The Best Handheld Vacuums Featured in this article A Handheld vacuum may not be the most essential household appliance, but it sure is convenient. You don’t have to mess with heavy, cumbersome (and expensive) vacuums that plug in with hazardous cords. Sure, there are cordless vacs to mitigate this problem, but those are also large and can be expensive.

The handheld vacuum—compact, lightweight, and inexpensive—has come a long way in recent years. As vac technology keeps improving, handhelds are becoming more powerful and lighter. Kid spilled her Cheerios on the floor?

Pet hair on your favorite reading chair? Need to spot-clean your car seats? The handheld vacuum's got you.

Nearly every handheld vacuum cleaner comes with attachments for picking up hair or fur on carpets, brush and crevice tools, and smooth upholstery attachments. Plus, nearly every option on this list is under 100 bucks. Well, except our top pick, the Dyson Car+Boat ($300), because it’s Dyson.

We tested some of our favorite hand vacuums for many types of messes, but we’re continually testing more, so check back often. Be sure to check out our related guides, like the Best Cordless Vacuums, Best Vacuums for Pet Hair, Best Dyson Vacuums, and Best Robot Vacuums. Updated July 2026: I've added the Tinkr Handheld Mini Vacuum, Hoto AutoCare Plus Air Duster & Vacuum, and Riccar Gem Handheld Vacuum with Tools, and updated prices and links throughout.

Compare Our Picks Others We Tested Riccar Gem Handheld Vacuum With Tools for $70: This model is very similar to the Simplicity corded model above, and although it's portable and handheld, this big boy needs to be plugged in for power. I like how basic it is: It just has a top switch for on/off, and a button on top to release the dust canister, which is at the front of this model rather than behind. Once disengaged, you just need to pull up the semi-spherical fabric mesh filter and dump out debris.

Unfortunately, lots of fur and dust get stuck to the filter, so you'll need to make sure you wipe it with a semi-damp cloth to clean. It comes with several attachments, including a bendy hose, long crevice nozzle with detachable brush, upholstery brush, and dusting brush. Instead of twisting or snapping, each attachment fits snugly into the opening, making it easier for those with fine-motor issues.

I liked that the long, flexible hose reached easily into tight spaces like between my counter and fridge and behind my automatic litter box. The corded machine is loud and gets hot quickly due to its sheer power. While I don't think this is the best handheld vac for everyone, it's a solid option with lots of power.

Tineco Go Mini Cordless Hand Vacuum for $200: A lightweight vacuum that's fairly straightforward and charges through the end of the handle, the Tineco Go must charge for five to six hours before use, which gets you 10 to 20 minutes of use time. The main things I wanted to focus on cleaning in my everyday life were cat litter and pet hair. This vacuum spit out roughly 80 percent of the litter I tried sucking up, and the pet hair just sort of rolled around on the carpet rather than being sucked back into the vac.