Shark Stratos Review

With a separable wand and canister, the Lift-Away feature quickly became one of our favorites. It allowed us to reach under furniture and handle tricky spots and stairs with ease, offering the versatility of a canister vacuum without the bulky or awkward storage.

Carpet Performance

For people with a lot of low-pile carpet, the Stratos will be an outstanding choice. Still, we were very impressed with its carpet performance.

The Shark Stratos collected a whopping 97% of the test material, a top score tied by only one other vacuum out of more than a dozen we tested in the same way.

When we first ran this test, the Stratos sucked up almost all of the debris, but we noticed that not all of the material made it through the intake system and into the dustbin. It didn't appear to clog, so we ran two more trials. The next two runs collected the same amount of material, and all the material entered the dustbin before the time ran out.

Despite the odd performance in the first test, this machine performed flawlessly in previous test scenarios and our various take-home tests. For those with low-pile carpet, the Stratos is one of the best upright vacuums available today, making it an easy recommendation. Only the Kenmore Intuition 3-in-1 scored as well in our low-pile carpet test.

On high pile, it felt as if it eventually plateaued and couldn't continue capturing debris in our short, intense test. If you have high-pile carpet and a lot of dirt is being dragged in, you'll likely need to take more passes to get the shaggy area rugs clean.

Before Testing After Testing

Hardwood Performance

As more households transition to vinyl and hardwood floors, we anticipate that vacuums will need to clean multiple surfaces. The ability to ditch the broom and rely on a vacuum to suck up everything lends to its versatility, providing more value to the tool.

Suction power is important for this test, but the cleaner head design can also affect its ability to reach the edges and grab material due to the head's thick bumpers or wide sides. After such great cleaning sessions with this product, we were happy to see this machine suck up all the coffee on both approaches.

Pet Hair

One of the toughest jobs for cat and dog owners is vacuuming the hair they shed. Depending on the breed and time of year, cleaning up pet hair can be relatively easy . . . or a nightmare. To help reveal which vacuums can handle pet hair nightmares, we specifically test hair performance on low pile and high pile carpet.

Our challenging pet hair tests start with a 4-gram fistful of pet hair, which we smear over 13-square-foot sections of carpet. We then sprinkle 1 gram of long hair extensions over the top, representing the hair shed by long-haired humans in a household. But wait, we're not done yet: We mash it all down to the carpet with a heavy press wheel to simulate typical household traffic.

Before Testing After Testing

This vacuum delivered average performance on low-pile carpets, capturing most of the fur and directing it to the dustbin. However, while half of the long hair extensions made it through, the rest tangled around the brush roller. High pile results were much worse.

We believe the cleaner head with the double brush roller system leads to much more diffused suction on high-pile carpet than on low-pile carpet, affecting its ability to grab and send pet hair to the dust bin. Lots of hair got caught in the tines near the soft brush roller and on one of the wheels. We would not want to have to flip this vacuum over to de-tangle it in our own home each time we vacuumed up pet hair.

Filtration

The Stratos recorded one of the lowest readings during our tests.

The Shark Stratos features a great sealed air filtration system that prevents the release of many harmful particles, thereby maintaining optimal air quality. We were actually quite impressed that the number of particles in the air was only in the single digits, while others that are much worse can register over 1,000 particles.

Ease of Use

We couldn't believe how easily this model makes tight turns! It fully cleared our difficult, tight tolerance turn without even brushing against a cone. We appreciate not having to take a wide radius around furniture — it makes vacuuming faster with less hassle. The brush roller also seemed to help propel the vacuum along, and the surface type handle control switch reduced the spin speed on hardwood and increased it for carpet and shaggy area rugs.

We thought the Lift-Away canister would be clunky to release and use, but it was fluid and easy to use.

One drawback to maneuverability is the relatively large dustbin and the initiation force needed to start a head-swivel turn. If it were just a bit smaller and a bit easier, it would have nailed a perfect score.

If there is one thing that annoys us, it's cleaning appliances that are hard to clean and maintain, making household chores harder than they ought to be. Luckily, the dustbin is easy to remove and empty, and the filters are removable, washable, and replaceable.

The HairPro, mini-powered brush, sucked up 98% of the coffee grounds on the first pass. Only two other vacuums performed as well in this test. If you have small nooks and crannies in your home, pet beds, or furniture you like to vacuum, I'm a big fan of the HairPro brush. We found that it could still wrap hair and tangle, but overall, it's a handy and versatile little tool.

Should You Buy the Shark Stratos?

Two years after it was first introduced, the Shark Stratos is still the best-performing upright vacuum we've tested. It outperformed more than a dozen other models in our new and improved tests, tackling every challenge but high pile carpet with ease. For those who want to clean both carpet and hardwood, it's hard to beat.

What Other Upright Vacuum Should You Consider?