Corded vs cordless vacuum cleaners: Are the shackles worth it?

While model strengths can vary a little, in most cases you’ll find that a traditional corded vacuum cleaner provides more suction power than its cordless equivalent, especially over time. 

That’s because a corded vacuum cleaner can use all of its suction power pretty much all of the time without having to manage power considerations; the only matter that’s likely to impact its suction is if actual matter gets stuck in its pipes or hoses, or if it’s just plain full.

Conversely, while many cordless stick-type vacuum cleaners do offer variable suction power, they don’t tend to be able to do so for all that long. 

Even models with more battery power like the Roborock H5 that claim up to a 60 minute run time only do so at minimum suction rates; put them into full suction mode and you’re lucky to see a third of that runtime before it’s time to charge them up again.

Corded vacuum cleaners don’t have batteries, instead relying on the presence of plug sockets in the rooms where you need to do your cleaning. 

That can work well enough as long as there’s a free plug socket in a convenient place, because without power, you’re not going to get much going at all. That can and does also limit where you can vacuum to the length of your vacuum cleaner cord. If you’re in an older property with limited accessible power points, that can be a real issue.

One of the strengths of a battery-powered vacuum cleaner is that it’s supremely portable, because you can take it anywhere you like for easier cleaning without having to deal with cord length or plug accessibility issues. 

However, the flip side of that arrangement is what happens when the battery runs flat. If you pull your corded vacuum cleaner a little too far and the plug comes out of the wall, it’ll stop – and you should try to avoid doing that as it’s not good for the plug or the socket – but getting it going again is as simple as plugging it back in.

Battery powered vacuum cleaners typically take several hours to recharge, so if you’ve got a larger space to clean, or you’re just a little lazy about keeping your cordless vacuum cleaner recharged, you might find yourself running out of juice long before you’ve hunted down every last dust bunny.

Here we’d generally pick a cordless vacuum cleaner as the easier type to move around, typified by the stick vacuum type that’s available through many prominent brands. A cordless vacuum is by definition a cord-free zone, and that gives you some significant ease-of-use benefits because there’s nothing to trip over, nothing to pull out of a wall and nothing that needs collecting up once the vacuuming is done.

Cordless vacuum cleaners also tend to be lighter than their corded counterparts, which can aid in an ease of use sense if you’re vacuuming up stairs or using the vacuum cleaner to clear cobwebs or any other task that involves lifting the body of the vacuum cleaner itself. If you’ve got issues lifting heavier objects for any reason, a cordless vacuum cleaner could be a considerably better option.

Your other option in this category if you don’t want to lift a vacuum much at all is a robot vacuum cleaner.

While it’s always worth shopping around for bargains, and like any other product category there are both budget-level and fancy premium models of either corded or cordless vacuum cleaners depending on your finances and brand preferences. As a general rule for cordless vacuum cleaners tend a little more expensive than their corded siblings.

Adding in battery power and making it all work in a generally compact body takes time and money to develop, and in most cases that adds up to a vacuum cleaner that’s more expensive to buy outright.

That’s not the only costing you should take into consideration however. While running costs can vary depending on how much you’re paying for power in the first place, it’s also worth considering the cost of consumable items for either type of vacuum cleaner.

Many corded and some cordless vacuum cleaners can use dust bags, and these can be a vital inclusion if you’ve got specific allergies where simply having a dust cavity that you dump into the bin won’t cut it. If you’re buying a model with features like an inbuilt HEPA filter, those too eventually lose their effectiveness and will need replacing. 

For many cordless stick vacuums over time you may have to replace vacuum heads as rollers or their catching brushes wear down as well. It’s always worth looking into each manufacturer’s warranty statements around which parts of a vacuum cleaner are covered by general warranty, and which ones are viewed as “consumables” – which doesn’t mean you’re eating a vacuum cleaner (eww…) but instead that they’re expected to wear out and be replaced by you at your cost.