Levoit LVAC-200 Review

The Levoit stands up on its own, so you don't need to drill holes in your wall for storage like you would with other cordless vacuums.

Carpet Performance

While the Levoit, like many cordless vacuums, lacks the power to really excel on high-pile carpet, it shines on low-pile carpet, with one of our best price-to-performance ratios.

In terms of real-world performance, we found this vacuum more than adequate. Between two timed trials, it removed an average of 86% of the debris we laid out for it. We feel confident that it could have achieved 100% capture with a few more passes.

Unlike many of the cordless vacuums we tested, this product didn't struggle with 'plowing' or piling up the debris in front of the head, doing better with the larger debris. There was a little sand behind, but nothing that couldn't be cleaned up with a bit more time. Overall, our testing convinced us that this vacuum could handle just about any everyday mess on low-pile carpet, from kitchen crumbs to dirt tracked into the house.

The trade-off for a lightweight and a low price tag is, in this case, a lack of suction power, and that manifests most obviously on deep carpets.

With high-pile carpet, it would have taken several more passes to clear up the larger debris, and it's possible it just wouldn't have the suction to clear up smaller pieces that had worked their way deep into the carpet. Long story short, if you live in a shag-carpeted household that generates a lot of large crumbs (Kids? Baking habit? Messy boyfriend?), this likely isn't the vacuum for you.

Hardwood Performance

Hardwood was another area where the LVAC-200 showed a middling performance. But with 77% of debris captured, it will get the job done, albeit without the speed and seamless efficacy of our hardwood star, the Dyson V15 Detect.

If you have a lot of hardwood, this vacuum might not be the pick for you. In addition to the piling issue, the single brush roll head doesn't have some of the cushioning features other brands include that safeguard your beautiful floors. Nor do the Levoit's LED lights compare to the laser detection of Dyson's Fluffy Optic brush roll, available in a range of cordless models. However, if you have limited hard surfaces or are willing to make the trade-off for price and ease of maintenance, this product can certainly get the job done, perhaps with a little extra time.

Staircases and hallways seem like they're mostly edges. If your vacuum is dropping the ball, you can find yourself laboriously retracing the same strip of wall or set of stairs, only to see that it's still dirty when you're done. The LVAC-200 doesn't have that problem. Every last crumb was sucked up–in both the parallel and head-on testing.

Before Testing After Testing

This vacuum's stellar edge performance is particularly nice because combined with its highly maneuverable head, it makes it a great option for tight spaces. We would happily run this vacuum underneath a bed or armchair a few times and trust that it had tracked the edges and corners and covered the whole area.

Pet Hair

There were still a few visible clumps left behind during testing, but this vacuum sucked up about average for standard carpets. It can help counter the never-ending fur on the floor, but it most likely won't clean up every strand.

Before Testing After Testing

It didn't perform as well on high-pile carpets and rugs, as longer hair tended to wrap around the roller by the end of testing. This issue isn't unique to this model. Most cordless vacuums advertise some form of anti-tangling brush technology, but few of them actually work well in practice.

Filtration

Filtration is perhaps the most involved of the metrics we test, but to us, it's also one of the most important.

There was no meaningful spike in particle count from the testing room's baseline on any of the three trials we ran it through. Filtration may be one of the less tangible metrics to base a vacuum decision on, but try a vacuum with poor filtration during pollen season and you'll see why it's important. The EPA has a great interactive tool to learn more about home air quality; one of the points it emphasizes is the importance of regular vacuuming. We found that the Levoit did a great job with filtration, especially compared to other budget models that often fall short in this area.

Ease of Use

One of our favorite things about this vacuum was how pleasant it was to use. From intuitive cleaning to easy swiveling, it just never felt like a pain. Those little conveniences add up to make vacuuming feel a whole lot less laborious.

The LVAC-200 was nothing short of a delight, rolling smoothly over lips and transitions, cornering effortlessly, and swiveling smoothly to hug the base of the furniture. It stretched under the couch easily, lying completely flat if needed. Best of all, we could walk away from this vacuum without a second thought because, unlike some many stick vacuums, the LVAC stands up on its own. With a 3.3-pound motor head weight, it's also very light. It could easily be used overhead in its handheld mode and would be a great option for anyone who tires quickly or wants to save their arms for the gym.

The LVAC-200 comes with two attachments: one for crevices and one for pet hair. They are simple, but they work surprisingly well.

Before Testing After Testing

Battery

We tested this product's run time and found that it could survive 35 minutes on the low setting and 17 on high. Seventeen minutes is actually quite a long life for a cordless vacuum on high, but that's because this vacuum's high setting is not particularly powerful. And because the LVAC doesn't have a 'detect' mode that toggles the vacuum from low to high depending on the substrate, it's on the user to remember to switch from high back to low, or see their vacuum die a lot sooner.

Like most cordless vacuums, the LVAC-200 will likely require a couple of charge breaks to clean the whole house. If you live in a smaller space, or you're happy to split your vacuuming between a couple of sessions, this might not be a problem at all. However, if you want to ensure that you can get the vacuuming done in one go, it might be worth considering a corded model.

Should You Buy the Levoit LVAC-200?

A vacuum as affordable as the LVAC-200 may not be perfect for everyone. But if you're looking for a solid performance, easy use, and a palatable price, it might be perfect for you. While its lower-end suction would steer us away from recommending it to owners with lots of shag carpet, we think it can absolutely get the job done for the rest of us. If what you're after is a vacuum that will keep your house clean with no hassle and no payment plan, this is a great option for you.

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