11 Best Carpet & Upholstery Cleaners: The Ultimate List

1. 1. BISSELL SpotClean Pet Pro Portable Upholstery Cleaner

   

   Price: $175.09

   Amazon Customer Reviews

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   Pros:

   • Easy to use and tote around. It's lightweight and easy to set up and clean out.
   • Special upholstery shampoo included with OXY. Meant to fight new and set-in stains.
   • Very strong suction and scrub brush to suck up dirt, debri, and liquids.

   Cons:

   • Not ideal for large scale cleaning, such as an entire room.
   • Doesn't heat the water before despensing.
   • Takes up a large amount of space when storing.

   While the BISSELL SpotClean Pet Pro Portable Carpet Cleaner is targeted for pets, it can work on tough upholstery stains of any kind. The suction is strong and superior, designed with a scrub brush that’s meant to get out both new and set-in stains. It can be used on carpets, stairs, upholstery, auto interiors, and more and is light enough to carry around where ever you need to put it to work. The purchase comes with a trial size of Bissel’s powerful cleaner, which contains stain and odor-fighting OXY.  

2. 2. Rug Doctor Pet Portable Spot Cleaner

   

   Price: $189.00

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   Pros:

   • Designed with wheels for easy transport, especially convenient during big jobs
   • Strong suction hose
   • Lightweight and company, making it easy to store

   Cons:

   • Sprayer releases a mist, rather than strong stray, which might not be enough for bigger jobs
   • Does run rather loudly
   • Wheels do cause it to tip over occasionaly when not on a flat surface

   With wheels that make it easy to move around, many find the Rug Doctor Pet Portable Spot Cleaner very convenient for messes of all kinds. The rubber bristles are gentle on upholstery. Simply spray, scrub, and then soak up the dirt with a strong suction hose. It’s compact, making it easy to store, and very lightweight. It comes with a stain and odor removing cleaning solution that helps eliminate even the toughest stains and set-in smells. 

3. 3. Vacmaster Wet Dry Portable Carpet & Sofa Cleaner

   

   Price: $199.00

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   Pros:

   • Meant for big jobs
   • Can be used as a wet or dry cleaner
   • Designed to help reduce noise

   Cons:

   • Too large for spot cleaning
   • Wet cleaning requires shampoo cleaning solution
   • Heavy and not easily portable

   If you’re looking for an upholstery cleaner that’s made for a big job, the heavy-duty Vacmaster Wet Dry Portable Carpet & Upholstery Cleaner will certainly do the trick. It functions as both a wet and dry vacuum, meant to be used either with a shampoo solution for stains and a vacuum to suck up dirt, dirty water, and debris. It’s easy to switch between modes and comes with all the necessary accessories like the various heads, dust bags, special cleaning solutions, and more. The design is meant to help reduce noise so you’ll find it quieter than similar cleaners. 

4. 4. Hoover Spotless GO Cordless Carpet & Upholstery Cleaner

   

   Price: $129.99

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   Pros:

   • Convenient cordless design that won't limit reach
   • Lightweight and very portable
   • Compact and easy to store when it's not in use

   Cons:

   • Battery life only lasts about 20 minutes
   • Hose is on the shorter side
   • Not ideal for big jobs, better for small spot cleaning

   The Hoover Spotless GO Cordless Carpet and Upholstery Cleaner is very portable due to the lightweight design. It’s made to quickly grab and use for spills on the couch, pet messes, toddler situations, and more. It has a cordless design so you don’t have to worry about being limited in reach, with a removable and rechargeable battery. The tank is easy to fill, empty, and clean and it’s also compact so you don’t need to use a ton of storage space when it’s not in use. 

5. 5. Bissell SpotClean Professional Portable Carpet & Upholstery Cleaner

   

   Price: $164.79

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   Pros:

   • Very strong suction to get set in and new stains
   • Flat bottom canister that's easy to fill in the sink
   • Multiple sized cleaning tools for various sized messes

   Cons:

   • Hose is a bit short for large scale projects
   • The hose can not be dissambled for deeper cleaning
   • Loud when running

   The Bissell SpotClean Professional Portable Carpet Cleaner is a strong carpet and upholstery cleaner, meant to tackle the worst of stains. It has several different attachment tools on the hose, perfect for varying sized jobs. You can use this to clean small stains like a spill or pet accident or an entire dingy couch that needs a refresh. The flat bottom of the canister makes it easy to fill in the sink and the dirty water canister is easy to clean and empty. Purchasing a Bissell cleaner is ideal because you can easily buy replacement parts when the time comes, such as a new brush or new hose, without having to replace the entire unit. 

6. 6. Hoover Spotless Portable Carpet & Upholstery Spot Cleaner

   

   Price: $119.00

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   Pros:

   • Good price-point. Less-expensive than some other upholstery cleaners.
   • Self-cleaning hose to avoid bacteria, mold, and mildew in the hose.
   • Lightweight and easily portable.

   Cons:

   • Hard to fill tank without spilling water
   • Doesn't include cleaning solution
   • Not ideal for large scale projects such as cleaning the carpet in an entire room

   This deep cleaner is made to get the worst of stains out of fabric surfaces like couches, carpet, rugs, stairs, and more. The most unique feature of the Hoover Spotless Portable Carpet & Upholstery Spot Cleaner is the ability to self-clean since it flushes the hose after each use to prevent the build-up of bacteria, mold, and mildew. The tool itself is super lightweight and easy to move around. It has a lower noise level than some other upholstery cleaners as well as a longer hose. 

7. 7. Bissell Multi-Purpose Portable Carpet & Upholstery Cleaner

   

   Price: $199.99

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   Pros:

   • Compact design that's easy to store
   • Strong suction and great brush for both new and set in stains
   • Great price-point, much less expensive than other similar models

   Cons:

   • Doesn't heat water
   • Must be cleaned out after each use thoroughly
   • Very loud when running

   The littleGreen upholstery cleaner from Bissell is ideal because it can tackle both small and large cleanups. The removable water tank is easy to fill and empty. It has great suction, a small scrubbing brush for set-in stains, and will suck stains right up. The trial size Bissell carpet and upholstery cleaner that’s included is a must-have and will make the cleaning abilities of this machine even better. It works wonderfully on dog stains as well as food, mud, and more. 

8. 8. Bissell SpotBot Pet handsfree Spot & Stain Portable Deep Cleaner

   

   Price: $185.39

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   Pros:

   • Great for spot cleaning, especially pet messes on carpet or upholstery
   • Two self-clean, hands free options for new or set-in stains
   • Large capacity clean/dirty water bins

   Cons:

   • Takes a few times over to suck up excess liquid
   • Hands free cleaning area is small
   • Not good for large scale cleaning

   The Bissell SpotBot Pet handsfree Spot and Stain Portable Deep Cleaner makes cleaning a breeze with two self-cleaning modes that can be used so you don’t have to do any of the work. The two modes distinguish between set-in stains and fresh stains, with two different cleaning methods. You can also use this cleaner manually, with a traditional hose and suction that allows you to clean outside the smaller self-clean area and suction any excess water. 

9. 9. Rug Doctor Pro Deep Commercial Upholstery Cleaner

   

   Price: $994.00

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   Pros:

   • Commercial grade cleaner that will restore carpets and fabrics to their original look and smell
   • Great for large scale and spot cleaning
   • Large capacity tanks that are easy to fill

   Cons:

   • High price point
   • Large and difficult to store
   • Design makes it difficult to reach the edges of carpet

   The Rug Doctor Pro Deep Commercial Cleaning Upholstery Tool is the best cleaning tool to have on hand if you have a carpeted home, pets, kids, or anything else that causes sizeable messes. It can be really expensive to have a professional carpet cleaning, especially for the whole home, but you’d be surprised how beautiful carpets and sofas look after a deep clean – basically like new. This tool basically pays for itself in one use, restoring fabrics to their original look and smell. For carpets, the cleaner has an intuitive back and forth vacuum style operation that makes carpet cleaning easy. There’s also a handheld attachment for upholstery, area rugs, stairs, car interiors or other smaller-scale cleaning projects. 

10. 10. BISSELL SpotClean ProHeat Portable Spot & Stain Carpet Cleaner

    

    Price: $133.89

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    Pros:

    • Maintains heated water for stain removal and cleaning
    • Self cleaning feature to keep hose and canisters like new
    • Lightweight and easy to use and store

    Cons:

    • Short hose
    • Not ideal for large scale projects
    • Included sample solution is only good for a few uses

    The BISSELL SpotClean ProHeat Portable Spot and Stain Carpet Cleaner is one of the only upholstery cleaners you can buy with added heat, which is shown to help remove stains, especially those that are toughest to remove. It has a three-inch brush for stairs and upholstery, a self-clean feature meant to keep the canisters and hose functioning like new, and water tanks that are easy to fill and empty. This is best for spot cleaning spills, pet messes, kid spills, and small scale projects. 

11. 11. BISSELL ProHeat Full Size Upright Carpet & Upholstery Cleaner

    

    Price: $207.09

    Amazon Customer Reviews

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    Pros:

    • Outcleans rentals and professional cleaning services
    • Express dry functions that allows fabrics to dry in just 30 minutes
    • Lightweight and easy to use

    Cons:

    • Large footprint can be difficult to store
    • Dirty water chamber is relatively small, especially for big cleaning projects
    • Deep cleaning mode leaves fabrics moist for some time

    The BISSELL ProHeat Revolution Pet Full Size Cleaner is a bigger and better version of the spot cleaning version of this product. It’s made for big projects like the entire sectional sofa or a big carpeted room. It’s better than a rental or professional cleaning, especially when it comes to the price as many professional carpet cleaners cost upwards of $100 per room. It has a new express cleaning mode which will leave fabrics dry in just 30 minutes so there’s no long wait. It’s less than 18 lbs so it’s very easy to maneuver. 

Why Should You Buy a Carpet or Upholstery Cleaner?

Hiring a professional carpet cleaner or upholstery cleaner can be upwards of $100 per room depending on the company. While it might save you some time, it can be expensive to call in the professionals for every single spill and stain. Keeping a carpet or upholstery cleaner on hand is much easier and cost-effective so you can take care of stains as they happen without forking over too much money. 

Best Upholstery Cleaners for Pets 

Whether you have a new puppy or an older dog who's having trouble waiting to do their business outside, having pet messes throughout the house is frustrating. Prevent pets from ruining your carpet, rugs, and furniture by keeping a carpet and upholstery cleaner like the Bissell SpotClean Pet Bot on hand, with great suction and scrubbing abilities. Simply spray the water to dilute the stain and then vacuum it, repeating as necessary. 

Best Professional Carpet Cleaners

Some carpet and upholstery cleaners are best for spot cleaning, while others function at the same level as the professional machines. The rug doctor is the top-selling item, with the same cleaning abilities as someone you would hire. These are great for tackling large spaces like a fully carpeted room or home or an entire sofa. It not only cleans and shampoos the surface but then picks up existing dirt and stains, even if they've been sitting for some time. 

Best Cleaning Solution for Upholstery Cleaners 

• - Best cleaning solution with Oxy: Rug Doctor Triple Action Oxy  
• - Best smelling upholstery cleaner: BISSELL DeepClean + Refresh with Febreze
• - Best upholstery deodorizer: Hoover CleanPlus Concentrated Solution

Best Upholstery Cleaners for Spot Cleaning 

It's silly to keep a huge, bulky machine on hand if you simply want something that can tackle small spots on your sofa or carpet. The Bissell spotClean says it all in the name. It's light, portable, easy to use, and great to tackle spots, keeping water warm for better results.