After enjoying the convenience of a stick vacuum, there’s no turning back.
Years back, I wrote about this cheap vacuum that I love in this post. It cleans perfectly well, is nice and lightweight, and best of all, there’s no need to take it for repairs. Because, when it dies after a few years, you simply throw out and replace with a new one. Easy maintenance! That vacuum has received a lot of positive attention over the years for being a great value. We’re leaving that post up because, hey, a $59 vacuum that works perfectly well is definitely worth a mention and does the trick in many households, especially when there is not that much carpeting.
But time moves on and sometimes the new conveniences in life seem too good to pass up. And that includes the convenience of stick vacuums.
I first spotted one in my friend’s home 3 1/2 years ago. She took it out and used it to suction up some crumbs that were on the floor. It was so effortless, she was probably doing something else with her other hand. There was no power cord, and it was just this stick; no vacuum bulk. “What is that? An electric broom for floors?” “No, it’s a vacuum. It works everywhere, floors or carpet.” Then I saw the “Dyson” name. “Ah…it’s a Dyson.”
“My sisters bought it for me last year when I had a baby. I thought it was a funny gift but they told me, ‘Trust us! You’ll love it!’ And I do!”
There are two caveats. One, it’s more expensive. There are different models and they range in price from $180 (for refurbished) to over $1000, depending on function, motor, and battery life. We’ve noticed that the prices have gone up see we first featured stick vacuums, even the new entry level Dyson is over $400, but luckily, there are refurbished models now available which offer a great value. They seem perfectly new and function just as well.
Two, since it’s rechargeable and cordless, it doesn’t last so long with each charge when using the “max suction” setting. So you can’t go vacuum the whole house at on one charge (the more expensive models that have longer battery life that can handle the whole home).
Note that although a stick vacuum almost makes a broom during the weekdays obsolete (you get a much cleaner clean when vacuuming crumbs vs. sweeping), it doesn’t vacuum larger pieces so you still do need to sweep those.
We’ve found the Target and Walmart have the best pricing and selection, so we’ve rounded up the most popular models below along with some pricing comparisons and refurbished options for better deals. Pricing often changes, especially when it comes to sale/refurbished models.
There are models that are even higher end than those featured here. You can view additional options at Dyson.
Note: There are also other brands which make stick vacuums in a wider price range. We did not include them because we don’t have experience using them, but some readers have shared their feedback and experiences below.
Costco also has good prices and often has sales on different Dyson models.