Cordless Stick Vacuums for UK Homes: Seven Worth Buying, and the Number on the Box Nobody Can Hit

A cordless stick vacuum is the default machine in most British homes, and not because of cleaning performance. A corded cylinder lives in a cupboard; a stick lives on a wall bracket, and the one on the wall gets used far more. The trade-off is that run time, capacity and weight are all compromises the manufacturer has already made for you.

Prices were checked on Amazon UK on 1 September 2026 and every machine here is currently listed. Prices move, so treat them as a snapshot rather than a promise.

The run-time figure is not a lie, but it is not the truth either

Start here, because it changes how every other number on this page should be read. When a manufacturer prints "up to 60 minutes" on a box, that figure is almost always measured in the lowest power mode, on a hard floor, with a non-powered tool attached — a crevice tool or a dusting brush, not the motorised floor head you will actually use.

Clip on a powered brush bar and its motor draws from the same battery; put it on carpet and the drain rises again. Reviewers who measure this find the same pattern: a machine advertised at 60 minutes returns 30–40 minutes of real cleaning, and turbo empties it in 10–15. Tom's Guide recorded around 45 minutes from the Samsung Jet 85, one of the better ratios here. Bosch is unusually candid, publishing both figures for the Unlimited 7: 40 minutes in eco, 10 in turbo.

This is why the swappable-battery machines in this guide are given more credit than their raw specifications might suggest. A second battery converts an awkward 30 minutes into a comfortable hour, and it is a far cheaper upgrade than moving up a price tier.

The seven at a glance

Manufacturers' own figures. A dash means the specification is not published in a comparable form, not that the machine performs badly.

The seven, in detail

Vacuums and mops

Dyson V15s Detect Submarine

£799

Run time

Up to 60 min

Bin

0.77 L

Weight

4.1 kg

Extra

Wet roller head

The only machine here that also washes the floor, using a wet roller head with separate clean and dirty water reservoirs, so a kitchen floor gets vacuumed and mopped in one pass. Vacuum Wars singled out dried-on stains as what it handles better than expected.

The rest is the flagship Dyson package: the Detect laser that throws a low green beam across hard floors to make dust visible, and a piezo sensor that counts particles on screen. The laser changes how thoroughly people vacuum, because you can see what you missed.

The catch is physical. At 4.1 kg it is the heaviest machine here by a wide margin — roughly 70% heavier than the V12 — and you feel it when the wand goes above shoulder height. The 0.77-litre bin is the largest here, which partly earns that back.

For

• Vacuums and mops in one pass
• Largest bin here at 0.77 L
• Laser head and particle counting

Against

• 4.1 kg is heavy for overhead work
• Battery is not user-swappable
• The most expensive machine here by £240

Buy it if you have a lot of hard floor and currently own both a vacuum and a mop. If your home is mostly carpet, you are paying £240 over the V12 for a feature you will rarely use. On price: £799 matches Dyson's own RRP, but the same machine has been listed from around £599 elsewhere — worth checking before you commit.

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The all-rounder

Dyson V12 Detect Slim Absolute

£559

Suction

150 AW

Run time

Up to 60 min

Bin

0.35 L

Weight

2.4 kg

If you want a Dyson and not the mopping function, this is the one. At 2.4 kg it is 1.7 kg lighter than the Submarine, and that difference decides whether a stick vacuum gets used for stairs and ceiling corners or only for floors.

Dyson rates it at 150 air watts against 230 AW for the V15 Detect. That gap sounds decisive and mostly is not: on domestic carpet in medium power both machines work well below their ceiling. What you lose is headroom for deep pile and the ability to hold maximum power.

The real compromise is the bin. At 0.35 litres it is under half the Samsung's 0.8, so in a house with a shedding dog you will empty it mid-clean — a small irritation repeated weekly for years. TechRadar called the machine underrated, which reads fairly: it is the sensible Dyson.

For

• 2.4 kg makes overhead work genuinely easy
• Laser detection on the fluffy head
• Same 60-minute claim as machines twice its weight

Against

• 0.35 L bin is the smallest here
• Battery is not user-swappable
• 150 AW leaves less headroom than the V15

Buy it if you want the Dyson tool set and the laser head without carrying four kilos up the stairs, and you can live with emptying the bin often. On price: this is the biggest gap in the guide — £559 on Amazon against about £399 at the cheapest UK retailers. The machine is a strong recommendation; this listing is not the way to buy it.

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Longest real run time

Samsung Jet 85 Complete

£456

Suction

210 W

Run time

Up to 60 min

Bin

0.8 L

Battery

Removable

Buy this if run time is what has annoyed you about cordless vacuums. The battery comes out, so a spare takes you to a claimed two hours — and Samsung's 60-minute figure held up better than most independently (Tom's Guide got around 45), so that number is useful rather than theoretical.

Samsung quotes 210 W of suction from what it calls a HexaJet motor spinning at 135,000 rpm, and a multi-layer filtration system it rates at capturing 99.999% of dust. Do not compare that 210 W directly against Dyson's 150 air watts — they are different units measuring different things, and no manufacturer publishes both. Compare each against machines quoted the same way.

The 0.8-litre bin is the joint-largest here, washable, and detaches without pulling the wand apart — a small design decision that matters every time you empty it. Samsung warrants the battery to hold 70% of capacity for 500 charge cycles.

For

• Swappable battery, up to two hours with a spare
• 0.8 L washable bin that detaches cleanly
• Claimed run time held up well in independent testing

Against

• No laser or particle-counting equivalent
• Samsung does not publish a directly comparable suction figure

Buy it if you have a larger house and you would rather spend the Dyson premium on a second battery than on a laser. On price: £456 here, but it has been selling from around £329, and Which? puts the typical price nearer £379. Shop around on this one.

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Value pick

Bosch Unlimited 7 ProAnimal

£249

Run time

40 min eco

Turbo

10 min

Battery

18V 3.0Ah, removable

Was

£350 RRP

The Unlimited 7 has one feature nothing else here matches, and it is not about cleaning. Its battery is part of the Power for All Alliance, an 18V standard shared across Bosch power and garden tools and with Gardena, Gloria, Wagner and Rapid. If there is an 18V Bosch drill in the garage, its battery fits the vacuum — turning a spare from a £60 purchase into something you may already own.

Bosch is also straight about run time, publishing 40 minutes in eco and 10 in turbo rather than only the flattering figure. Ten minutes is short, but you know before you buy.

Expert Reviews called it a good cleaner lacking some modern conveniences, which is fair: no dust sensing, no screen, no auto power. What you get instead is a competent vacuum with a mattress tool, an animal mini power brush with a spare roller, and that battery ecosystem — currently 38% below its £350 RRP.

For

• Battery shared with 18V tools from several brands
• Honest published run times for both modes
• Good tool set for pet owners at the price

Against

• Only 10 minutes in turbo
• No dust sensing or auto power adjustment

Buy it if you want the most vacuum for the money, and doubly so if there is already Bosch 18V kit in the house. On price: £249 against a £350 RRP is a real saving, and one of only two listings in this guide that is clearly below the going rate.

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Lightest of the swappables

Samsung Jet 75E Complete

£225

Suction

200 W

Run time

Up to 60 min

Bin

0.8 L

Weight

2.6 kg

The Jet 75E is the Jet 85 with the edges rounded off, and at £231 less. Samsung quotes 200 W against the 85's 210 W — under 5%, which nobody will feel on carpet. Same 0.8-litre bin, still a removable battery, still up to 60 minutes claimed.

At 2.6 kg it is 200 g heavier than the V12 Detect Slim while holding more than twice as much — an unusually good weight-to-capacity ratio. It converts to a handheld for stairs and cars, and ships with a pet tool, telescopic crevice tool and dusting brush.

What you give up against the Jet 85 is mainly the Pet Tool+ upholstery head and some of the docking and accessory provision. If neither matters to you, the 75E is the same machine for less.

For

• 0.8 L bin at 2.6 kg is the strongest ratio here
• Removable battery at a mid-range price
• Within 5% of the Jet 85 on suction

Against

• Fewer tools than the Complete-tier Jet 85
• No dust sensing

Buy it if the Jet 85 appeals but not at £456. This is most of that machine for half the money.

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Budget pick for pet hair

Vax HomePro Detect Pet-Design

£178

Run time

Up to 45 min

Bin

0.7 L

Weight

3.5 kg

Filtration

99.9% to 0.3 µm

At £178 the Vax is the cheapest machine here and carries features that have no business at this price. Debris Detect raises and lowers suction according to what the head picks up — Dyson's auto mode, several hundred pounds lower down. HairWrap Resist is the anti-tangle brush bar, which on a pet machine matters more than almost anything.

The battery is a removable ONEPWR 4.0Ah pack, so the spare-battery trick works here too, and Vax quotes 45 minutes rather than the optimistic 60 that most of this category prints. Filtration is rated at 99.9% down to 0.3 microns.

The compromises are weight and charging. At 3.5 kg it is a kilo heavier than the V12 and only 600 g under the mopping Dyson, and it takes three hours to charge. Expert Reviews found it strong on carpets and good on pet and human hair — the job it is built for.

For

• Debris sensing and anti-tangle brush bar under £200
• Removable 4.0Ah battery
• A realistic 45-minute claim rather than an inflated 60

Against

• 3.5 kg is heavy for the class
• Three-hour charge time

Buy it if you have pets and a budget under £200, and the vacuum will mostly be used on floors rather than held overhead. On price: the standout of the guide — £178 against a £369.99 list price. Nothing else here is discounted anywhere near as hard.

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Also worth a look

Tineco Pure ONE S

£279

Tineco sits between the Bosch and the Jet 85, and earns its place because the brand built its reputation on the feature expensive Dysons charge for: sensing how dirty the floor is and adjusting suction automatically.

The honest position: Tineco publishes less specification detail for this model than the others here, and it has had less independent UK testing. A reasonable machine at a reasonable price from a brand that knows the category — but the data for a number-by-number comparison against the Samsungs is not published.

Buy it if auto-adjusting suction is the feature you want and the Jet 85 is over budget. Check the current listing specification before ordering, because Tineco revises this line often.

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How to choose, in the order that actually matters

1. Weight, before anything else

People compare suction first; it matters least at home. Weight decides whether a machine gets used properly, because a stick vacuum spends part of its life at arm's length — cobwebs, stair edges, the top of a wardrobe, the inside of a car. The spread here is 2.4 kg to 4.1 kg.

2. Bin size, if anyone in the house sheds

Capacities run from 0.35 to 0.8 litres — more than double. Fine in a flat with hard floors; in a house with a long-haired dog and carpet it is the difference between one emptying and three. A bin that needs the wand detached, or fires dust back at you, is a weekly annoyance for years.

3. Whether the battery comes out

Four of the seven have removable batteries, and it matters twice. Short term it doubles usable run time for the price of a spare. Long term it is the difference between a repair and a replacement, because the battery wears out first — typically two to four years of regular charging, well before anything else fails.

4. Filtration, if the house has allergies

Sealed filtration stops fine dust being blown back into the room. Samsung rates its system at 99.999% of dust particles; Vax quotes 99.9% down to 0.3 microns. Both are manufacturer figures to their own protocols, so read them as evidence filtration was designed for, not a league table. If dust triggers symptoms it is worth paying for.

5. Suction, last

Dyson quotes air watts, Samsung plain watts, and there is no honest conversion. Within a brand they compare; across brands they do not.

What it costs after you have bought it

Batteries. Replacement packs run around £60 for Dyson and Bosch. They degrade on charge cycles rather than age — Samsung promises 70% of capacity after 500 cycles, which at three charges a week is about three years. Removable, that is a £60 problem; sealed, it is a repair booking or a new vacuum.

Filters. Most are washable and last months, but they do need replacing. Genuine parts cost more than the third-party equivalents from around £6.50 — and filtration is exactly the specification you cannot verify by looking at it.

Brush bars. The consumable nobody budgets for. Anti-tangle designs like Vax's HairWrap Resist and Dyson's hair screw tool exist because hair wrapped round a brush bar is the commonest reason a cordless vacuum stops picking up. The Bosch ProAnimal ships with a spare roller.

Should you buy a robot instead?

For most UK homes these are complementary, not competing. A robot does the routine daily pass; a stick does the stairs, sofa, car, skirting boards and the spill that just happened. Robots cannot do stairs, and most struggle with edges and clutter.

If the budget only stretches to one machine and the house has stairs, buy the stick. If the house is single-storey and mostly open floor, a robot will do more of the work more often. We have covered that side of the category separately — see our guide to robot vacuum and mop combos for UK homes for the current picks, and the Roborock Saros 20 versus Dreame X60 Ultra comparison if you want to see how far the top of that market has gone.

Questions people actually ask

Is a cordless vacuum powerful enough to replace a corded one?

For most homes now, yes. The caveat is deep-pile carpet, where a corded upright holds high power indefinitely. If your home is entirely thick carpet and you vacuum for 40 minutes at a stretch, corded remains sensible.

How long do the batteries actually last?

Expect meaningful capacity loss after two to four years, sooner if stored on charge in a hot room. That is why removable-battery machines are worth a premium: it turns the end of the battery's life into a £60 part rather than the end of the vacuum's.

Do I need the laser?

Situational rather than gimmicky. The Detect laser works on hard floors, most visibly in a dim room where the low beam throws shadows off fine dust. On carpet in daylight it does little, so a carpeted home pays for a feature it rarely sees work.

Where this leaves you

On the machines themselves, the Dyson V12 Detect Slim Absolute is the one most people should own: light enough to use everywhere, capable enough for domestic carpet, with the detection features that justify the premium. But buy it at the right price — £559 is about £160 over the going rate, and that gap buys a spare battery and filters.

The strongest buy as listed is the Bosch Unlimited 7 ProAnimal at £249 against a £350 RRP. The Vax HomePro Detect Pet-Design at £178 against £369.99 list is the other genuine bargain, and the one to take if there are pets.

And if the annoyance you are trying to solve is running out of charge halfway round the house, the Samsung Jet 85 Complete with a spare battery is a more direct fix than spending the same money on suction you will not use — though at £456 it is another one worth price-checking first.

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