Carpets Looking Dingy? One of These Carpet Cleaners Can Help (2024)

Our Top Picks

Out of the 55 different carpet cleaning machines we've tested over the years, the Bissell ProHeat 2X Revolution Pet Carpet Cleaner 35799 is among the best of the best. Not only did it stand out from the pack of options we tested alongside it in the lab, but it beat out other strong performers from past rounds, too. In other words; it’s really, really good at cleaning carpets.

As is standard with most upright carpet cleaners, it has two basins: one for clean water and solution, and the other for collecting and holding dirty water. The cleaning capabilities it displayed with its three upright settings (max, deep, and express clean modes) easily took care of 95 percent of the coffee, red wine, and soil messes we created, and then the wand tool took care of the last bit, leaving only the faintest amount of red wine and coffee (roughly one percent, we’d guess) and no visible dirt. A light, springy scent is noticeable from the solution, but isn’t overbearing. We found it to be pleasant, in fact.

Both filling and emptying the machine is simple, too; the tanks are easy to remove and handle, and we had no trouble filling the clean water tank and adding solution to the noted fill lines.

The challenges we encountered with this machine are fairly common for upright carpet cleaners in general. As you might expect, they’re noisy (this one was just over 89 decibels, right in the middle of the pack and comparable to a robust vacuum rumble), and they’re heavy (at 25 pounds when full, this one was also just shy of the average 26 pounds we encountered).

We’d say these hiccups are par for the course for the entire product category, and not really a reflection of this particular model, though. For its overall performance and the convenience of the wand and accessories, we think it’s a great option for most households.

_{Weight: 25.13 pounds (when full) | Cord Length: 22 feet | Attachments: Accessory hose, pet stain tool, 3-in-1 tough stain tool}

Another excellent pick that proved to be an all-time standout among the 55 total carpet cleaners we’ve tested, the Tineco iCarpet is a sleek and easy-to-use machine that exceeded all our initial expectations.

Upright carpet machines can be cumbersome, but this one is more streamlined than most. It easily handled the vast majority of the messes we made, lifting roughly 90 percent of both fresh and set-in coffee and wine stains. It struggled a bit more with set-in dirt though, so depending on the kind of messes in your home (a pet making muddy footprints, as opposed to drips and drops around your dining table), it might take more effort to achieve what most would consider satisfactory results.

To be clear, these are really nit-picky notes, though, and the overall performance of this machine is very impressive. The texture of the rug we tested it on even felt softer and cleaner after it was all said and done, and the included solution had a subtle detergent smell to it, too.

While we don’t think you could go wrong with this pick or our best overall pick (the Bissell ProHeat 2X Revolution Pet Carpet Cleaner 35799), there are a few operational variations that might lead you to pick one over the other. For starters, one of the biggest differences is the iCarpet’s 2-liter tank capacity, which is roughly half the size of the 1-gallon tank in the ProHeat 2X Revolution. This means that the iCarpet is a bit lighter (22 pounds when full), and we’d argue that the smaller tank size means it’s a bit better equipped for smaller spaces, since you’ll likely go through that volume more quickly.

The iCarpet also happens to be a bit quieter (82 decibels, less than the average of our tested pool of cleaners, which was 85 decibels).Interestingly, both machines perform better when pushing forward, as opposed to pulling back. The iCarpet in particular gave some resistance going backward that grew tiresome after a few minutes—another sign that it’s well-suited for shorter cleaning spurts.

We’re big fans of it both machines, but if you’re looking for ways to decide between them, the larger water basin of the ProHeat 2X Revolution and the tighter, trimmer design of the Tineco iCarpet are the main variations.

_{Weight: 22 pounds (when full) | Cord Length: 21.3 feet | Attachments: Hose, stain remover tool}

The Hoover Pro Clean Pet Carpet Cleaner FH51050 is another great choice for cleaning carpets in your home. It leaves rugs and carpets noticeably cleaner, delivering results that rivaled our best overall and runner-up picks. The catch? It didn’t maneuver quite as smoothly, but we think this is a fair trade-off since it comes at a lower price point than the other picks.

When it comes to stain removal, the Hoover Pro Clean Pet Carpet Cleaner FH51050 made a significant difference in all of the stains we made: one fresh and one set-in stain of coffee, dirt, and red wine. Full disclosure, the wine was still slightly visible, but easy to miss if you weren’t zeroing in on it. We think these results bode well for its versatility in a home, too—it’s up to the task of food, drink, and regular household grime that comes in on shoes. It also comes with an attachable hose for spot-cleaning and upholstery cleaning (we didn’t have a chance to try it out during our testing), which is great if you have chairs or couches that need attention.

One of the areas where there’s a noticeable difference is in the weight of this machine when full; we measured it to be just shy of 27 pounds, which is higher than our two best overall picks. It has two wheels at the base, but it was a bit cumbersome to carry and move, and took some muscle power to turn in particular.

Uniquely, it was smoother to operate when we pulled it backward (which is the opposite of our best overall and runner-up). The power button is on the base, so you operate it with a foot control. This is especially convenient when you’re on the move with the machine, or if your hands are full with the hose and attachments.

The clean water tank holds a full gallon (like the Bissell ProHeat 2X Revolution Pet Carpet Cleaner 35799), so it has a similar shape and size. We used a funnel to fill the water tank, which made the process easy, but know that a funnel is not entirely necessary. Emptying the dirty water was smooth too, and we only needed to do it once throughout the duration of our testing. Like our other two favorites, the included cleaning solution does leave behind the faintest fresh smell, but we didn’t mind it.

_{Weight: 26.81 pounds (when full) | Cord Length: 20 feet | Attachments: Hose, upholstery tool}

The popular Bissell Little Green rose to fame on TikTok, as users filmed themselves cleaning impossible-looking stains on carpet, couches, and chairs while posting with the tag #littlegreenmachine. On multiple occasions, when we brought the portable carpet cleaner into the lab, we had low expectations that it would live up to the hype.

While it didn’t quite knock our socks off, the Bissell Little Green Carpet Cleaner clearly went viral for a reason (see us try it below), and it delivers when it comes to spot-cleaning. Using and maintaining it are easy, and the turtle shell design is adorable.

With the transparent basins, you can see the Little Green sucking up a fresh coffee spill. And with a little bit of elbow grease, it cleaned set-in stains of juice, ketchup, and potting soil with no pre-treatment and only a faint stain left behind. As a result, we think it works best on fresh stains, but it still worked well enough on set-in stains to be considered effective.

The beloved Bissell machine took around eight minutes to set up. The directions were a little unclear, but once we followed the pictures, the assembly made more sense, and the large tank was easy to fill up. Just make sure you note which tank is for clean water versus dirty water. Once you have it ready to go, be warned that you may find yourself wandering around your home looking for more stains to tackle, since it’s that satisfying to use!

_{Weight: 9.65 pounds | Cord Length: 15 feet | Attachments: Spraying crevice tool}

Pet owners know that fluffy friends come with their own set of messes, which is why we recommend the Rug Doctor Pet Portable Spot Cleaner for any pet waste-related, deep cleaning needs. This small but mighty machine was ready to go out of the box and was also pretty intuitive to use. Our favorite feature on this cleaner is the retractable handle, which makes rolling it between spots and storage easy.

A coffee stain was no match for this machine's suction power and was gone after just one pass, which is unique for carpet cleaners. Plus, the red wine, chocolate, and dirt stains were also almost completely removed. We were impressed by how quickly this model removed stains and were pleased that we did not have to refill the 1-gallon tank all that often.

Once we got this machine home for long-term testing, the "pet" and "portable" aspects of the Rug Doctor Pet Portable Spot Cleaner were indeed confirmed. It encountered multiple dog messes, as well as spilled food, and we were pleased with the thorough results. It got rid of the stains (and their related smells) completely. If you purchase this cleaner through Rug Doctor's website, an 8-ounce bottle of their Pure Power Pet Stain and Odor Cleaning Solution is included, but you can also purchase it separately.

One hiccup we encountered was the design of this machine's clean water tank. The top of it is curved, which makes filling it from the bottom tricky if you don't have an extra set of hands. The red tabs that hold the cord in place also didn't feel durable. Still, we recommend this mighty carpet cleaner for its effectiveness and innovative, rolling design, especially if you have pets. The compact size and wheeled design also are super helpful in moving the machine from room to room and taking care of small to medium-sized messes.

_{Weight: 18.96 pounds | Cord Length: 28 feet | Attachments: Dual-action pet tool}

As tempted as we were to call Hoover ONEPWR SmartWash Cordless Carpet Cleaner the Best Cordless Carpet Cleaner, that didn't seem quite fair since this innovative machine is really the only cordless carpet cleaner of its kind. That's not all it has going for it though; it packs a cleaning punch that rivals our other favorites even while relying on a rechargeable battery and boasting a more lightweight design.

It's not uncommon for carpet cleaners to have limited modes or even just on/off settings. This one, however, has three: a wash and dry setting, a spot cleaning mode, and a dry-only mode—the last of which deserves a shout-out of its own. When it comes to drying, this cleaner performed especially well at extracting water from the carpets after we were done cleaning (the word used in the lab was "excellent"). Efficient drying is a plus because it allows you to resume normal life more quickly and lowers the chance of damage to carpets and rugs (and the surfaces underneath them).

Impressively, we never saw any signs of the suction power dwindling while this machine was in use. For context, battery-powered vacuum cleaners are often less powerful than their corded counterparts, but we didn't feel like that was the case with Hoover ONEPWR SmartWash Cordless Carpet Cleaner.

Though, to clean some of the messes (hot sauce in particular), we had to push and pull the machine over the stain multiple times to make a significant difference. Still, even with these extra steps, we were overall pleased. If your cleaning needs require lots of movement around your home, and you don't want to be tethered to a wall outlet, it's a great choice.

_{Weight: 19.88 pounds (when full) | Cord Length: Not applicable | Attachments: 2 included brush rolls}

Final Verdict

The best carpet cleaner is the Bissell ProHeat 2X Revolution Pet Carpet Cleaner 35799, which has excellent cleaning abilities, helpful attachments, and an easy-to-use design. Right on its heels is the Tineco iCarpet, a sleek and streamlined choice that’s also great for spot-cleaning.

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