Vacuum Types Explained, Cordless vs Corded
Upright, canister, stick, handheld, robot and wet-dry vacuums suit different homes; air watts measure suction, and cordless trades runtime for reach.
By Liam McCabeContributing writer.
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The short answer
Pick the vacuum by where the dirt is. Uprights and canisters handle whole homes with carpet; sticks and handhelds are quick and light; robots run on a schedule; wet-dry models take liquids as well as debris. Then decide between a cord, which never runs out, and a battery, which goes anywhere but stops when it is empty.
Vacuum types
| Type | How it works | Good for | On Wiki Shopping |
|---|---|---|---|
| Upright | Motor, head and bin in one unit you push | Carpet, larger rooms | 113 |
| Canister | Motor body on wheels, joined to the head by a hose | Stairs, under furniture, mixed floors | 101 |
| Stick | Slim body on a long wand, often cordless | Quick daily cleanups | 158 |
| Handheld | Small enough to hold in one hand | Spills, upholstery | 87 |
| Robot | Drives itself around the floor | Upkeep between deeper cleans | 231 |
| Wet-dry | Drum or canister that can take liquids | Garages, workshops, spills | 256 |
| Car | Compact, often 12-volt or battery | Car interiors | 178 |
Uprights usually spin a brush roll to loosen dirt from carpet. Canisters let you swap heads for different jobs and reach where an upright head will not fit.
Cordless vs corded vacuum
On Wiki Shopping, 480 vacuums are listed as cordless and 92 as corded. The trade-off:
- Cordless: no outlet to hunt for and no cord to drag. Cleaning time is capped by the battery, and the strongest power mode empties it fastest.
- Corded: steady power for as long as you clean, usually a larger bin, but the cord limits reach and needs moving from room to room.
How long does a cordless vacuum battery last
There is no standard answer: each maker states its own runtime, and the figure depends on the power mode and the tool attached. When you compare listings, check which mode the runtime refers to, how long the battery takes to recharge, and whether a spare battery can be swapped in. A swappable battery doubles the cleaning time if you buy a second one.
What air watts mean on a vacuum
Air watts measure the power in the moving air at the cleaning end, not the electricity the motor draws. ASTM International's test method F558 works out air power from the airflow and the suction measured at the inlet. In its formula, one air watt is 0.117354 times the airflow in cubic feet per minute times the suction in inches of water, which makes it almost exactly one watt.
ASTM notes that this is a best-case figure: it is measured without the brush touching a floor, so it shows the maximum potential air power, not what reaches the carpet. Robot vacuums usually quote suction in pascals instead; see robot vacuum suction.
How we count
Each vacuum's type and power source are read from its store listing and grouped into filter pages. We counted those pages in a read-only query of our page data on October 26, 2026, when Wiki Shopping listed 1,415 vacuums. Each vacuum sits on at most one type page; 1,153 of them state a type, and the rest are left out of the table. The counts change as listings are added or removed.
Shop by spec
Vacuums
Stick, Cordless
- The ideal balance of power and weight. With up to 40 minutes of fade-free Dyson suction.¹
- Motorbarᵀᴹ cleaner head deep cleans all floor types and de-tangles hair as you clean.
- Motorized brush bar, concentrated in a smaller head to remove stubborn dirt from mattresses, upholstery, and stairs.
- LCD screen shows power modes, remaining run time, and maintenance alerts.
- Converts to a handheld vacuum for cleaning cars, stairs, and upholstery.
- Comes with 3 Dyson-engineered accessories to clean up high, down low, and everywhere in between.
- Advanced whole-machine filtration traps 99.99% of particles as small as 0.3 microns. Expels cleaner air.²
- Made from strong materials selected for their durability and lightweight properties.
- With a 2-year limited warranty and lifetime Dyson support.
Robot
- INCREDIBLE SUCTION: Powerful Shark suction picks up dirt and debris on all floor types-tackling even the toughest of messes in your home.
- NO SPOTS MISSED: With Matrix Clean Navigation, the vacuum cleans in a precise matrix grid taking multiple passes over dirt and debris for whole home, deep cleaning coverage.
- IT EMPTIES ITSELF: The bagless, self-emptying base holds up to 30 days of dirt and debris while its true HEPA filtration captures and traps 99.97%* of dust and allergens (*down to .3 microns).
- PRECISION HOME MAPPING: 360° LiDAR vision quickly and accurately maps your home so your robot can methodically clean detecting and avoiding objects in its path, day or night, adapting to everyday changes in the home.
- PERFECT FOR HOMES WITH PETS: With powerful vacuum suction, Shark’s self-cleaning brushroll, and HEPA filtration system the robot captures pet hair, dust, dander and allergens with ease.
- HANDS-FREE CONTROL: Set a cleaning schedule, initiate on-demand cleaning, or activate cleans all with sound of your voice using Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant.
- EXTENDED RUNTIME: Up to 120 minutes of runtime for whole-home cleaning. And with Recharge and Resume, the robot will return to the dock, recharge, and can pick up where it left off.
- BUILT, TESTED, AND PERFECTED: Shark puts their robots through rigorous testing to guarantee reliable, and high-quality performance.
- WHAT’S INCLUDED: 1 Shark AI Ultra Robot, 1 HEPA Self-Empty Base, and 2 Side Brushes.
- DUOCLEAN POWERFINS HAIRPRO: The two-brushroll system digs deep into carpets, directly engages hard floors, and picks up dirt, debris, and hair in every pass.
- NO HAIR WRAP: The self-cleaning brushroll delivers powerful pet hair pickup with no hair wrap.
- GUARDS AGAINST BAD ODORS: Odor Neutralizer Technology guards against bad odors inside your vacuum for a fresher-smelling home (vs. Shark LA702 without Odor Neutralizer Technology).
- LIFT-AWAY: Just step on the pedal to lift away the pod to clean stairs, furniture, and everywhere else in your home.
- NO VACUUM EMITS CLEANER AIR: Anti-Allergen Complete Seal Technology with a HEPA filter traps 99.97% of dust and allergens inside the vacuum cleaner, keeping them out of the air you breathe. (Based on ASTM F1977 of particles 0.3 microns and larger.)
Robot
- DEVOURS DIRT WITH 70X MORE POWER-LIFTING SUCTION*. 4-Stage Cleaning includes 70X more power-lifting suction*, a Multi-Surface brush, and Edge-Sweeping brush to devour dirt and dust bunnies, plus a microfiber mop pad to leave floors shiny and clean *As compared to Roomba 600 series robots
- SUPER-SMART MAPPING AND NAVIGATION. ClearView LiDAR quickly maps your home, avoids obstacles and cleans in neat rows, even in the dark.
- RUGS STAY DRY WHILE MOPPING. Unlike other cleaning robots, the Roomba 105 Combo Robot automatically detects and avoids carpets while mopping so your rugs stay dry – no complex programming required.
- FULLY CUSTOM & TARGETED CLEANING. Choose from settings including vac only, mop only, or combo vac-mop, Schedule and target rooms based on your daily routine and adjust the number of cleaning passes, levels of suction power, and amount of mopping solution pumped onto the microfiber mopping pad.
- EASY-TO-USE ROOMBA HOME APP. Simply tap to set a custom clean, get time estimates, check on the filter life, or create keep-out zones to avoid specific areas.
- 2X DEEPER SCRUBBING. Leave floors beautifully cleaned thanks to the built-in mop with a micro-pump controlling water flow and keeping the mopping pad uniformly moist during cleaning- Use water or a compatible cleaning solution*, and choose SmartScrub for 2x deeper scrubbing**
- EASY WAYS TO CONTROL. Conveniently control your Roomba robot by speaking to your preferred voice assistant-enabled* devices, tapping the app, or pressing the robot's buttons. *Works with Alexa, Siri, and Google Assistant-enabled devices
- BLENDS IN BEAUTIFULLY. The Roomba 105 Combo robot's sleek look is inspired by modern design with beautiful finishes and textures that blend easily with home décor.
- WIFI READY. Uses a 2.4 GHz network for setup and operation. After setup, your robot will stay on 2.4GHz for operation and your phone can return to 5GHz.