Eureka PowerSpeed Review

The Eureka PowerSpeed upright vacuum series is available in several slightly different colorways and model options, all of which feature the same 960-watt motor. We tested the blue NEU182A version. The most notable tweaks will be variations in attachments as well as clear or opaque polycarbonate styling panels, but based on the very similar specifications in the available variations, we expect on-floor performance to be nearly identical among these models.

Performance Comparison

Carpet Performance

While some modern vacuums excel on hardwood floors, most users still rely on upright vacuums for cleaning carpet. We start our tests on low pile carpets, which are more common, but we also evaluate how vacuums handle high pile carpets, like the trendy shaggy rugs you might place over a hardwood floor in your living room. Our detailed examination considers suction power and cleaner head features, as these elements can affect a vacuum's performance on different surface types.

We begin our carpet tests by measuring and weighing 1/2 cup each of sand, rice, and Cheerios, which we chose because the materials represent typical household debris with challenging sizes and densities. We then spread this mixture over 9' x 3' sections of both carpet types, allowing enough room to move each vacuum forward, backward, and side to side. Each vacuum is given 24 seconds to capture as much debris as possible at a quick pace. This rigorous test pushes all the vacuums we review, from lightweight stick vacuums to heavy-duty canister vacuums, to their limits. To ensure accuracy, we repeat each test 2-3 times.

Low Pile

This entry-level vacuum collected 84% of our test debris, a little below average but not awful compared to competitively priced models we've tested over time.

The Eureka PowerSpeed will likely be frustrating for anyone who has used a premium vacuum. Instead of sucking up all debris on the forward pass, this machine slightly plowed Cheerios and rice on forward passes. I hoped this model could grab the smaller, heavier sand, but it tended to spray sand out the front. To get all or most of the debris collected, I would have needed twice as much time to chase it all down.

High Pile

High pile carpets with tall, shaggy fibers provide ample hiding spots for dirt, making it challenging to vacuum. The fibers can fold over, protecting debris from being sucked up.

To successfully clean high-pile carpets, a vacuum needs a strong brush roller to agitate fibers and sufficient suction to lift debris. This combination is essential for handling dense carpeting.

The PowerSpeed collected an above-average 54%, likely due to its relatively aggressive bristles on the brush roller, which seemed to provide good carpet agitation.

Before Testing After Testing

Even premium vacuums struggle in our high pile stress test, so an above-average score is very good for a budget vacuum. I think some of this machine's troubles can be connected to its cleaner head and relatively low suction. First, the cleaner head has a tendency to plow material, pushing it away from the roller and suction tube so it can't be collected. Second, it seems as if the brush roller is throwing debris before the suction can catch it.

To get better performance with this model, you'll have to be patient and attack messes with many passes from several angles.

Overall Carpet Cleaning Performance

Overall, the PowerSpeed collected close to the average material on low pile carpets but, surprisingly, collected slightly more material than average on high pile carpets.

While many people expect their vacuums to grab everything on the first pass, we haven't yet found a budget model capable of that. Again, the key here will be patience and multiple passes. If you're willing to spend a bit more, I recommend that you consider the Shark Navigator Lift Away Deluxe NV360 or the similar Shark Navigator Lift Away. Both cost twice as much but deliver better performance in more agile form factors.

Hardwood Performance

To evaluate vacuums on hard floors, we use a mixed blend of different sizes of materials to test each vacuum's cleaning characteristics. Some may thrive with larger debris, while others can plow the material.

Before Testing After Testing

We also expanded our testing area to get a better understanding of how it will perform in a room in your house. We measure the before and after to get tangible numbers where visual assessment may deceive us.

Cleaning Performance

Unfortunately, the PowerSpeed wasn't designed with hardwood cleaning in mind. It collected just 78% of our test debris but sprayed the other amount, making more of a mess than we came to expect with a cleaning tool.

This vacuum seems to ignore all three types of debris equally. Occasionally, it rolled over a pile of debris and sucked up most of it, giving me hope, but then a slight variation in the debris pattern would result in sprayed sand, rice, and Cheerios that I then had to try to track down.

Even when I tried to hit debris from different angles or leave room for forward or reverses over plowed piles, I just couldn't get this vacuum to suck it all up effectively. For simple tasks in a kitchen, you can get the material sucked up eventually, but seriously a broom and a dustpan will be more effective and a whole lot more satisfying. Alternately, you're probably better off using a hand tool with this vacuum to clean up in a small kitchen, which would technically let you avoid a broom.

Before Testing After Testing

If you want a much better experience on hardwood, I recommend that you stretch your budget to the Navigator Lift-Away Deluxe or splurge on the Shark Stratos and never look back.

Crevice

Transition areas between different flooring types can trap dirt and debris in their narrow gaps. Homes that are older or have undergone remodeling tend to have wider gaps, while tile floors with deep grout lines pose specific challenges for certain vacuums. To evaluate a vacuum's ability to remove deep material, we distribute 1/2 cup of sand into the crevices of a bamboo mat. Each vacuum gets just four back-and-forth movements, and we assess the sand left after eight total passes over the crevice.

The Eureka PowerSpeed sucked up 46% of the sand in our crevice test, which is just under the average collected by all the upright vacuums we tested. While it's not good enough to entice me to recommend using this machine on tile with deep grout lines, I was impressed that it could deliver a competitive result at its entry-level price point.

Edges

Vacuums differ greatly in their next-to-wall-cleaning capabilities. Some excel in this area, whereas others struggle to reach debris on the sides or just ahead of the floor nozzle. To assess their wall-cleaning skills, we tested them by scattering coffee grounds beside a wall and noted the outcomes with both parallel and head-on attacks.

This little blue bad boy vacuum surprised me with how much of the coffee grounds it was able to suck up in the head on attack — it left just two tiny deposits on the edge, a good result compared to vacuums that cost 2-3 times as much. Unfortunately, the parallel pass was a disaster. I watched in horror as it left a streak of coffee grounds and then started spraying the rest all over, making a bigger mess than I started with.

This machine will be ok for grabbing crumbs that fall under the toe kick area of kitchen cabinets with head-on passes, but you might find problems when cleaning down a long hallway.

Overall Hardwood Cleaning Performance

The Eureka PowerSpeed underperformed the average test result in every hard floor test we put in front of it.

Even though I could change the height of the cleaner head to the recommended bare floor level, this model struggled to collect debris without spraying it around in my hard floor tests. In some cases, I could chase down debris multiple times and eventually catch it, but it would be smarter to use a crevice tool or broom if I were in a hurry. By spending twice as much on the Shark Navigator Lift Away Deluxe NV360, you can get a machine that we rank more than twice as highly as the low ranking score achieved by the PowerSpeed . . . and be able to clean most kitchen floors with ease.

Pet Hair

Dealing with pet fur is a common challenge for pet lovers, particularly those with multiple dogs and cats with breeds that shed frequently. To help you choose the top vacuums for dog and cat owners, we conduct thorough pet hair tests on both low pile and high pile carpets.

During brushing sessions, we meticulously measured a 4-gram mix of dog hair collected from different breeds. We then distribute this hair across 13-square-foot carpet areas and include a gram of long bright pink extensions to see if the vacuum's roller does not tangle.

Before Testing After Testing

The PowerSpeed sucked up an average amount of pet hair on both low pile and high pile carpets, which is a surprisingly competitive result for a low-priced vacuum. If you have patience, you can likely suck up most of your pet hair, but you'll struggle if you have long-haired humans adding lengthier hair to the mix.

The bristly brush roller seemed to catch and trap every long hair extension it touched, forcing me to cut out the hair to remove it. This machine will be better for people who have short hair.

Filtration & Suction

We meticulously evaluate vacuums' filtration and suction capabilities to assess their quality and performance. Effective filtration is crucial because vacuums lacking proper containment could spew tiny particles into the air, compromising indoor air quality and potentially impacting health, especially for individuals with allergies or lung issues.

Strong suction is important because it ensures that dirt, dust, and debris are effectively lifted from carpets, hard floors, and crevices. It also helps remove embedded pet hair and allergens, leading to a more thorough cleaning.

Filtration

To accurately test how well a filtration system can contain harmful particles from going into the air, we bought two Dylos particle counters. These meters use a sensor to count how many particles are hovering in the air. We want the lowest number count we can get to prevent anyone from breathing in these pollutants.

Our monitors showed no notable spikes from the room's baseline during testing, suggesting excellent filtration from this entry-level vacuum. Dylos states that air quality improvements rated from 0 to 75 are considered excellent. This is the highest rating, which is great for those who are sensitive to poor air quality.

Suction

We focus on suction at the cleaner head to assess the vacuum's suction power. This is done by creating a differential pressure measurement using the cleaner head on a test box with a central hole connected to a manometer. By maneuvering the cleaner head over the hole, we precisely determine the suction strength at the point most frequently required during cleaning.

The PowerSpeed recorded a very low, below-average suction score of 149 pascals. This suction is so low it suggests why the spinning brush roller seemed to spray material so easily: I believe a good portion of the debris flies away before any suction effect can grab it. Only by hitting dirt multiple times in different directions can it miraculously get most of it to go to the right place.

Ease of Use

Although most upright vacuums share similar designs and features, their ease of use can differ significantly. Some models are difficult to maneuver, while others are adept at handling carpets, moving smoothly on hardwood, and easily navigating around furniture. Our tests assess the usability of each model, which is vital for people with challenging home layouts or issues related to strength and balance.

To test ease of use, I put each vacuum through a maneuverability test, considered ease of maintenance, evaluated reach, and tested attachments on upholstery.

Maneuverability

In addition to evaluating vacuums in my home, I subject each one to a specialized maneuverability test in our laboratory. This involves maneuvering around cones, sliding vacuums beneath furniture, and assessing any unique features that influence their mobility.

Weighing just 10.5 pounds, this vacuum is lightweight to lift, but I had difficulty turning around cones on my obstacle course because it doesn't have a multi-directional swivel head. This means that to turn, I had to lever it in a new direction at the beginning and ends of forward and reverse strokes or forcibly make it skid around corners. This isn't a big deal for large open areas, but it wasn't easy when I wanted to navigate furniture. Sometimes, it felt like I would topple over the whole machine, just trying to wrangle it around corners.

While it could handle some transitions from one floor type to another, even gliding up onto a bamboo mat, I did have to bend down to manually adjust the cleaner head height for the different types of floors. This was more annoying than difficult, but I can't recommend this vacuum to anyone with back problems or issues bending over. In contrast, the Eureka QuickShift OmniVerse NEU801BL places an electronic button on top of the canister, making floor-type adjustments easier.

Maintenance

Cleaning the brush roller was the most troublesome part of maintaining this vacuum. It is not removable, requiring manual removal of pet hair and wrapped human hair. I had to cut the hair, spin the brush, and pull on the severed sections to clean it.

At 2.6 liters, the removable dustbin is larger than average, so I didn't have to empty it as often as smaller dustbins. I could remove it and latch it back into place easily, without fuss.

Upholstery & Attachments

Many use hand tools attached to their vacuums for cleaning and dusting furniture, leading us to evaluate these included tools. To assess upholstery cleaning, I spread coffee grounds on a throw pillow and then use an appropriate attachment to remove them.

It sucked up most of the coffee grounds on the pillow but did grind some into the pillow fabric. Cleanup in this test was about average. Premium vacuums that include powered mini brush rollers usually excel in this test. If you want an upright vacuum to clean furniture or pet beds effectively, I will point you toward the high-end Shark PowerDetect.

Should You Buy the Eureka PowerSpeed?

If you're looking for an entry-level vacuum for a small space with relatively simple debris challenges, the Eureka PowerSpeed outperforms most other vacuums for less than $100. We appreciate its low carry weight and large dustbin, and think it's best suited for those on a tight budget who are willing to approach every mess with patience and a willingness for extra passes.

What Other Upright Vacuums Should You Consider?

The Eureka QuickShift OmniVerse costs more than twice as much, but it seriously outperforms the PowerSpeed in nearly every test metric, making it a better buy if you can stretch your budget. Usually available on sale, the Shark Navigator Lift Away Deluxe improves performance and is also a great value, delivering better performance on carpet and hardwood floors. While you might find some vacuums at lower prices, those we've tested tend to perform much worse.