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The 6 Best Carpet Cleaners of 2024, Tested and Reviewed

For eliminating stains, pet odors, and everyday messes

Bissell Little Green Portable Carpet and Upholstery Cleaner on floor next to a planter

Tamara Staples

So, you accidentally spilled a plate of saucy spaghetti all over your beige dining room carpet. What to do? Act quickly, for one, and don't let the mess soak in. Then, you will want to pull out a trusty carpet cleaner. It's the best way to remove dirt, stains, and smells from any wall-to-wall carpeting and large area rugs, and works very similarly to a vacuum cleaner.

To get right into it, carpet cleaners typically come in three forms: upright machines and portable machines, and cleaning formulas and solutions. In this piece, we focus on the former (we have an entire piece dedicated to the latter, our best and tested carpet stain removers), since appliances are the most effective at cleaning carpets in their entirety. Solutions, sprays, and formulas are more for spot-cleaning a drip of wine, while appliances are better for sprucing up your high-traffic areas and the larger patch of an area rug your pet had an accident on.

When it comes to carpet cleaning machines, we've tested 55 different models from top brands like Bissell (who tends to dominate this space), Tineco, Hoover, Rug Doctor, and more in The Lab and at home. We've created messes with orange juice, ketchup, coffee, wine, and potting soil, rating each pick's effectiveness, noise level, portability, and value, among other things. Our top picks are easy to use, so you can have clean carpets whether you're a beginner or a pro.

Our Top Picks

Best Overall

Bissell ProHeat 2X Revolution Pet Carpet Cleaner

Wayfair Bissell ProHeat 2X Revolution Pet Carpet Cleaner 35799

Wayfair

What We Like
  • One of the all-time, best-performing carpet cleaning machines we’ve tried

  • Wand attachment

  • Intuitive design and simple fill process

What We Don’t Like
  • Above-average noise level

  • Heavy and bulky design

As mentioned above, we’ve tested 55 different carpet cleaning machines over the years, and 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 machines we tested alongside it in the lab, but it beat out other strong performers from past rounds and years of testing, as well. 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 dirty water collection. 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. As you would expect because of their power, 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

Best Overall, Runner-Up

Tineco iCarpet

Amazon Tineco iCarpet

Amazon

What We Like
  • Lighter and quieter than most other picks

  • Sleeker design is well-suited for stains and spot-cleaning

  • Dry-only mode

What We Don’t Like
  • Some buttons and mechanisms were vaguely marked

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 are cumbersome in general, 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), and we think that both machines are well-suited for carpet cleaning, 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 in general, but if you’re looking for reasons why this pick or the Bissell ProHeat 2X Revolution Pet Carpet Cleaner 35799 might be right for you, the larger water basin of the ProHeat 2X Revolution and the tighter, trimmer design of the iCarpet are the main variations. 

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

Best Value

Hoover Pro Clean Pet Carpet Cleaner

Walmart Hoover Pro Clean Pet Carpet Cleaner

Walmart

What We Like
  • Cleaning performance rivals top picks

  • 1-gallon clean water basin

  • Foot controls

What We Don’t Like
  • Not as easy to move as other picks

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. And, 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 (which you may have seen on a vacuum before). 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 clean water tank, which made the process easy, but it’s 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. 

Overall, the Hoover Pro Clean Pet Carpet Cleaner FH51050 packs a cleaning punch in a reasonably priced package, and we enthusiastically recommend it for households with lots of rugs and carpets. 

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

Best for Deep Cleaning

Rug Doctor Trudeep Cleaner

Rug Doctor Trudeep Cleaner

Rug Doctor

What We Like
  • Hose and upholstery tool work well

  • Great for homes with larger cleaning needs

  • Impressively quick drying

What We Don’t Like
  • Cleaning solution not included

  • Not as much cleaning time from a full tank of solution

  • Heavy

The Rug Doctor Trudeep Cleaner looks, feels, and performs much like a commercial-style carpet cleaner. If you’ve ever seen the rental machines available at your local grocery or hardware store, the design might look familiar. Both the clean and dirty water tanks are on the base of the machine, as opposed to positioned vertically like with our other picks, so it’s very bottom-heavy and has a more robust handle. The design is more cumbersome to use and only works as you’re pulling it backward, or toward you. It took us only about 20 or so seconds to get used to this, so as long as you’re not married to a vacuum-style push design, you’ll likely be just fine with it, too.

The bulkier design comes with robust cleaning capabilities, too. Just after we finished with this machine, there was lots of agreement in the lab that this was a top-performing machine. Once the rug completely dried, we saw the faintest remnants of some of the stains we tackled, but really, this machine delivers impressive results. We’re also pleased with how quickly the carpet felt dry again, which speaks well to how much moisture (and grime!) it lifts away. And it’s also worth noting that we were expecting it to be louder—it came in at 83 decibels, making it one of the quietest machines we tested. We wouldn’t go as far as saying it’s quiet—no carpet cleaner is—but you could have a conversation over it with someone else in the room. 

While this machine really seems most fit for large-area-cleaning, it does have a hose and upholstery attachment for spot-cleaning, too, so you can still target small stains. If you have a lot of high-traffic areas in your home, and lots of rooms that need cleaning, it’s a great option for you. 

Weight: 34.81 pounds (when full) | Cord Length: Not listed | Attachments: Hose, pet upholstery tool

Best Portable

Bissell Little Green Portable Carpet and Upholstery Cleaner

Bissell 1400B Little Green Multi-Purpose Portable Carpet and Upholstery Cleaner

Amazon

What We Like
  • Comfortable hose and attachment design

  • Excellent spot treatment

  • Smaller and more lightweight than upright machines

What We Don't Like
  • Better for fresh stains versus set-in ones

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 and delivers when it comes to spot-cleaning. It lifts even the toughest of stains and isn't difficult to operate. Cleaning and maintenance are easy, and the turtle shell design is quite adorable.

This machine impressed as it cleaned perfect 3-inch paths through each stain we tasked it with. 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, just be warned that you may find yourself wandering around your home looking for more stains to tackle, since it’s that satisfying to use (and transport)!

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

Best for Pet Owners

Rug Doctor Pet Portable Spot Cleaner

Rug Doctor Pet Portable Spot Cleaner

Amazon

What We Like
  • Rolling design

  • Effective at quickly spot-treating stains

  • No setup required

What We Don't Like
  • Clean water tank is challenging to fill

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. 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. 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 (where we test products for months after assessing them in the lab), 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.

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 own a pet or two. 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

Can carpet cleaners remove pet odors?

The short answer is: sometimes, and it largely depends on whether the padding underneath the carpet has been contaminated. If urine has saturated the carpet padding, cleaning the fibers on top is unlikely to remove the odor completely. If you use a carpet cleaner in combination with an enzymatic cleaner, you’re more likely to be successful in neutralizing the odor. One very important thing to note is that you should not use hot water to deep clean carpets with pet odors. The heat can bond the proteins in urine to carpet fibers, resulting in a hard-to-remove stain and lingering odor.

Compare

Setup Effectiveness Noise Level Ease of Use Portability
Wayfair Bissell ProHeat 2X Revolution Pet Carpet Cleaner 35799
Best Overall:
Bissell ProHeat 2X Revolution Pet Carpet Cleaner
4.8 5 3.8 5 4.8
Amazon Tineco iCarpet
Best Overall, Runner-Up:
Tineco iCarpet
5 4.7 5 4.5 5
Walmart Hoover Pro Clean Pet Carpet Cleaner
Best Value:
Hoover Pro Clean Pet Carpet Cleaner
4.8 4.5 4.4 5 4.5
Rug Doctor Trudeep Cleaner
Best for Deep Cleaning:
Rug Doctor Trudeep Cleaner
5 5 5 4.8 4
Bissell 1400B Little Green Multi-Purpose Portable Carpet and Upholstery Cleaner
Best Portable:
Bissell Little Green Portable Carpet and Upholstery Cleaner
4.8 3.5 4.5 4 5
Rug Doctor Pet Portable Spot Cleaner
Best for Pet Owners:
Rug Doctor Pet Portable Spot Cleaner
5 4.5 3 4.5 5
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.

Other Options We Tested

Shark CarpetXpert with Stainstrike Upright Deep Carpet Cleaner: We’re normally big fans of Shark products, but this one didn’t knock our socks off. The cleaning performance was about average compared to other machines, but the dirty water tank had to be frequently emptied while we were using it, which was cumbersome. Perhaps the most concerning thing was that it left the underside of our rug wet, which has us worried about potential damage. If you’re gifted this machine, or you find a great deal on it, it’ll get the job done for short spurts of cleaning, but you can likely find better options for comparable prices. 

Tineco Carpet One: While we liked how lightweight this machine is compared to many others in its category, the cleaning performance simply wasn’t there. It struggled to lift all the stains we tried it with, and the smaller tank size required frequent refills. We like the direction Tineco is going with the design, but think that the other model we tested from this brand, the iCarpet, is a much better choice.

Two carpets with stains lined up on them

The Spruce / Tamara Staples

How We Tested the Carpet Cleaners

During our carpet cleaner tests in The Lab, we’ve put more than 50 carpet cleaners through a series of tests to compare their strengths and weaknesses.

  • Ease of Setup: We time how long it takes to unbox each cleaner, evaluating the instructions and how many steps are involved in the process. 
  • Effectiveness: We test each appliance's effectiveness by making stains of classic household mess-makers like coffee, red wine, and chocolate ahead of our testing so they have time to dry. Right before testing, we spill coffee and wine on a test carpet too, so we can assess performance on fresh stains as well as tough, set-in stains. We run each machine based on the manufacturer’s guidelines to get a clear and accurate picture of how well it performs. 
  • Noise Level: We test the noise level of each machine with a decibel meter, and note whether we could have a conversation over the machine's noise.
  • Ease of Use: Can we comfortably use the machine, and how smooth is it to operate and use? This is also where we note overall maneuverability, and how convenient it is (or isn’t!) to fill and empty the water tanks. 
  • Portability: We score portability on whether we can lift the carpet cleaner with one hand or two, and how heavy the machine is when the water tank is full.
  • Overall Value: We then weigh these factors against the price to determine the overall value of each machine, and whether we would recommend the cleaner to a friend or family member—especially at its full price.
Tineco Carpet One

Henry Wortock

What to Look for in a Carpet Cleaner

Design and Size

When shopping for a carpet cleaner, first consider what type you're looking for: upright or portable. Each design has its advantages, and we've included examples of each style on this list. An upright cleaner (like the Bissell ProHeat 2X Revolution Pet Carpet Cleaner 35799, our best overall pick) covers more square footage, while a portable cleaner is better for spot-cleaning small messes (including our best portable pick, the Bissell Little Green Portable Carpet and Upholstery Cleaner). While a portable carpet cleaner can fit on a shelf or in a cabinet, upright appliances will typically take up space comparable to a vacuum cleaner, so factor in whether your home has room for a full-sized machine.

When selecting a model, consider the size of its tanks, too. A larger capacity treats you to a lot more deep-cleaning power in a single session, but can also make the product heavy and very difficult to maneuver. A gallon-sized tank is a popular choice, but other sizes are available, too–like with the Tineco iCarpet, our best overall, runner-up pick, which has a 2-liter tank.

Stain Treatment and Accessories

Stains from dirt, mud, food and drink, grease, oil, and more can often be greatly reduced or even eliminated with the help of a carpet cleaner. The most important tip to remember is to treat a carpet stain as quickly as possible. For liquid spills, you'll want to immediately blot away the moisture with paper towels or cloth. If you're dealing with set-in stains on your carpet or upholstery, you might want to pre-treat them with a carpet-cleaning spray or solution before shampooing your entire carpet.

You can also use the attachable hoses and accessories that all of our favorite machines include for more targeted cleaning, if and when the need arises. Attachments like the pet stain tool and a 3-in-1 tough stain tool that come with the Bissell ProHeat 2X Revolution Pet Carpet Cleaner 35799, or the pet upholstery tool that comes with the Rug Doctor Trudeep Cleaner, allow you to zero in on trouble spots with a bit more precision than the regular setting typically allows. 

Some stains may disappear with a single treatment, while others may require repeated cleaning sessions. To take stain-fighting power up a notch, you might consider using a specialty carpet-cleaning solution, like one formulated for pet stains, with your carpet cleaner. 

Quick Drying

Gone are the days of waiting overnight for your freshly cleaned carpet to dry. All carpet cleaners recommended on this list left our testing carpet satisfactorily dry after only two hours, and for some it was much sooner (our best overall, runner-up, for example, the Tineco iCarpet, left the carpet feeling dry after just 23 minutes). Quick or efficient drying times are important not just because you can get back to your regular activities on your flooring, but because prolonged moisture can lead to carpets becoming smelly or moldy.

Michela Buttignol / The Spruce

One More Thing

How often should you use a carpet cleaner?

Carpets in your home should be deep cleaned about once every 12 to 18 months. Carpet cleaners, like the ones we've highlighted in this list, use water extraction to clean, spraying the carpet with water and then sucking it back into the machine with any captured dirt. Professional steam cleaning uses higher temperatures to more directly inject hot water into your carpet, and it will typically perform better than a home carpet cleaner. While cleaning your own carpets is entirely viable, you might still want a professional service occasionally.

Your specific needs will vary based on the type of carpet you have in your home, the volume of foot traffic, and whether you have children, pets, or habits that contribute to more rapid dirt buildup.

A person removing a dirty water compartment from the Shark CarpetXpert with Stainstrike Upright Deep Carpet Cleaner

The Spruce / Henry Wortock

The Checkout Counter

If you’re shopping for a carpet cleaner, these other products may be helpful for you cleaning kit, too: 

  1. “Hello” Doormat from Calloway Mills: One of our favorite doormats of the year, this tufted mat adds a pop of personality to your entryway, while ensuring that guests can wipe their shoes well, and not track extra dirt and grime onto your clean carpets. 
  2. E-Cloth Reusable Paper Towel Replacement Cloths: For quickly absorbing any future drips or spills, a set of microfiber cloths are an eco-friendly option to keep on hand. 
  3. mDesign Cleaning Caddy: You’ll be more likely to use your cleaning supplies if they’re neat and organized. We like plastic caddies, which you can easily tote around your home, and then stash under the sink when not in use.

Why Trust The Spruce?

Dena Ogden is an associate editor who’s been writing professionally since 2016, and with The Spruce since August 2022. For this story, she utilized extensive data from The Lab and from our home-testing experience, where we take products home after formal testing to see how they hold up in real life. She’s used carpet and upholstery-cleaning machines from both Bissell and Hoover, and is also familiar with Tineco and Shark products, too. As frequently as she cleans her carpet, she still can’t get over the dirty water that these machines produce. 

Our Experts:

The Spruce uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
  1. How To Remove Pet Stains And Odors. The Humane Society Of The United States, 2021.