REASONS TO BUY
Useful attachments
USB-C charging port
Compact size
REASONS TO AVOID
Limited power
Short battery life
Small dust bin
Wyze Handheld Review
Low power, a small dust bin, and limited convenience features reduce the appeal of this inexpensive, compact device
Credit: Wyze
By Nick Miley ⋅ Senior Review Editor ⋅ September 21, 2022
Contributions From: Jessica Riconscente
RELATED: The Best Handheld Vacuum of 2025
Our Verdict
While the Wyze Handheld vacuum is compact and inexpensive, the unit is less than convenient compared to its peers. The battery drains rapidly, the dust bin fills just as fast, and it is prone to clogging. Moreover, the vacuum struggles with tough messes and can't clean some common tight spots that rationalize such a purchase. While we like that the battery charges with a USB-C cable and that the unit comes with some helpful attachments, its uses are limited compared to the competition. We recommend looking at other top handheld vacuums.
Our Analysis and Test Results
The Wyze has a lot to offer with its plethora of attachments, but its motor is underpowered, and the device suffered in our evaluation as a result.
Credit: Abriah Wofford
Dust and Dirt
The compact, power-deficient Wyze Handheld vacuum delivered a below-average performance with a particularly bad showing in the outdoor dirt evaluation.
The Wyze's surface dusting performance was so-so, requiring multiple passes due to the low airflow. However, the medium-stiff bristles help mitigate the lack of suction. The baseboard test also rendered surprisingly lackluster results, requiring testers to adopt awkward angles for the best outcomes. As for dried mud, the Wyze was almost completely useless. In a final showing of its poor design and limited utility, this unit does not fit well into corners.
The Wyze struggled with the baseboard test, missing most of the dirt in the corners.
Credit: Jessica Riconscente
Tough Messes
The performance of the Wyze did not improve when we tested it on tough messes. In the oatmeal on couch cushion test, the unit fails entirely. Surprisingly, it made up some ground when cleaning the same material on the floor mat.
The Wyze gave up any gains it made with the oatmeal test cleaning flour off car mats — after several passes, the vacuum left a visible white residue. The Mini-Wheat tests yielded similarly inconsistent results, demonstrating that this unit isn't a good choice if cleaning bigger messes is your objective. Finally, we measured the airflow of the Wyze at 728 feet per minute at the nozzle end. This flow rate is quite low compared to the other units in the class.
Many handheld vacuums struggle to remove flour from cushions, but the Wyze's performance was particularly poor.
Credit: Jessica Riconscente
Hard-to-Reach Areas
Despite the Wyze's compact, cylindrical design and attachments, it delivered inconsistent results.
The Wyze has one heck of reach with its hose attachment.
Credit: Jessica Riconscente
The Wyze has several attachments that allow it to dig into hard-to-access areas such as the space between a car seat and the console. The hose extension, for example, reaches up to 30 inches under a nightstand. However, the unit did not keep up the performance when cleaning window slides. This result was partly due to the rigid body of the unit that limits penetration when put up against a vertical surface.
The Wyze's shape and nozzle's position made it hard to access the windows slide.
Credit: Abriah Wofford
Battery Life
The run time on the Wyze is on the short end of the spectrum at just 11 minutes, 49 seconds. Fortunately, the unit charges with a USB-C cable, making it convenient to power up in the car, home, or shop. We also liked that the unit has a three-light battery charge indicator, so you know when to plug it in before you set it to a task.
The 12-minute runtime on the Wyze wasn't terrible, but many competitive units have longer battery life.
Credit: Jessica Riconscente
Convenience
Despite the compact design and lightweight (1.2 pounds) of the Wyze, it isn't the most convenient. This outcome is due to the high pitch noise produced by the unit, the lack of both tool storage and charging stand, and its extremely small dust bin. The filter is also prone to clogging only after a short runtime — an outcome exacerbated by fine debris like flour. However, emptying the bin is relatively straightforward, though it does require two hands to open the bin.
The Wyze has a lot of great attachments. The question is, where to put them?
Credit: Abriah Wofford
Pet Hair
Surprisingly, the Wyze performed above average in this area. The one downside is that cleaning hair fills the bin rapidly. In reality, if one were to clean a whole couch or car of pet hair, it would require emptying the bin multiple times. Additionally, hair cleaning requires the use of max suction, and this will drain the battery rather quickly. Despite these caveats, the Wyze performed admirably given its low airflow and compact size.
The unit has a special attachment for cleaning pet hair and it works quite well despite the lack of suction power.
Credit: Jessica Riconscente
Should You Buy the Wyze Handheld?
Given its many limitations, we are not big fans of the Wyze Handheld vacuum. Regardless, the vacuum may be a good fit for those that need a light-duty device for their car or around their desk. If you're looking for a bit more power, consider some of the higher-scoring products in our review. You may also appreciate some of the other top-ranked vacuum cleaners out there.
What Other Handheld Vacuums Should You Consider?
We are quite impressed with the Black+Decker Flex Vac BDH2020FL. This unit satisfies our expectations for a handheld vacuum though it is more expensive and quite a bit larger than the Wyze. The Shark Wandvac is a nice compromise between the two. This vacuum costs a little bit more than the Wyze but offers a big step up in performance.
—Nick Miley and Jessica Riconscente
You Might Also Like
