Which Carpet And Upholstery Spot Cleaner Brand Wins?
We compared 12 carpet and upholstery spot cleaner options head to head. Bissell HydroSteam came out on top. See the measured results, the runner-up, the budget pick, and a link to the full test video.
Some figures on this page were transcribed from the test video and have not been independently re-verified. Treat the numbers as a close guide and watch the full video for the exact readings.
Bissell HydroSteam
Price shown in test: $250, most expensive of all 12 machines
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Vacmaster and Shark, tied for 2nd overall with an average finish of 3.2
Price shown in test: $75
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Vacmaster
Price shown in test: $75
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The measured results
Every number below is read straight from the test. Scroll sideways to see all measurements. Products are listed in the order they finished.
| Product | Weight | Noise | Power draw | Suction/lift | Airflow | Mustard stain removal ranking | Chocolate syrup stain removal ranking | Coffee stain removal ranking | Grape juice stain removal ranking |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Bissell HydroSteam$250, most expensive of all 12 machines | just over 12 lb | 86.6 dB | close to 475 W | 64 in of water column, tied for 3rd best | 24.48 peak CFM | 1st, described as by far the best job | 1st | 4th | 3rd |
| 2Vacmaster$75 | just under 8 lb | 93 dB | around 510 W | 70 in of water column, 2nd best of all 12, described as by far the most lift at introduction | 23.3 CFM | 2nd | 6th | 1st | 2nd |
| 3Shark$150 | 8.18 lb | 88.5 dB | close to 480 W | close to 56 in of water column | 23.55 CFM | 4th | 2nd | 7th | 1st |
| 4WURESE$90 | 8.13 lb | 84.9 dB, 2nd quietest of all 12 | very close to 485 W | 64 in of water column, tied for 3rd best | 12.9 CFM, struggled badly on this test | 8th | 7th | 2nd | 8th (inferred by elimination; the transcript labels this ranking slot 'WeeClean,' which is a duplicate of WECLEAN's already-assigned 12th place in this same test and is resolved as a mislabel rather than a genuine repeat placement) |
| 5Bissell Little Green$130 | just under 9 lb | 88.8 dB | close to 423 W | close to 48 in of water column | 27.87 CFM, 3rd best of all 12 | 10th | 3rd | 3rd | 6th |
| 6Rivenara$70 | 8.26 lb | 91.2 dB | 410 W | 50 in of water column at introduction | 22.3 CFM | 3rd | 8th | 11th | 4th |
| 7Armor All$90 | 10.36 lb | 93 dB | around 840 W, highest of all 12 machines | 73 in of water column, best of all 12 machines | just over 29 CFM (also reported as 29.03 CFM in the final recap), 2nd best of all 12 | 6th | 9th | 12th, worst | 5th |
| 8Hoover$110 | 9.7 lb | 90.3 dB | around 490 W | close to 52 in of water column | 29.53 peak CFM, best of all 12 machines | 9th | 11th | 9th | 9th |
| 9Dirt Devil$68, least expensive of all 12 machines | 7.8 lb | 96.3 dB, loudest of all 12 machines | around 330 W | close to 45 in of water column | 20.5 CFM | 7th | 10th | 8th | 10th |
| 10Uwant$130 | 9.84 lb | 87.8 dB | 565 W | 64 in of water column, tied for 3rd best | 20.85 CFM | 5th | 4th | 10th | 7th |
| 11STARRYBOT$120 | 10.61 lb | 83.8 dB, quietest of all 12 machines | around 392 W | close to 52 in of water column | 12.78 peak CFM, worst of all 12 machines | 12th, worst | 5th | 6th | 11th |
| 12WECLEAN$70 | 7.34 lb | 92.8 dB | very close to 370 W | close to 46 in of water column | 21.56 CFM | 11th | 12th, worst | 5th | 12th, worst |
How it was tested
- mustard stain removal, 2 minutes of cleaning time per machine after a 48-hour stain set, full 12-place ranking given
- chocolate syrup stain removal, 2 minutes of cleaning time per machine after a 48-hour stain set, full 12-place ranking given
- coffee stain removal, 2 minutes of cleaning time per machine after a 48-hour stain set, full 12-place ranking given
- grape juice stain removal on a freshly created (not 48-hour-set) stain, full 12-place ranking given
- ketchup stain removal, announced in the video's introduction as one of five stains tested, but no result narration or ranking for this test appears anywhere in the transcript
- motor oil stain removal, announced in the video's introduction as one of five stains tested, but only 1 or 2 fragmentary, unclearly attributed sentences about an 'oil stain' appear in the transcript (merged into the grape juice test discussion), with no ranking or per-brand results
- suction/lift measured in inches of water column, both as an individual spec at each machine's introduction and as a separate top-3 ranking in the final recap
- airflow measured in peak CFM with an anemometer and sealed test box, full ranking given for most brands with a top-3 final recap
- noise level measured at 12 in from the machine, individual spec given for all 12 with a partial top-3 quietest ranking in the final recap
“the Bissell HydroSteam came out on top with the best average finish of second place”