Vacuum cleaner features ranked from 'essential' to 'unnecessary', by a professional tester

Vacuum cleaner designs might be getting slightly out of control. As a dedicated vacuum reviewer (I manage TechRadar's official best vacuum ranking) I spend plenty of time testing different models with different features, so I know which additions will make a difference to your cleaning routine, and which are just unnecessary gimmicks.

Below, I've listed the features you should be prioritizing when choosing a vacuum, and those that you can basically ignore. I've focused on just the floorhead features here, because extending it to the entire vacuum would be far too big a topic for a single article. (Am I in too deep? Possibly.) Here's my official list of vacuum floorhead features, ranked...

Vacuum floorhead features – essentials

An anti-tangle roller

If you live with anyone with hair, you need a floorhead with anti-tangle features. And I don't mean Rapunzel-length locks – if you ...