Shark Vertex Pro Lightweight Review

As we're busy measuring suction, filtration, and cleaning performance in our labs, the Shark Vertex Pro Lightweight has one feature that gets a little less love than the numbers might reveal: Shark's MultFLEX bendable wand is legit. Not only did it let us slide the vacuum under furniture, but it also let us store the vacuum differently than most cordless vacuums that require a wall mount. The MultiFLEX design allows the wand to fold in half, positioning the canister over the head of the vacuum, creating a sturdy, self-standing vacuum that can be conveniently stored anywhere in a closet, with or without a wall.

Performance Comparison

Carpet Performance

To test all cordless vacuums on carpet, we spread 1/2 cup of sand, rice, and Cheerios for each carpet type. We utilize 3 different debris types to test a range of different-sized materials that usually lurk around the house. Additionally, we conducted the same tests on both low and high piles to give us results on different pile lengths. Surprisingly, just an inch difference in pile height can create distinguishing requirements for both carpet types.

We measure the weight of the total amount we place down so that after our timed test has finished, we can measure the weight difference to find the total percent collected during testing. Visual assessments can be misleading, so we follow these same procedures for every vacuum we test.

Low Pile

This vacuum, on average, sucked up 90% of everything I placed down in our low pile carpet test. This is just 6% behind the leader, Dyson Gen5detect, which costs roughly twice as much.

This Shark tended to suck up all the Cheerios and rice, leaving the carpet visibly clean. The uncollected remainder was sand that slipped into the carpet fibers.

While the Vertex is not as powerful as Dysons, it's more maneuverable — so making a few extra passes for sand is simple and painless.

High Pile

Despite having less measured suction power than several competitors, it managed to suck up 57% of the debris in our rigorous 24-second test, averaging over 3 separate test runs.

This is most likely due to its impressive ability to tackle large material sizes. After our testing, I could see that most of the Cheerios and rice were sucked up. However, the majority of what remained was sand, a tough debris to lift deep within the fibers of a fluffier carpet.

Overall Carpet Cleaning Performance

After multiple trials on separate carpet pile heights, the Vertex achieved impressive overall results for a mid-level vacuum.

A shining note with this vacuum is its impressive collection during our high pile carpet testing. The Vertex tied with the Tineco Pure ONE S11 for the best performance with higher pile carpets, making it a great choice for anyone who has thick, shaggy rugs around the house.

Hardwood Performance

As with our carpet tests, we again used a total of 1.5 cups of sand, rice, and Cheerios in our primary hardwood test, spread over 27 square feet.

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The three different types of material reveal design issues that can help you make the right buying decision for the messes you often face in your home. Again, we gave our testers just 24 seconds to collect as much as possible.

Cleaning Performance

Soft brush rollers tend to shine here, and the Vertex DuoClean system is no exception. Why? The powerhouse soft rollers' gentle bristles act like a buffer when they move across the floor, leaving it exceptionally clean, even to the touch.

Since debris isn't buried deep in the fibers like carpet, a vacuum doesn't necessarily need to provide as much power. Although a soft roller head design doesn't provide much of a seal, pure motor power is sufficient, especially with this machine.

After two trials, it was evident that this machine is stellar on hardwood. With a consistent average of 96%, this vacuum is just 3% behind the winner in this test. That's not bad, especially considering the amount of material we tested.

I like how the dual brush roller tackled all debris sizes going in the forward direction. Moving in reverse is not its strong suit, but I could easily pivot the head to face piles head-on.

Crevice

We performed our tough crevice test by placing sand inside bamboo slats to see how much it could suck up without its brush roller being able to hit the embedded sand. This test shows us how well a vacuum can handle more stringent conditions, like grouted tiles or intersections.

This vacuum made a valiant effort despite having a weak suction power. It collected 85% of the sand I placed down. I could see it picking up sand little by little, so if you have a pesky area, it may take a few extra passes, but it can eventually complete the job.

Edges

We assess edge-cleaning performance by testing the vacuum both head-on and parallel to walls, determining how effectively it cleans while reaching as close as possible to the baseboards lining our in-house testing facility. Vacuuming parallel to the wall proved to be the most effective method, as it managed to pick up all visible coffee grounds. Vacuuming head-on was not as effective, leaving some grounds behind. This was a great performance, and its parallel prowess will be handy if you have long hallways in your home.

Overall Hardwood Cleaning Performance

While the Vertex Pro didn't top our charts on hardwood, it ranked well above average in every test.

For most people with a common mix of carpet and hardwood in their households, the DuoClean head will let them tackle any surface with very competitive results without needing to change heads, which is typically required by the leading Dyson vacuums we tested. If you prefer an easy-to-use vacuum that trades a tiny bit of performance in favor of versatility, it'll be hard to go wrong with this lightweight Shark machine.

Pet Hair

Our 12-second pet hair challenge is one of the most difficult tests we put our vacuums through in our lab. We weigh 4 grams of pet hair, then smear and mash it into a 4.5' x 3' section of carpet, spreading an additional 1 gram of long hair extensions throughout to simulate longer human hair.

To embed the hair into the carpet fibers, we mash it in with a heavy roller wheel to simulate the effects of household traffic.

While its performance with pet hair is great, I experienced some annoying clumping on the underside of the cleaner head, requiring removal by hand. Based on how much hype the DuoClean brushrollers get, I would have expected better pet hair management. To get around some of this problem, I recommend that pet owners run over the pet hair in a forward direction as much as possible to avoid the backplowed, hair-clumping issue I experienced.

Filtration & Suction

This cordless vacuum is a prime example of a model that excels in filtration but lacks suction.

Like this model, some vacuums can overcome low suction and remain competitive through outstanding cleaner head design. However, others struggle, resulting in a cascade of metrics and tests that can help illuminate how a vacuum might work in homes. Let's take a closer look.

Filtration

To test a vacuum's filtration abilities, we vacuum 1/3 cup of flour off the floor in a clean room environment while monitoring air quality for changes in particulate matter in the air using two Dylos air quality monitors. Flour particles are very small, so if some flour escapes or isn't filtered, these particles will show up on our two separate particle counters, simulating typical dust or allergens that could escape.

This lightweight vacuum performed near the top of all the vacuums we tested, successfully collecting the flour without spiking the room's air quality. Dylos considers any count below 75 to be excellent. For those with allergies, this vacuum won't worsen sniffles or sneezing.

Suction

While the 323 pascals suction measurement in our labs at the cleaner head initially seemed disappointing, the DuoClean PowerFins head design made up for the weak suction in our real-world stress tests.

The excellent carpet and hardwood test results, detailed above, reveal how intelligent design throughout the entire cordless vacuum system can play an important role in performance, showing us that even vacuums with less raw power can still work well. From my experience, I believe that Shark's DuoClean head with two separate powered brushrollers is a key reason it's able to suck up so much debris.

Ease of Use

This model feels agile on multiple floors, is easy to clean, and includes three handy accessory tools.

A big part of this vacuum's ease of use uniqueness comes from its Multi-FLEX hinge, which is great for reaching under furniture to nab deeply hiding dust bunnies that have most likely built up for months. I think it'll be a winner for those who struggle to reach under furniture with typical rigid vacuum cleaner designs.

Maneuverability

With a handheld motor weight of just under 4 pounds plus an easy-swiveling head, most people won't have much trouble maneuvering around tough obstacles in the home.

The Multi-FLEX hinge is an obvious differentiator, but this option was especially good at pivoting its cleaner head when hunting for debris.

Maintenance

We enjoyed how simple this model was to clean. There are intuitive pictograms on the vacuum showing you how to place the filters, and almost everything on the vacuum, from the dustbin to the filters, was very easy to clean. All you have to do is wet the filter until the water runs clear and let it dry fully, and you'll be ready to clean again.

Our only gripe was with the dual brush roll. There is a small blue button on the side of the vacuum that you push to release the soft DuoClean brush to remove and clean it and remove hairs from the comb. However, the other brush roller cannot be removed. I had to cut away caught hair on the non-removable brushroller, and I couldn't remove it to wash it, either. This is the only annoying hassle I found when cleaning this device.

Uphostery & Attachments

If you're concerned about this vacuum's ability on upholstery, don't be. The anti-allergen brush attachment that comes with the vacuum can clean many messes on items like pillows or couches.

We tested its upholstery abilities by spreading coffee grounds across some pillows and an ironing board, and it easily cleaned up these messes. While it did leave a small streak of coffee grounds on the pillows, it wasn't much. Overall, it's an incredibly efficient machine, lending a helpful hand in various situations.

Battery

This model can last 48 minutes on the lowest setting and 12 minutes on the highest setting.

The low-power runtime is a bit low for larger households, so you might have to recharge during a whole-house cleaning. On the other hand, we measured the handheld weight of this vacuum at just 3.8 lbs, contributing to its lightweight feel in use. Shark could have included a larger battery to give consumers longer runtimes but likely decided to keep the weight low with a smaller battery. Those who clean in shorter bursts of time will likely be good to go.

Should You Buy the Shark Vertex Pro Lightweight?

We can confidently say that this is a smart purchase, regardless of your budget. Stick vacuums are expensive, and this one is no different. Still, it's relatively affordable compared to other high-performing vacuums on the market, and it's one of the most capable as well. While it's not at the absolute top in vacuuming performance, it's knocking on the door. This, combined with its useful features, creates a great all-around vacuum for any household. This model can do it all and is worth the investment.

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