10 best handheld vacuums for speedy cleans, from cars to down the back of the sofa

Score: 94/100

Designed with pet owners in mind, this well-priced Shark gobbled up pet hair in one swift sweep thanks to its dedicated tool. It was superb with food crumbs too – lifting every morsel from all floor types – and dust, picking up 99%, with the majority vanishing in one sweep.

The battery lasts for just over 10 minutes (it takes about four hours to recharge) but this was long enough for us to clean a small car. It’s weightier than others tested and doesn’t have any onboard storage for additional tools. Otherwise, it's an all-round excellent performer, making it our top choice.

Score: 94/100

Both affordable and an all-rounder, this compact handheld is a savvy buy if you don’t want to splash out. It had great pick-up across all our tests and floor types, whether lifting dust, pet hair, or crumbs. It also scored top marks for its car cleaning abilities and our testers were impressed with the way it easily cleaned up liquids, leaving our flooring dry to the touch.

It’s easy to set up and use, but best kept for quick cleans as you need to hold the on button down throughout use, which can take its toll after a short while. It only has one power setting, too.

Score: 94/100

The best at lifting crumbs and debris in our lab, turn to this vacuum for cleaning small spillages in the kitchen or on the sofa. Its larger, bagged design makes it ideal for bigger households, while emptying is also mess-free.

Built-in LED lights make it easier to spot debris and dust in awkward spots and the battery lasted 20 minutes, even on max power, which was ample time to clean a car.

Its bulky body made it tricky to reach narrow crevices and it struggled with embedded pet hair. Overall, though, this handheld is a trusty and intuitive buy.

Score 92/100

Shark’s second entry should be first choice if your home has a lot of hard floors, as it scored full marks for pick-up on laminate and floorboards. It was also the best in test for lifting dirt from cars thanks to its lightweight design and crevice tool.

It wasn’t the best performer on carpet, struggling to pick up some debris, but its upholstery tool lifted pet hair nicely. If storage is tight, you can mount the accompanying charging base on the wall.

Note: it needs frequent emptying and using it in max power mode ran down the battery in seven and a half minutes on test (on standard it lasts 15), but it recharges in about three hours, which is faster than our winning Shark.

Score: 89/100

Claiming to be the most powerful handheld vacuum on the market, Dyson’s brand-new Car+Boat handheld gadget promised a lot, so how did it fare when our experts put it to the test?

Overall, its pickup was excellent, something we’ve come to expect from a Dyson vacuum. On both long and short pile carpet, most crumbs were removed in one sweep and even pet hair lifted without too much trouble. In fact, it dropped only one mark across our carpet, laminate and floorboard tests.

It was the battery that let it down, though. When switched onto max mode, it lasted 10-15 minutes at most, which wasn’t long enough for our tester to clean an entire car. And it then takes five hours to recharge – not ideal if you’re mid-cleaning. Pop it back on to charge after short spot cleans though, and it’s a joy to use.

Score: 88/100

This outstanding performer comes at a relatively affordable price. Its useful accessories make vacuuming easy; there’s an extension hose for reaching into awkward spaces and a pet tool to make your fluffball’s fur disappear.

It works well on every surface but runs out in 15 minutes – not quite enough time to clean a big car. The upholstery brush on the 2-in-1 nozzle needs clicking into place every now and again and the main handle vibrates a little uncomfortably. That said, it’s undoubtedly a steal.

Score: 85/100

Scroll on if you have dogs or cats, as this vacuum struggled to pick up pet hair. That aside, it’s lightweight, comfortable to hold and powerful. It impresses on any type of flooring, but the colour starts to wear away around the short nozzle after a few uses.

Its dust capacity is small, but its slim design makes it a breeze to pack away and the charging dock’s tool storage space makes it a smart choice for compact homes.

Score: 84/100

Despite not being a pet-specific model, this handheld vacuum removes it at speed. It glides over all floor types and comes with a handy selection of tools, including a lengthy crevice tool and an extension tube that reaches into awkward corners. It’s a shame that these attachments don’t click into place though, making it hard to know if they’re properly secured.

A removable battery makes charging unobtrusive, but it’s fairly bulky and the dust container is tricky to remove and refit. The exhaust blows out a lot of air, too, which can dislodge some lighter debris.

We’ve also tested the pet version of this vacuum, which received the same score of 84/100. We actually didn’t find it as helpful at picking up pet hair as this original, taking an average of four to five sweeps to lift fine embedded strands. However, it excelled when it came to picking up dust and crumbs, making it a reliable everyday cleaner.

Score: 79/100

You get 30 minutes of battery life with this lightweight vacuum, but the trade-off is that it takes five hours to recharge. It’s slim enough to squeeze into tight spaces and the charging base offers a neat storage solution, with room to house the included tools.

It’s generally easy to empty but hair and fluff can get stuck, meaning the washable filter has to be removed. It’s sturdy, thanks to suction cups on the base, and there’s no need to hold down the power switch. The buttons are accessible with the same hand holding the vacuum – a welcome, thoughtful design feature.

Score: 78/100

Three’s not a crowd with the sturdy multi-purpose tool that comes with this model – it features a crevice tool, an upholstery tool and a dusting brush. It also comes with a motorised pet tool, but the vacuum must be held at a low angle for this to sit properly on the floor.

The stand’s accessory box makes it bulky to store, but it’s otherwise compact enough to manoeuvre easily. It sucks up debris well, especially on hard floors and long pile carpets, but its dust pick-up lets it down. The handle is chunky and the battery life short, but on balance, it’s a neat gadget to have on hand.