Top 5 Best Cordless Upright Vacuum Cleaners

When we speak of cordless vacuum cleaners we tend to think of the handheld variety, the small vacuum cleaner with rechargeable battery pack built-in. These are often under powered, only suitable for the odd job and offers very limited vacuum time between charge.

Sometimes manufacturers offer a handy car adapter to go with it making great for use in cars and caravans which is likely to be where they are used mostly these days. These handheld vacuums would also be supplied with a convenient docking station for charging.

The Cordless Upright Vacuum Cleaners

A new breed of cordless vacuum cleaners have entered the market. These have the suction power to rival even the plug-in or corded variety. Typically, they are in the shape of upright vacuums, only smaller, lighter and therefore more agile.

When compared to the handheld variety, the new generation cordless upright vacuum cleaners have better stamina with useful life between charge ranging from anything between 20 to 60 minutes or more. They are also more powerful and have slightly bigger dust capacity.

Some upright vacuum offers dual operation mode with a detachable vacuum unit that turns into a big handheld vacuum. Others offer hand sticks or extendable tubes and different tools for better reach and to clean different surfaces.

What to look for in a Cordless Upright Vacuum

The top 5 key things to consider when looking for a Cordless Upright Vacuum are as follows:

1. Power: while corded vacuum cleaner expresses this in Watt, the best measure of power for the cordless version is the Voltage level. The bigger the voltage rating the better it performs as it would have a bigger and more powerful motor for better suction.
2. Run time: the second most important thing to look for is it’s useful life between charges. It must have long enough battery life to last the time it will take you to finish at least a couple or rooms before it needs charging. Having said that, due to how easy, lightweight and maneuverable these vacuums are, you would perform more regular or spot cleaning allowing you to finish the job before the battery runs out.
3. Dust bin capacity: it certainly wouldn’t have the dust container of a full size vacuum but it must have at least a good volume to hold a good amount of dust so you won’t have to empty too often. These vacuums are typically bag-less and its capacity is usually measured in litres (l).
4. Tools: Just like the corded variety, some Cordless Upright Vacuums support different tools and attachments to clean different surfaces. Apart from the standard flat vacuum suction pod (cleaner head), you get soft brushes, stiff bristles and pointed nose (crevice tool) attachments. Some even include motorised tools, see below.
5. Pet hair: you may be paying a little more for this but cordless vacuum cleaners with motorised tools to pick up pet hair are also available. So, for homes with pets, you can still find a suitable cordless vacuum cleaner.

BUT the real benefit of a Cordless Upgright Vacuum is the ease of use.

It is easier to move it around the home, even up and down the stairs and in and out or tight spaces due to its weight and size.

And of course, being cordless means you won’t get caught around the corner or run out of cables.

Best Cordless Upright Vacuum Cleaners

Let’s take a quick look at the best cordless upright vacuum cleaners in the market right now.

1. Morphy Richards Supervac 2-in-1 732000 Rechargeable Cordless Vacuum Cleaner
2. Gtech AirRam Cordless Vacuum Cleaner
3. AEG AG5012 Ultrapower Cordless Stick Cleaner – LONGEST RUN TIME
4. Bosch BCH625KTGB Athlet Cordless Upright Vacuum Cleaner – LONGEST RUN TIME
5. Dyson Digital Slim DC35 Multi Floor Cordless Vacuum Cleaner  – LIGHTEST
6. Vax Air Cordless Upright Vacuum Cleaner – BIGGEST CAPACITY

Morphy Richards Supervac 2-in-1 732000 Rechargeable Cordless Vacuum Cleaner

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• Power: 18 Volts [LOWEST POWER RATING]
• Dust Bin Capacity: 0.3 litres [LOW CAPACITY]
• Tools Supplied: Crevice Tool, Upholstery Brush, Dusting Brush (3 Attachments)
• Run Time: 20 minutes
• Charging Time: NA
• Unit Weight: 3 kg
• Suitable for pet hair

Gtech AirRam Cordless Vacuum Cleaner

Gtech claims that the AirRam can match the performance of mains connected upgright vacuum cleaners and most customers will agree.

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• Power: 22 Volts
• Dust Bin Capacity: NA – AirRam compresses dirt into compact bales in a removable dust tray
• Tools Supplied: none
• Run Time: 40 minutes Lithium Ion
• Charging Time: 4 hours with 4 stage power indicator
• Unit Weight: 3.5kg
• Suitable for pet hair but homes with serious pet hair consider the AirRam K9 pet vacuum

Bosch BCH625KTGB Athlet Cordless Upright Vacuum Cleaner

The cordless Bosch Athlet comes equipped with SensorBagless technology. The electronic sensor monitors the air flow and lets you know when you need to empty the dustbin or clean the filter.

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• Power: 25.2 Volts with 3 power level controls [HIGHEST POWER RATING]
• Dust Bin Capacity: 0.9 litres [BIG CAPACITY]
• Tools Supplied: flexible nozzle joint and multi-purpose all floor power brush, XXL crevice, upholstery nozzles as well as hose, shoulder strap,
• Run Time: 60 mins Lithium battery [LONGEST RUN TIME]
• Charging Time: 3-6 hours (3 hours to 80%)
• Unit Weight: 3 kg
• Suitable for pet hair

Dyson Digital Slim DC35 Multi Floor Cordless Vacuum Cleaner

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Looks very much like the handheld version first introduced some years ago except it now has a stem attached turning this into an upright vacuum.

• Power: 22.2 Volts 
• Dust Bin Capacity: 0.35 litres
• Tools Supplied: available as separate purchase
• Run Time: 6-15 mins Lithium ion battery (6 mins at 65 air watts boost mode or 15 mins at 28 air watts) [SHORTEST RUN TIME]
• Charging Time: 3.5 hours (3 hours to 80%)
• Unit Weight: 2.5 kg [LIGHTEST]
• for Pet hair consider Dyson DC44 Animal Cordless Vacuum Cleaner

Vax Air Cordless Upright Vacuum Cleaner

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The only full sized cordless upright vacuum cleaner in the line-up, the Vax Air may be mistaken for its corded variety. The unit applied Vax’s WindTunnel 3 Technology that uses three nozzle channels to increase suction.

• Power: 20 Volts
• Dust Bin Capacity: 1.05 litre [BIGGEST CAPACITY]
• Tools Supplied: 2-in-1 dusting and crevices tool. Reusable easy rinse filter.
• Run Time: 50 minutes Li-Ion battery with LithiumLife Technology
• Charging Time: 3 hours
• Unit Weight: 4.6 kg
• Suitable for homes with pets. A lighter and smaller version Vax LIFE Unplugged is also available

And one more …

AEG AG5012 Ultrapower Cordless Stick Cleaner

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As with all cordless upright vacuum cleaner featured here, the AEG Ultrapower cordless has a flexible nozzle joint for maneuverability but it goes one up on the others with a nozzle light that lets you see under furniture and hidden corners. It also has a handy BrushRollClean technology that removes fibers and tangled hair from the brush with a separation bar helpful to prevent clogging and having to clean the brush roll.

• Power: 25.2 Volts with three steps power control [HIGHEST POWER RATING]
• Dust Bin Capacity: 0.8 litres [BIG CAPACITY]
• Tools Supplied:
• Run Time: 60 minutes [LONGEST RUN TIME]
• Charging Time: 4 hours
• Unit Weight:  3.7 kg
• Suitable for pet hair with Unique BrushRoll Technology to remove tangled hairs from the brush roll

Our Line-up

Here is a quick look at our line-up again. For the most up to date prices, please click on the links below:

1. Morphy Richards Supervac 2-in-1 732000 Rechargeable Cordless Vacuum Cleaner
2. Gtech AirRam Cordless Vacuum Cleaner
3. AEG AG5012 Ultrapower Cordless Stick Cleaner – LONGEST RUN TIME
4. Bosch BCH625KTGB Athlet Cordless Upright Vacuum Cleaner – LONGEST RUN TIME
5. Dyson Digital Slim DC35 Multi Floor Cordless Vacuum Cleaner  – LIGHTEST
6. Vax Air Cordless Upright Vacuum Cleaner – BIGGEST CAPACITY

Final Thoughts

We like to think that getting one of these cordless vacuum cleaner is an investment. Looking at the average price of owning one of these, it really is more expensive than your typical corded vacuum.

We also like to think that a suitably sized cordless vacuum cleaner is essential if this is to replace the standard vacuum cleaner. One that will do everything that you old or existing vacuum cleaner does. You don’t want to start a small collection of vacuum cleaners at home.

The vacuum needs to have enough capacity to hold the amount of dust of your standard cleaning job. Granted that a good vacuum advert would suggest that you will need to empty the dust hold often given how efficient the suction is but who would want to keep emptying the dust bin during cleaning.

Plus, if you live in a double-storey home with two or three bed rooms, you would want the vacuum to hold enough charge for you to get through the whole house and not have to stop to charge. A good run time for a vacuum ranges between 40-60 minutes.

This is not to say that you can’t have both, corded and cordless vacuum with the cordless one doing the odd spot cleaning and a quick vacuum. You just need to have the space to store them.