Homes with hardwood floors have an appeal. It makes your rooms look nicer and bigger sometimes too, but they do come with special requirements to maintain their luster.

Chief among these is a good routine of cleaning. This may include everything from mopping to waxing and includes a good hardwood floor vacuum. But what makes a good hardwood vacuum?

There are a few key attributes to look for when choosing the right vacuum for your needs. When dealing with a hardwood you will want:

1. Soft Bristles

2. Multiple Brush Rollers or a Way to Turn Them Off

Making sure you have multiple options or can shut the rollers down will protect your hardwood floors surface.

3. Great Suction

When you are dealing with hardwood floors, it also means you are dealing with crevices between the boards. This means that dirt and debris can get stuck in between them and that's why having a good level of suction is important when looking for the right vacuum for hardwood floors.

If your vacuum has these features, it will work well on your hardwood floors. Now, all that is left to look at some options. In this review, we will be looking at some of the best vacuums for hardwood floors.

Best Vacuum for Hardwood Floors Reviews

* Miele canister vacuums come with a 7 year warranty for the motor and casing and a 1 year warranty for parts and labour. Miele's vacuum warranty terms are here.

A canister vacuum offers a lot of mobility and is a great choice for anyone that has a set of hardwood stairs. The canister can be lifted and taken where you need it. They still have all the power of an upright but offer a heightened level of versatility.

Canister vacuums come in two main types — bagless and bagged and below we will look at four of the best options available on the market today.

The first batch is the bagless type of canister vacuum. This model comes with a removable canister that does not take bags. Instead, you dump the debris straight from the canister. Our research has found the best choice of bagless vacuums that are the best for hardwood floors:

Best Bagless Canister (Premium)

Miele Blizzard CX1 Turbo Team

Taking a giant leap into the bagless vacuum world, the Miele Blizzard CX1 is our top pick. The Blizzard is on par with Miele's bagged options and has a lot of great features that will make anybody with hardwood floors extremely happy with its overall performance.

Features

Best Bagless Canister (Budget)

Bissell Hard Floor Expert 

This multi-cyclonic canister vacuum is a great choice for hardwood. It has been Bissell's best selling canister vacuum for a number of years. We've reviewed it previously for our Hoover vs Bissell and Shark vs Bissell Reviews. 

Compared to other brand options in this price range we think it is the best value canister vacuum for hardwood floors.

With superior suction and a design that allows for enhanced mobility, the Bissell Hard Floor Expert is a budget-friendly option. It is great for those homes that have pets, and you will be able to maintain the integrity of your floors while keeping the level of the allergens down.

Features

Best Bagged Canister Vacuum for Hardwood Floors

The next two options are canister vacuums that use bags. This may make clean up a little neater and could lead to better maintenance of dust and allergens as there is no dust cloud when getting rid of the debris.

• Filtration on these vacuums is also excellent. 
• Bagged models also tend to be quieter vacuums. 

Here are two options that are the best for hardwood floors.

Best Bagged Canister (Premium)

Miele Complete C2 Hard Floor Canister Vacuum

This compact option from Miele is a great vacuum that works exceptionally well on hardwood floors. Durable and lightweight, the Miele Complete C2 is a system that has an elevated air filtration system. The enhanced design keeps all of the dirt within its bag. Complete with many other features that make this a stellar choice for any home the Compact C2 is ready to keep your home dust and debris free.

Features

Best Bagged Canister (Budget)

Miele Compact C1 Pure Suction Canister Vacuum

One of the more budget-friendly options from Miele, the C1 Pure Suction Canister Vacuum can ensure your hardwood floors stay clean as well as other surfaces too.

If you live in a small apartment or home, then this vacuum is perfect for you (if not try one of our other options).

This vacuum has many great features for its compact size.

Features

Best Stick Vacuum for Hardwood Floors

The next two entries are from the stick vacuum category. This model of vacuum is maneuverable like a handheld and the ability to clean off an upright. These units are usually pretty lightweight and easy to store. Because these models are also cordless, you may also consider these the best cordless vacuums for hardwood floors. The lack of a cord offers more mobility and the ability to reach places that the corded variety may not be able to reach.

Here are our top two choices for the best stick vacuum for hardwood floors.

Best Cordless Stick Vacuum (Premium)

Dyson V11 Cordless Stick

Features

Best Cordless Stick Vacuum (Budget)

Shark IX141 Pet Cordless Stick

Using DuoClean technology, this cordless stick vacuum is great to pick up all kinds of dust and debris. The Shark Rocket Pet Pro is a 2-in-1 model that can switch between carpet and hardwood floors.

The cordless design means that you have more mobility with this amazing vacuum. Budget-minded buyers will love the fact that it has many of the features found on more expensive vacuums but without the high price. 

We discovered this cordless stick whilst writing our Shark vs Dyson vacuum review and found it performed similarly to the Dyson V11.

Features

Final Thoughts

Making the right purchase to protect your hardwood floors is an important part of the maintenance process. These models are the best vacuums for hardwood floors. They have been chosen for the exact specification that we mentioned in their introductions, plus soft bristles, good suction, and multiple brush rollers/adjustable brush rollers.

We have carefully curated the list so that no matter what budget you are working with, you will be able to find a vacuum for your precise needs. These options are all great choices to protect and maintain your hardwood floors. We hope that by giving a rundown on each we have helped you feel better able to make that decision and not have any buyer’s remorse after all is said and done.