Shark PowerPro Cordless vacuum: two-minute review

The Shark PowerPro Cordless is a capable, no-nonsense stick vacuum that prioritizes consistent performance and everyday value over flashy extras. It’s one of the most affordable cordless models we've tested, yet it comes with very few compromises where it matters. And while its build isn’t premium, it's not a barebones vacuum either: one of the key selling points is automatic surface detection, which adjusts power as you move from carpet to hard flooring. It's a very strong contender for TechRadar's best budget vacuums guide.

Despite the budget price, you also get hallmark Shark touches like an anti-hair wrap brushroll, a flexible wand for reaching under furniture, plus a floorhead with built-in LEDs that illuminate dust and dark corners. Taken together, these features – borrowed from pricier models in Shark’s line-up – make the PowerPro feel like a far more rounded tool than its price might suggest.

That’s not to say it’s flawless. In places, the no-frills build betrays its budget status. It all clicks together with solidity, but there are some plastic components that cheapen the experience – particularly the boost trigger.

The appeal here lies in the PowerPro’s stripped-back convenience. You’re getting a functional, reliable vacuum with a handful of well-executed features that are genuinely useful in everyday use.

The interface is foolproof: there are no modes to select. Instead, the Floor Detect head automatically chooses the right setting based on the surface you’re cleaning. All you have to think about is using the Boost trigger at your fingertips. It won't offer dirt detection or edge detection (as found on the best Shark vacuums in the lineup), but this floor-based adjustment is useful nonetheless.

In use, the PowerPro is balanced and maneuverable. The floorhead moves easily over different surfaces, while the hinged wand unlatches to give you flexible reach beneath beds and sofas. Switch to a handheld configuration and the PowerPro is impressively lightweight. It’s slightly bulky for tackling tighter spaces like car footwells, but the crevice attachments help to hit nooks and crannies.

While not as powerful as the Shark PowerDetect cordless, the PowerPro performed impressively well in my cleaning tests. Suction was strong on carpeted floors, lifting both visible debris and ingrained dust without repeated passes. It also handled fine dust and heavier particles on hard floors, though Boost mode was useful for picking up larger pieces. One caveat is that the brush bar sits inset within the floorhead, which means it can struggle to get right into edges along skirting boards.

Battery life is decent, too. Although there's no battery-maximizing Eco mode, in Auto mode I achieved a very decent 40 minute average when cleaning a combination of carpeted and hard flooring. At around 3 hours, the PowerPro is relatively quick to recharge, too. Because the power plugs directly into the removable battery, you could enlist a backup battery if you wanted to extend runtimes.

The Shark PowerPro isn’t the most stylish or advanced stick vacuum on the market, but it might be the best cordless vacuum for budget-conscious shoppers. But with consistently strong performance, good battery life and a few thoughtful features, it’s a strong choice for households who need a no-fuss solution for busting dust. Robust enough for daily use, the PowerPro offers excellent overall value.

Shark PowerPro IZ380UK review: price & availability

• List price: $329.99 / £249.99 / AU$399.99
• Launch date: 2025
• Availability: US, UK, AU

The Shark PowerPro launched in early 2025, and is widely available from Shark and various third-party retailers. At list price, the standard model costs $329.99 in the US, £249.99 in the UK and AU$399.99 in Australia. That puts this model towards the bottom of the mid-range bracket, but at time of writing it's heavily discounted in all territories.

Based on price history, it looks like discounts are fairly common, and you shouldn't have too much trouble picking up the PowerPro for closer to $200 / £180 / AU$300 – which is firmly in TechRadar's budget price bracket, despite it offering several features found on Shark’s pricier models.

There are a few bundle options around with different tools included (for example, the 'Pet' version has a mini motorized cleaner head for furniture), as well as a more advanced 'Flex Reveal' version in some territories. For this review, I tested the IZ380UK version, which ships with crevice and upholstery tools, in addition to the standard floorhead.

Based on the current discounts, the PowerPro is one of the most affordable Shark cordless vacuums, and I think its priced well for what it delivers. As a simple, effective cordless vacuum with a streamlined but useful featureset, it offers excellent value for money in its class.

• Value for money score: 4.5 out of 5

Shark PowerPro specs

Shark PowerPro Cordless vacuum review: design

• No-frills construction feels plasticky but sturdy
• Flexible wand and bright floorhead LEDs
• No wall mount, but locking floorhead helps it lean steady

The Shark PowerPro follows a practical design philosophy. It doesn’t pretend to be a premium vacuum, but still includes several thoughtful touches that elevate it above basic alternatives. It’s not an ugly unit either, although Shark has focused on functional choices rather than aesthetic refinement.

Out of the box, the PowerPro feels solid enough for daily use. Everything clicks together with a reassuring snap. That said, the construction leans heavily on plastics. Parts like the boost trigger and dustbin release latches feel hollow, while there’s some flex and creak in the casing, giving a clear indication of where costs have been saved. These don’t affect performance, but they do contribute to a less premium impression than pricier Shark models.

The PowerPro follows a familiar cordless stick design. There’s a tidily packaged handheld unit that attaches to a motorized floorhead at the base. Shark’s useful 'MultiFLEX / Flexology' wand is also part of the setup. A latched hinge in the middle allows it to bend, letting you reach more easily beneath furniture without crouching. It’s a feature usually found on Shark’s more expensive cordless models, so it’s a welcome presence at this price point.

The main unit is very lightweight, and while the wand and floorhead is less so, with that attached it still sits at the lighter end of the stick vacuum market.

The simple handle design isn’t exactly ergonomic, but it’s comfortable enough to maneuver in general use, thanks in part to the lightness of the main unit. It’s slightly too bulky for very tight spaces like car footwells, but the included crevice and upholstery tools help to maximize reach. The accessory set included with the classic model is modest, but it covers most essential tasks around the house.

Controls are deliberately minimal. Because the Floor Detect head automatically adjusts suction based on whether you’re tackling carpet or hard floors, there are no settings to toggle through. There’s just a power button and the boost trigger at the tip of your index finger. Three illuminated icons on top of the handheld unit show which mode is active, while three more on the battery show the charge level. This is less accurate than a digital readout, a feature not commonly found at this price.

At ground level, built-in LEDs illuminate dust and debris on darker surfaces. In contrast to more expensive Shark models like the Shark Detect IW4621KT, these headlights aren’t reactive depending on how well-lit the area is. They’re simply on whenever the vacuum is running, which will be perfectly fine for most users.

At 0.7L, the dustbin slightly smaller than average, although it fills less quickly than you’d expect. The design of the dustbin itself is slightly unusual. To empty it, you press a latch to remove the entire bin from the handheld unit, before releasing the bottom door via another button. This adds an extra step compared to vacuums with direct drop-bottom bins, but it does help to reduce accidental spillage.

Charging the PowerPro isn’t as neat as it could be. The position of the charging port on top of the battery pack means that the cable trails up and over the handheld unit. It would be more natural if the port were positioned beneath it, but this is a necessary compromise to make the battery removable. The pay-off is that you can disconnect the cell to charge it, unlocking the option to keep several back-up batteries ready to swap in.

The PowerPro doesn’t include a wall mount or charging dock, which you’d expect to receive with a more expensive model. Instead, you’ll need to lean it up against a wall when you need a pause in cleaning. The unit can’t stand upright on its own at full height, but the floorhead can at least lock at 90 degrees, to stop it rolling away from the wall.

The forward-bending wand also enables you to fold the unit completely in half and lock it that way for more compact storage. These are neat practical touches for a model sold without a stand.

• Design score: 4 out of 5

Shark PowerPro IZ380UK review: performance

• Solid debris pick-up on carpets and hard floors
• Brushroll misses edges
• Automatic adjustment based on floor type works well

Performance is where the Shark PowerPro sets itself apart from other budget stick vacuums. On test, it consistently demonstrated effective debris pick-up, removing both surface-level and embedded dirt from carpet with just a single forward-and-back pass.

The Floor Detect head does much of the heavy lifting here. As you move the PowerPro from hard floor to carpet and vice versa, it automatically adjusts the power to suit the surface. The system is quick to respond to changes, with no lag to speak of. Suction is noticeably stronger on carpet, where the floorhead feels like it’s really pulling up dirt.

As a result, the PowerPro performed very well in my carpet tests. Tackling the fine, dry contents of a teabag sprinkled on a medium-pile carpet, the Shark PowerPro collected almost everything in its path with a single pass. The remnants were tidied up on the return sweep. It also dealt well with larger debris. 30g of oats were removed cleanly enough, with little in the way of snow-ploughing or scattering. This is an area where many budget cordless vacuums falter.

The PowerPro didn’t just grab visible debris, either: it also pulled up ingrained dust. After a week of regular use, the bin was still filling with fine grey dust and fluff during my tests, highlighting how effectively the PowerPro can lift deep-set dirt that other vacuums have left behind.

It’s also a strong performer on hard flooring. Fine tea disappeared cleanly from kitchen vinyl, as did drill dust. Standard suction was enough to collect heavier particles like oats, though switching to boost mode did speed things up.

Unlike some vacuums, the PowerPro generally didn’t push debris around or scatter it on hard floors. For the best performance, however, you might want to consider upgrading to a Shark PowerDetect Cordless, which has an extra flap added to the floorhead that specifically enables it to clear large particles on the reverse stroke.

The boost trigger deserves a special mention. While designed as a temporary power uplift rather than an always-on mode, it provides a genuinely significant increase in suction. I found it especially useful for tackling stubborn debris in carpet fibers and lifting heavier crumbs on hard floors. Running in Boost mode does cut battery life considerably, but for targeted use, it’s a welcome addition.

Edge performance is one area where the PowerPro shows some limitations. The brushroll is inset slightly within the floorhead, which means the suction window doesn’t reach right up to the bottom of cabinets and furniture.

When I scattered tea and oats along a skirting board, a thin strip remained even after a high-powered pass. This is a limitation of the head design rather than the power, and it means you’ll need to use the crevice tool for spotless edges.

The Floor Detect head features Shark’s anti-hair wrap head, with built-in rubber fins designed to stop strands from tangling around the brush bar. Over several weeks of running the PowerPro across carpets where longer human hair had been shed naturally, it worked very well.

The brushroll stayed broadly free from tangles and I didn’t need to cut away any wrapped strands, which is something many cheaper sticks struggle with. It’s another feature typically found on Shark’s pricier models that works just as effectively here.

Noise is well-controlled, too. Those rubber fins produce a low rumble on carpet as they whizz around inside the floorhead, while the handheld unit generates a relatively modest whine that only becomes pronounced when Boost mode is active.

To my ears, the PowerPro is quieter than other cordless vacuums I’ve tested. It’s not exactly hushed, but it avoids the harsh, high-pitched tones common among budget sticks. This makes it a better choice for households where noise sensitivity is a factor.

• Performance score: 4 out of 5

Shark PowerPro review: battery

• No Eco mode, average of 40 mins in Auto
• Boost mode reduces battery life to <15 minutes
• Battery removable, and can be charged independently

Shark quotes the PowerPro's battery life at 50 minutes. In reality, run-time varies a fair bit based on what and where you vacuum. Cleaning carpets is more power-hungry than hard floors, for example, while liberal use of the boost trigger will put a serious dent in the performance figures.

Unlike other Shark vacuums, the PowerPro doesn’t have an low-powered Eco setting. Because of this, you can’t force it to be more frugal by disabling the Floor Detect mode. Instead, it will always assess the surface it’s running over and adjust power accordingly.

As a result, you’ll get longer battery life if your home has hard floors throughout, versus one that’s clad primarily with carpet. My own home has an even balance of the two, meaning the numbers I achieved in my tests should be fairly representative of real-world performance across different surfaces.

Over several runs, I consistently netted between 35 and 45 minutes from full to flat. Taking the average as 40 minutes, that unsurprisingly comes in lower than the official number. It also puts the PowerPro a step below the best cordless vacuums when it comes to longevity – although do bear in mind that the given runtimes will almost always be for the Eco mode.

For me, 40 minutes felt like a healthy amount of time for a single stint and a competitive number for the price category. It’s certainly enough to cover a single-story home and have some charge left in the tank.

The more modest capacity also gives the PowerPro a shorter charge time than other models. Shark says it takes “approximately 3 hours” to fully charge the IZ380UK, which proved an accurate figure in my experience. While that’s hardly instantaneous, many vacuums take significantly longer.

Using Boost mode does have a considerable effect on battery life. Keeping my finger held on the trigger brought the number down to around 15 minutes. That's actually a strong runtime for a Boost mode – but it still reflects the fact that it’s intended to be used as a brief uplift for tougher debris, rather than an always-on solution for high-powered cleaning.

The PowerPro also benefits from a removable battery. The cell itself can be charged while detached from the vacuum. This means you can extend runtime by keeping a second back-up battery charged, ready to swap in when the first one runs flat.

• Battery life score: 4 out of 5

Should you buy the Shark PowerPro Cordless vacuum?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

How I tested the Shark PowerPro Cordless vacuum

• Used as my main vacuum cleaner for a month
• Tested across hard and carpeted floors at home
• Conducted standardized tests for debris pick-up

I tested the Shark PowerPro IZ380UK over a period of several weeks. I used it as my main vacuum cleaner in my own home, which has a mix of both carpeted and hard surfaces. Before running any formal tests, I used the PowerPro for ordinary daily cleaning to get an understanding of its general performance, noise levels, maneuverability and battery life.

I then moved on to running the PowerPro through TechRadar’s standard vacuum testing protocol. To assess fine dust pick-up, I sprinkled the contents of a dry teabag on both carpet and hard flooring, then passed over the area with the PowerPro on its standard setting. For a trial with larger debris, I repeated the process with a bag of oats. I only switched to Boost mode if the floorhead failed to collect everything on the first pass.

To test edge performance, I distributed tea and oats along skirting boards then checked how much was left behind when I ran the floorhead flush along them. I also evaluated hair pick-up by running the anti-hair wrap brushroll over areas of carpet home to longer strands, to see whether any tangled around the brush bar.

I measured battery life first by charging the vacuum to full, then running it continuously across a mix of surfaces until it powered down. I then charged it fully again to confirm the recharge time, before repeating the process to get an accurate average of battery life. I also ran similar trials using boost mode to verify the higher-powered run-time.

Finally, In tested the included crevice and upholstery tools on furniture, stairs and inside a car footwell to evaluate how effectively they picked up dirt, as well as the balance and reach of the unit as a handheld tool. Throughout my tests, I also paid attention to functionality and ease of use, especially when it came to regular actions in real-world situations, like emptying the bin.

Read more about how we test

First reviewed November 2025

Shark Freestyle Max: two-minute review

The Shark Freestyle Max is not your average upright vacuum. It's far lighter and more streamlined, and it's cordless too. After its launch in October 2025, I tested it out to see how it compares to both the best upright vacuums on the market and the best cordless vacuums.

In terms of suction power, I was very impressed. I used this vacuum in my 1600-square-foot home and it did a great job at cleaning fine materials and large debris from both hard floors and carpet-like rugs. It picked up everything in a single pass and got right up close to the edges of rooms, too.

The design is very basic but effective – you use your foot to press down on a big button on the floorhead to turn the machine on and off and switch modes. Charging happens via a dock, but this is about as compact as you can imagine – smaller than even the footprint of the vacuum itself. It's also incredibly affordable – pricing is lower than some of the best cheap vacuums on the market, but the suction power is up there with far pricier stick vacuums.

There are a couple of significant potential drawbacks. Firstly: battery life. The battery doesn't last longer than 20 minutes in hard floor mode and less than 12 minutes in carpet mode. That wasn't enough for me to clean my house in a single go without stopping to recharge (at least recharge is relatively quick at three hours). Secondly: the Freestyle Max is for use on floors only. There are no detail tools, and nor is there a flexible hose that enables you to use the vacuum to clean furniture, stairs, or up high.

If you can handle those drawbacks and are looking for a simple vacuum that packs the power of an upright but without the weight and bulk, the Freestyle Max is a great choice. Keep reading to get deeper insight into its pros and cons.

Shark Freestyle Max review: price & availability

• List price: $199.99 / £149 / AU$249.99
• Launched: October 2025
• Available: US, UK, AU

The Shark Freestyle Max launched in October 2025, and at list price in the US it costs $199.99, though it's often on sale – at time of writing, it was down to $149.99.

There's an almost-identical model in the UK, minus the headlamps, which costs £149.99 but was discounted to £99 at time of writing. Shark doesn't seem to have decided whether to call it the Freestyle Pro or Freestyle Max, so look at the product code (SV2000UK) to make sure you're getting the right one. The AU model doesn't have headlamps either, and costs AU$249.99 at list price.

It's a budget buy on the wider market, and with the typical discount, it's well priced, considering the strong suction power and the shorter battery life.

Value for money score: 4.5 out of 5

• Value for money score: 4.5 out of 5

Shark Freestyle Max specs

Shark Freestyle Max review: design

• Extremely lightweight for an upright, and cordless
• Generous dust cup, foot-press button operation, and two suction modes
• Basic but effective in design

Shark set out with the intent to create a more compact and lightweight upright vacuum, and it did just that with the Shark Freestyle Max. Aesthetics wise, the vacuum is white and gray with a modern sleek design.

The vacuum is very lightweight, clocking in 6.6 lbs / 3kg, which would be fairly light for a stick vacuum, let alone an upright. Unlike other vacuums, the button to change between the two suction modes is found on top of the vacuum head.

To shift between the two modes, you press the button with your foot, and a blue or green light indicates which mode you're in. Look extremely closely and you'll see an icon to indicate that the more powerful 'green' should be used on carpet, whereas the lower-powered 'blue' is for hard flooring.

The vacuum locks in place so it can stand up on its own. Although the vacuum can't lean back 180 degrees, it comes very close. If I had to guess, I'd say the vacuum leans to about 160 degrees, which is not quite as nimble as a stick vacuum, but still very decent. The US version also has a headlight on the front of the vacuum head to help users see in dim spaces. This isn't included on the UK or Australian versions.

The 0.7-quart / 0.7L dust cup can be removed from the vacuum pod and emptied with a lid release button. A debris screen and filter are located inside the dustbin. There are no additional accessories, nor a flexible tube that would allow you to break down the vacuum and use it to clean windowsills or in the corners of ceilings, à la something like the Shark Stratos Upright.

Rather unusually, there's a dock for charging. This is smaller than even the footprint of the vacuum, but a simple plug-in setup would probably be more convenient.

Setup took only a few minutes. I just had to click the wand into the vacuum pod, and the vacuum pod onto the floor nozzle. From there, I charged the vacuum, and it was ready to go.

• Design score: 3.5 out of 5

Shark Freestyle Max review: performance

• Very powerful hard floor and carpet suction, with excellent edge cleaning
• Picks up fine materials in a single pass
• Maneuverable for an upright but not as nimble as a stick vacuum

From the get-go, I was impressed with the Shark Freestyle Max Cordless Upright Vacuum, especially in terms of suction power. It may be a simple vacuum without smart features or app integration, but it did a great job cleaning fine material – like flour – and larger items – like crumbs and leaves. In fact, no matter if I used the bare floor or the carpet mode, it only took a single pass on rugs and hard floors for the vacuum to pick up all material, be it dirt or hair.

I tested both the front edge and edge cleaning of the vacuum and was very happy with the results. It cleans right to the edge. Unfortunately, if I tried to vacuum in reverse, larger debris like coffee grinds got stuck behind the wheels. It was better to do a forward pass over a mess for quick and efficient cleaning.

I've tested many vacuums over the years, and the Shark Freestyle Max Cordless Upright Vacuum feels a lot more powerful than others. With some vacuums, I need to use a Max or a Turbo mode to pick up large debris. The Freestyle Max isn't outfitted with those types of modes, but thankfully, you don't need them. The suction power of this vacuum outshone many cordless stick vacuums that I've tested in the past.

While not as powerful as bulkier, corded uprights, it's right up there with the priciest cordless stick vacuums when it comes to power. TechRadar's Home Editor Ruth tested the UK version side-by-side with the Dyson Gen5detect and found the cleaning power comparable with that model – all the more impressive considering that vacuum costs five times the price.

The compromise here is that because of the higher suction power, the battery on this vacuum doesn't last very long. I discuss more about the battery in the battery section, but for reference, I wasn't able to clean my entire house switching between bare floor and carpet modes.

I love that the Shark Freestyle Max Cordless Upright Vacuum is outfitted with a headlight, as it made it easier to see dust and dirt in low lit areas. If only the vacuum paused when locked upright. In terms of sound, the hard floor mode has a dB rating of 79. I measured an 83 dB rating during carpet mode. In my opinion, the vacuum isn't any louder than most.

The only other thing I should note is that the vacuum felt a little stiff in terms of maneuverability. Turning the vacuum left or right was not as smooth as I would have liked. While it's nimbler than your average upright vacuum, it's not as maneuverable as most stick vacuums I've used. At least it's lightweight, the vacuum head fits in relatively tight spaces, and it can lean back to about 160 degrees, making it easy to reach under my bed and low furniture.

Maintenance doesn't take long to complete. When the dust cup was full, I removed it from the vacuum pod and placed it over a trash can. Then I pressed the 'lid release' catch and the dust and dirt emptied. I was able to keep my hands clean. The debris screen and the filter – both located in the dust cup – need to be occasionally removed and washed with water, before air drying for 24 hours.

• Performance score: 4 out of 5

Shark Freestyle Max review: battery life

• 11 mins in Carpet mode; 21 mins in Hard floor mode
• Takes about 3 hours and 20 mins for the battery to fully recharge
• Battery not removable or replaceable

The battery life of the Shark Freestyle Max Cordless Upright Vacuum depends on which mode is being used. In higher-powered carpet mode, the battery lasted almost 11 and a half minutes, and in hard floor mode, 21 minutes.

Since I have both hard floors and rugs in my 1,600-square-foot house, I tested how long the battery lasted when switching between modes. I was able to clean my bare floors in 15 minutes. Then I switched to carpet mode to vacuum my rugs. The battery lasted only three more minutes, which was not enough time to fully vacuum one of my large rugs. The battery took about three hours and 20 minutes to fully charge. I let it charge for an hour, which gave it enough juice to finish vacuuming my rugs.

The Shark Freestyle Max Cordless Upright Vacuum's battery life is far shorter than most cordless stick vacuums – many models can last up to a full hour in their lowest-powered mode these days, and it's rare to see a maximum runtime shorter than 40 minutes. This model won't fit the bill for those with bigger homes or lots of carpet. However, I see it as a strong choice for apartments, small homes, or anyone who just like having a vacuum to do short bursts of cleaning.

One final black mark against Shark here is that the battery isn't removable or swappable, as is the case with most good modern cordless vacuums. That means once the batteries wears out, you'll have to throw the whole machine away.

• Battery life score: 2 out of 5

Should you buy the Shark Freestyle Max?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

How I tested the Shark Freestyle Max

I tested the Shark Freestyle Max Cordless Upright Vacuum for a week in my 1,600-square-foot home, using it to vacuum my hardwood and laminate floors and two large rugs. Everything from how well it suctioned debris to the length of battery life and ease of movement was tested and considered when writing this review.

The UK version was also tested on-team in the TechRadar offices, where it was used on hard floor, mid-pile carpet and deep-pile carpet, and the suction power was compared to that of a premium Dyson stick vacuum.

Read more about how we test vacuum cleaners

• First reviewed November 2025

Dyson V16 Piston Animal: two-minute review

The V16 Piston Animal is Dyson's new flagship stick vacuum, and it boasts a number of upgrades over its predecessors. Based on specs, this is the best Dyson vacuum you can buy. I've been busy testing it for three weeks to see how it matches up to the rest of the best cordless vacuums around, and it's a tale of two halves.

Let's start with the good bits. The dust compactor works extremely well and is a logical, solidly useful addition. It gives you more cleaning time without having to empty the bin, and when you do come to that part, the same mechanism expels the contents easily, with no need for fingers to get involved.

Dyson has redesigned the attachment mechanism so that you can connect and release attachments on the end of the wand without having to bend down. This seems like an effort-saver, and should also help those with mobility issues, although it does mean this vacuum isn't compatible with older attachments.

Generally speaking, the cleaning power is excellent, and the Auto mode has been improved so it now offers intelligent adjustment of not only suction power but also brushroll speed, based on floor type and dirt levels.

However, despite various technical improvements, the V16 unfortunately performed worse in our suction tests than both the Gen5detect and V15 Detect – the two previous flagship models. Specifically, it failed to pick up fine particles as efficiently, and it had a tendency to push large debris around rather than sucking it up.

That poorer performance, I think, is down to the floorhead, which has been given a big old redesign, and which is the source of my other big complaint with the V16. While the conical rollers do work well to prevent hair tangles, Dyson has also tapered the front of the floorhead so it comes to a slight point. That's a pain when you're trying to clean along the straight edge of a room, and especially so in situations when you can't approach from the side.

A couple of final notes before I crack on with the finer details of my tests. This is officially the first app-connected Dyson cordless, but at time of writing there weren't any in-app settings to explore. There's also a Submarine version available, with an extra mopping floorhead included (not reviewed here).

That's the short version; read on for my in-depth Dyson V16 Piston Animal review.

Dyson V16 Piston Animal review: price & availability

• List price: £749.99 / AU$1,349 (US TBC)
• Launched: September 2025
• Available: UK and AU now, US sometime in 2026

The V16 Piston Animal was unveiled at the start of September, and is on sale now in territories including the UK and Australia. It will be available in the US, but not until sometime in 2026.

The regular version has a list price of £749.99 / AU$1,349 (the US list price will be released closer to the launch date). A Submarine version is also available, with an extra mopping floorhead, at a list price of £899.99 / AU$1,599.

For comparison, this model's predecessor, the Gen5detect, costs £769.99 / AU$1,549. The model below that, the V15 Detect, is £649.99 / AU$1,449.

Those prices position the V16 firmly in the premium price bracket, and make it one of the most expensive vacuums on the market. It's interesting to note that it's actually slightly cheaper than the Gen5detect in the UK (although that older model will attract more discounts). Perhaps Dyson feels it has reached the limit of what people will realistically pay for a vacuum cleaner, no matter how many advancements it crams in.

In its favor, I will say the V16 looks and feels premium. It has been meticulously designed and is packed with features – including some you can't find anywhere else on the market.

That said, it's a lot to spend on a vacuum, and for many people it won't be worth it. Personally, I'd keep an eye out for a discount on a V15 or Gen5detect.

• Value for money score: 3.5 out of 5

Dyson V16 Piston Animal specs

Dyson V16 Piston Animal review: design

• Redesigned anti-tangle floorhead with conical rollers
• Manual compression lever on bin
• Automatic power and roller speed adjustment based on floor type

The V16 Piston is a premium cordless stick vacuum with a number of useful features, many of which are new to the Dyson lineup.

Key amongst the new additions – and the reason for the 'Piston' in the name – is a compression lever on the dust cup. This can be pushed down to squish dust and hair and increase dustbin capacity, and is also designed to wipe fine debris off the inside of the cup, and to be helpful in efficient emptying.

A second addition is the red cuff at the top of the vacuum's wand. This can be pushed down to release the floorhead without the need for you to bend down.

The docking section of the floorhead, meanwhile, sits upright at an angle, so you can also snap it onto the wand from a standing position.

Speaking of the floorhead: this looks very different to anything I've seen before. Rather than being tube-shaped, the rollers here are conical.

The idea is that the tapering shape shifts long hair down to the narrow end, where it can be sucked up, rather than leaving it to tangle. As usual, there's a slider on the front to enable you to adjust air intake as required.

This floorhead – known as the All Floors Cones Sense, if you can remember all that – is designed for both hard floors and carpet, and is kitted out with a laser to illuminate dirt that might otherwise be missed.

There's a small screen on the machine itself to deliver information, including which mode you're in and how long you have left on the battery.

More impressively, it'll also provide you with real-time reports on the size and number of particles you're sucking up, as you clean. Yes, really. This works with the V16's 'Auto' mode, where the vacuum will automatically adjust suction and (newly) brushroll speed based on the kind of floor it's on and how dirty it is.

The main body of the vacuum is on the heavier side for a cordless vacuum, but Dyson has added a padded section above the hand grip for comfort.

The finish on this model is also matte rather than shiny, which makes it less likely to rub when you're using it for long periods and your hands are slightly clammy. It switches on with a button rather than a trigger, and the battery is removable and swappable.

This is apparently the first Dyson vacuum to be properly 'connected'. The companion app should provide cleaning summaries and offer advanced setting options, although during my test period (after the official launch) neither were available. I assume they'll filter in during later software updates.

Detail tools will vary slightly depending on which model you opt for, but there are a couple of notable upgrades.

The Hair screw tool now has a rubberized band across the front to help loosen hair that's 'stuck' to upholstery fabric. Hidden inside the wand, meanwhile, are two stubby Crevice tools – one at the top, attached to the main part of the vacuum, and the other at the bottom of the wand, revealed if you remove the floorhead.

Because of the redesigned docking mechanism, none of the tools are compatible with other Dyson stick vacuums.

• Design score: 4.5 out of 5

Dyson V16 Piston Animal review: performance

• Dust compaction is great, and lever makes emptying super-easy
• Suction excellent, but not notably different to previous models
• Angled floorhead is a pain for vacuuming the edges of rooms

Let's start with suction performance. In general use, it felt like this vacuum packed plenty of oomph. I tested it out in a four-floor house with hard floor, plenty of carpets, and a black Spaniel, and it had no trouble sucking up impressive volumes of dust, dirt and hair. In Auto mode, I could hear the power and brushroll ramping up and down as I moved into different areas and onto different floor types.

I found the on-screen dust reports as mesmerizing as ever – they've been redesigned here so they work on a traffic light system (green for clean, yellow for okay, orange for acceptable, red for 'oh my goodness your home is disgusting') which is more useful at a glance than the previous color system, which was seemingly just based on what looked cool.

Officially, the V16 has the most suction of any Dyson stick vacuum, due to improvements under the hood. During day-to-day use, I didn't notice a difference in cleaning power compared to the V15, which is what I usually use in this house. That vacuum is two models down from the V16 – despite what the number might suggest, the Gen5detect sits in the middle.

Unfortunately, when I did some side-by side cleaning tests comparing the V16 to its two predecessors, the newest vacuum actually performed the worst. I'll get into this more in the Suction tests section below.

Moving on to comfort. The V16 feels a little weighty in the hand, but the padded section above the grip helps boost comfort, and the fact it has a matte finish also means it's less likely to rub if your hands get a little clammy in longer use.

My 5ft Australian colleague found it was too tall for her to comfortably use – at 5ft 8in I had no issues, but perhaps worth noting if you're on the shorter side.

I'm in two minds about the button operation. For longer cleaning sessions, it's nice not to have to continually compress the trigger, but for quick cleanups, it's a bit cumbersome to have to keep a hand free to turn the machine on and off (you can't reach the button with your gripping hand).

I also preferred the bigger buttons found on older models. Dyson seems on a mission to make the buttons on all of its appliances teeny tiny, and there's no benefit to the user.

I'm also not sold on the new floorhead. The front long edge of the floorhead comes to a slight point rather than being straight – and this means that you can't approach the edges of rooms front-on.

Instead, you have to go in from the side, and that quickly becomes very annoying, because it makes cleaning in spots where you can't approach from the side (for example, under the desk pictured above) very difficult.

Otherwise, it pivots well but feels a little harder to push than previous Dysons (and other vacuums I've tested).

The quick-release works well and is an effort-saver, but the joints in general feel stiffer than on other Dyson stick vacuums I've used. It's also a shame that existing attachments won't work with the V16.

More of a success is the dust compactor. This is a solid win; the mechanism works a treat, and means you can fit in more cleaning without having to make so many trips to the trash.

It also makes it far easier to empty than most cordless vacuums I've used – including previous Dyson models. Press down the lever and everything in the bin is ejected, with no need to go in with your fingers afterwards.

Suction tests

For a more objective overview of the V16's suction capabilities, I ran TechRadar's standard suction tests. First, I sprinkled a teabag's worth of dry tea and a handful of oats on a carpeted floor. The idea here is to see how well the vacuum copes with fine and chunky debris.

After a single forward and backward pass in Auto mode (I could hear the suction increasing over the spillage) most of the oats were gone – although some pinged about a bit – and there was a fine strip of tea left where the center of the floorhead had passed. This is a good result – the tea test is purposefully very challenging. After a few more passes in Auto mode, everything was cleared.

I then repeated the same test on a hard, tiled floor, with surprisingly poor results. Although the tea was whisked away in a single forwards pass, quite a few of the oats were pushed into a pile in front of the floorhead, or behind it when I tried to pull it back over them.

I then lifted the floorhead to position it on top of the spillage, and oats sprayed everywhere. The V16 coped well with picking up single oats after this mini-explosion, but any more than that proved a struggle.

Next, I did some side-by-side testing with the previous two models – and here the V16 fared worse still.

Below, from left to right on screen, are the V16, the Gen5detect, and the V15 Detect. On the floor are piles of oats and then loose tea. In the test, you can watch as I vacuum the oats and first pile of tea with each vacuum in Auto mode, then the second pile of tea in Boost mode.

The V16 is the last vacuum to clean each pile, and it leaves a strip of tea in both Auto and Boost modes, and scatters the oats a little. In contrast, both the V15 and Gen5detect clear all the piles with a single pass.

Edges

I also tested how well the V16 cleaned along the edges of rooms. As I've already stated, the shape of the front of the floorhead makes this trickier than it usually would be.

For this test, I put a pile of tea and oats along the edge of a room, and approached from the side. The V16 did a solid job of capturing the spillage, even the bits right next to the edge. The crevices seemed to help with the pooling issue, by providing a break in suction.

Hair

The V16 is specifically designed to be great at dealing with long hair – up to 25 inches / 63.5cm long, actually. That's part of the reason behind the 'Animal' in the name... although I don't know many pets with hair that long, unless someone out there is keeping a horse in the house.

I tested it out on my own hair, which is around armpit length, and also the (much shorter) hair of my Cocker Spaniel – and the good news is that I didn't end up with any hair tangled around the conical rollers. But here's the thing: I never had issues with hair tangling around the rollers on Dyson's old-style floorheads, either.

I've regularly used both a Gen5detect and V15, and both are perfectly good at avoiding hair wrap, at least with hair of my length. Perhaps those with truly Rapunzel-like locks will benefit from the supercharged detangling on offer with the V16.

I was also supplied with longer, synthetic hair to try out on the V16 in the Dyson labs in Malmesbury. Here, I found it worked very well when the hair was laid out neatly in front of the machine, but when faced with a clump of hair it tended to get stuck – either in the space behind the cones, or in the 'corner' of the suction tube.

App

The V16 Piston Animal is the first of Dyson's vacuums to be truly app-connected; older models can be connected to the MyDyson app, but only as a hub for How-to videos and explainers.

You should be able to use the app to change settings on the V16 (including toggling the laser on and off, and changing how Auto mode behaves), and view a cleaning summary.

Unfortunately at time of writing I didn't have any adjustment options available in my app, and my cleaning wasn't being recorded. I assume software updates down the line will add the promised app functionality.

• Performance score: 3.5 out of 5

Dyson V16 Piston Animal review: battery life

• Up to 70 minutes of cleaning in Eco mode; ~17 mins in Boost
• 3 hours 30 mins to recharge
• Removable and swappable battery

In the lowest mode (Eco) the V16 can last a quoted 1 hour and 10 minutes before needing to recharge. That's the same as the previous model (the Gen5detect) and up there with the longest runtimes on the market. There's also a Boost mode, which is just for the toughest of cleaning tasks. In my tests, the V16 lasted 16 minutes and 49 seconds in Boost.

Of course, most people aren't going to be using Eco mode or Boost mode on the regular. They'll be using Auto mode. This is probably the best feature, from a battery life point of view, because it means the machine is only using just enough power to clean effectively, based on the needs of the situation.

Recharge takes a quoted 3 hours and 30 minutes, which is a whole hour less then the two models below it in the Dyson lineup.

Finally, the V16 has a removable, swappable battery. That means you can, if you want, buy a backup battery to hot-swap for longer cleaning sessions. It's also good news for overall longevity, because on cordless vacuums it's often the battery that starts to fail first.

• Battery life score: 5 out of 5

Should you buy the Dyson V16 Piston Animal?

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Dyson V16 Piston Animal review: alternatives to consider

How I tested the Dyson V16 Piston Animal

I tested the Dyson V16 Piston Animal in a four-floored house with lots of carpet, plus tiled and engineered wood floors. It's home to one long-haired and one short-haired human inhabitant and a Cocker Spaniel.

I ran a series of standard suction tests to see how it could handle fine (dry tea) and chunky (oats) debris on hard floors and carpet. I also ran the same tests alongside two older Dyson stick vacuums to see how the three compared. I also assessed how the V16 dealt with hair and cleaning along the edges of rooms, and timed how long it took to run the battery flat and recharge it again.

Aside from the controlled tests, I also used the V16 regularly for a fortnight, to get a general feel for how easy it was to wield, how effectively it cleaned and if there were any niggling issues. I downloaded and explored the app, and tested the different functions available there.

Read more about how we test vacuum cleaners

• First reviewed September 2025