the vacuum cleaner in the long run.
- The overall value for money.
How we test pet hair pick-up
Once the above functionalities are tested, we can proceed to the pet-specific testing methodology. Our first port of call is to test pet hair pick-up and determine whether a vacuum cleaner's suction power can cope with the large amount of (often very different) hair that comes from dogs, cats, rabbits, and more.
To do this, we sprinkle pet hair on two different types of flooring (hard flooring and carpet) and vacuum the area using the standard vacuum head and the machine’s auto mode to ensure consistency across the board.
We measure how much hair is picked up from a visual inspection of the floor and the dust canister or vacuum bag and how much was picked up from one forward and backward motion. After all, vacuums with better pick-up power should be able to pick up more hair through fewer passes.
Then, we move on to the sofa pet hair test. This is similar to the above tests, whereby we sprinkle pet hair onto the sofa and use the furniture attachment - which should come as standard with a pet vacuum cleaner - to see how well it picks up this hair. Once again, we shall visually assess how the sofa looks after each pass and inspect the dust canister or vacuum bag to see how much is picked up.
If possible, we also continue these tests on any pet-heavy areas of the home, including dog or cat beds. We will also test the tools and attachments to see how they fare against embedded pet hair in carpets, beds, and other upholstery.
We score the results of these tests to help us better understand the vacuum cleaner's effectiveness, and to help us offer you helpful comparisons with other products.
How we test pet dander pick-up
Hair isn’t the only thing you need to worry about when you have pets in your home. Pet dander is the invisible, microscopic skin flakes shed by pets - and it can embed itself into your carpets and attach itself to anything in your home. For many people, this pet dander can trigger allergies and even result in breathing difficulties in extreme cases.
Of course, the best dehumidifiers can help to remove these pollutants from your home, but vacuuming can also help with allergies as it can remove stubborn dander stuck in the tiniest crevices in your home.
And while it’s impossible to visually see whether a pet vacuum will pick up this invisible dander, we aim to use an air quality monitor to determine whether the air quality improves after using the pet vacuum. So, we measure the air quality just before vacuuming and then measure it again two hours after vacuuming. If the pet vacuum has removed some (or ideally all) of the dander from your home, the air quality should improve.
We also get into the nitty-gritty of the vacuum cleaner’s filter quality during this stage. As pet vacuums aim to remove pet dander and pet hair from your home safely, many come with HEPA filters as standard. These filters can trap up to 99.9% of airborne particles that are 0.3 micrometres or larger, including any pollen that has been brought in by your pet, as well as dust and dander. Of course, you’ll need to clean your vacuum filter for long-term effectiveness.
Alongside this, we also take note of how the pet vacuum is emptied - as this can also affect how effective it is at keeping pet hair and dander out of your home. Many experts believe that bagged vacuums are better for those who live with pets, as everything is collected in a sealed bag that can be thrown away.
However, during testing, we assess the emptying process of every pet vacuum, whether bagged or bagless. If it’s particularly messy and the emptying process kicks a lot of the dust and dander back into the air, this will be picked up by the air quality monitor.
How we test the anti-hair wrap features
Many vacuum cleaners today have anti-hair wrap features, and this is especially important if you have pets in your home. Clogged hoses and brush rolls wrapped with pet hair can drastically reduce the efficiency of your vacuum cleaner and may lead to a loss of suction in your vacuum cleaner - which is not what you want when you have a shedding cat or dog in your home.
To test the anti-hair wrap capabilities of the best vacuums for pet hair (if any), we visually inspect the brush roll after conducting the pet hair pick-up tests. As most pet hair vacuums have a bristle guard and comb to stop the hair from tangling around the brush, there should be no hair - or a minimal amount - stuck around the brush roll.
If lots of hair is present, we will mark the pet vacuum down. If there is no visible hair, it will be marked incredibly highly. If available, we will also test out any hair removal tools that may come with the vacuum cleaner.
How we test anti-odour features
From dog pee on the carpet to the slightly cheesy smell pets give off when they need a bath, it’s fair to say that animals can create a stink in your home. So, when we test the best vacuums for pet hair, we also like to test any anti-odour features available.
As this is hard to quantify, this test is assessed by personal evaluation after vacuuming. And as many pet owners become ‘nose-blind’ to the smell of their own houses, we make sure that every Ideal Home tester performs this particular test after vacuuming up coffee grounds designed to mimic mud. This is because coffee has a powerful, distinct smell.
After vacuuming, we perform a sniff test to determine whether we can still smell the coffee on the floor. If we can only smell the coffee when emptying the dust bin or vacuum bag, we know that the pet vacuum has done its job. If there are lingering odours even after vacuuming, we don’t score it as highly.
Sometimes, the vacuum cleaner may also come with anti-odour functions or capsules. This will always be tested as part of the review, and we’ll once again perform the sniff test to determine how well we believe it fared in a house with pets.
With the tests above at our disposal, we will also give an overall pet vacuum rating out of 5 stars. This not only helps us decide whether we believe the vacuum is worth your hard-earned money, but it also helps us compare it to other pet vacuums on the market - both those that we’ve tested and those that we will test in the future. By doing this, we can constantly update our best vacuums for pet hair buying guide to ensure it’s always up to date and accurate.
The Ideal Home certified experts
Our Certified Experts are members of the team who have gained a particular knowledge of products in their specialist area.
Earning a Certified Expert certification involves gaining hands-on, practical experience with bestselling products, regularly testing said products, conducting research into their area of expertise, and conducting interviews with leading brands. The exact specifications needed to become a Certified Expert are below.
1. Testing - Our Certified Experts have hands-on experience testing the bestselling and highest-rated products on the market. This then becomes the benchmark against which other products are reviewed and judged.
2. Product research - Our experts immerse themselves in each product category, learning everything there is to know about the product, from how it's made, to its biggest pros and cons.
3. Behind the scenes - As well as hands-on product testing in a home environment, our Certfiied Experts have also gained insider knowledge on the products they test. This might be through factory visits, showroom tours, or comparison testing days at our testing facility.
4. Industry knowledge - Our experts know the nitty-gritty of each product category. They regularly speak with industry experts such as product developers and retailers, they know the market leaders and the growing trends within the industry. They are non-biased and able to formulate an honest judgement about the USPs offered by different products on the market.
5. Wider opinions - Our experts don't just rely on their own knowledge, they also seek input from the wider team and carefully research customer product reviews to gauge wider product satisfaction, noting and investigating any regularly occurring customer feedback.
Below, you can see which members of the team are certified Certified Experts when it comes to testing pet vacuum cleaners.
Lauren is the Content Editor for House Manual, meaning she's an expert in cleaning and home maintenance. She is also in training to become a Certified Expert in vacuums and has tested countless makes and models in her home.
Lauren lives with a very hairy cocker spaniel who leaves bundles of fluff around the house and is constantly searching for new vacuums to rival the current best vacuums for pet hair.
So far, Jullia has spent over 60 hours testing vacuums while she works towards becoming a fully qualified Ideal Home Certified Expert.
Although Jullia currently doesn't live with any pets, she tests all of her pet hair vacuums at her family home to see how they fare against her family's two adorable pooches.
Molly is Ideal Home's Kitchen Appliances Editor but was formerly an Ecommerce Editor, covering vacuum cleaners and other cleaning products.
During her time in the role, she tested dozens of vacuums, including many pet vacuums in her own home and at Future's dedicated test facility.
Our pet hair vacuum reviews
Looking for a review on a particular vacuum for pet hair? Here are the pet hair vacuums that come highly recommended by the Ideal Home team.
- Shark PowerDetect Clean & Empty System review: 5 out of 5 stars
- Shark ICZ300UKT Anti Hair Wrap Cordless Upright Vacuum Cleaner review: 5 out of 5 stars
- Shark Stratos Anti Hair Wrap Plus Pet Pro Cordless Stick Vacuum review: 5 out of 5 stars
- Halo Capsule X review: 4.5 out of 5 stars
- Numatic Henry PET200 review: 4.5 out of 5 stars
- Gtech AirRAM Platinum review: 4.5 out of 5 stars
- Henry XL Plus review: 4.5 out of 5 stars
- Dyson V8 Absolute review: 4.5 out of 5 stars
- Miele Complete C3 Cat & Dog Vacuum Cleaner review: 4 out of 5 stars
As vacuum cleaners are constantly improving and changing, our guidelines may change as the years go by - but you can rest assured that this page will be updated with any new testing criteria.
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