Upright. Canister should be outlawed. You fall over them, it's impossible to do steps with them, their bulky and heavy. They do nothing to make you job easier....

SG

I agree, I like an upright. With attachments,you can do anything you can do with a canister. And you don't have the monstrosity to lug around.

I've had a canister for 4 years or so and just left it out on the corner after it died the other day for the garbage men and went to Walmart and bought an upright. The house I'm in now has limited storage space and a canister takes up too much room. I liked it because it did get under furniture well; however, I remember when reading reviews on canister vacs that a fellow remarked that vacuuming with a canister vac was like dragging around a dead pig. For some reason thereafter, when the canister would not clear a corner, I would turn to it and say "Come on dead pig!". They are a bit bulky. I bought it originally to do stairs at my townhouse, but found even a canister a bit too big for the stairs. I have a one story house and am grateful to be back in upright land again as far as vacuums are concerned. JMHO

I will get an upright this time. Thanks for the great input.

I HATE my Oreck... I think you'll be very disappointed if you are used to a Kenmore. You know how they show those ads where they suck up a bowling ball? It turns out sucking up bowling balls is not that hard (and how many of us really need to do THAT very often...) What's difficult is sucking up bits of thread and hair and fuzz... and my Oreck did not do that very well at all. I had a Miele canister for about twenty years and then had the Oreck, and now have a SEBO upright. The SEBO upright is great, but honestly, I still don't think an upright does quite as well on barefloors as the floorhead on a canister...

I always had an upright until recently. I hated the hideous canister we had when I was a kid - that thing was terrible. I converted from an upright to a canister a few years ago and I'm liking it. I use attachments pretty often and found that very cumbersome with an upright. I also find it easier to do stairs with a canister since all I have to handle is the hose and vacuum head - rather than the entire upright or having to switch to some attachment. I also didn't like the weight of my upright and when comparing uprights with canisters I found the canisters offered more lightweight options. I also find it easier to carry the weight since I can carry the canister in one hand and hose/vacuum head in the other.

Upright, hands down.
I'm in the market for a new vacuum, too. Latest one I'm replacing is an Oreck. Does anyone have experience w/ a Dyson? It's pricey, but if it will last for 5+ years, would be worth it.

I purchased the latest ball-type Dyson and I love it. I hate vacuuming but when I use the Dyson, it really doesn't feel like a chore and it cleans the edges of the carpet by the walls so well. Before this, I seemed to be purchasing a new vacuum every few years but I'm sure the Dyson will last many years.

I love my Windtunnel bagless upright, and it is very reasonably priced.

A few years back it was rated at the top by Consumers Reports.

Sue

well, i guess i'm in the minority here...but after years of using nothing but uprights, several months ago i switched to a canister and i love it! the one i purchased (maytag legacy, also known as a hoover duros) has a powered head (but the power can be turned off for barefloors). i agree that it can be a bit cumbersome dragging the canister unit around, but mine has large wheels and it's really not a problem. i also love the retractable cord and the many attachments.

when shopping for a vacuum, i wasn't looking in the price range of a dyson (we tend to kill vacuums and purchase new ones every 1-2 years), i'm sure if i were to purchase a dyson upright i'd probably be singing it's praises too. for the money i spent, the canister seems to do a much better job than uprights in the same price range (about $150.00).

jiggreen :)

Well, that's easy. Dyson, for sure.

My last vacuum was an Oreck. What a piece of garbage it was! Instead of picking up dirt, it threw it back at my feet! And the separate little "baby vac" that you had to use when vacuuming anything except floors was a joke, a toy.

I LOVE my dyson. I've had it about three years. Its suction is strong and it cleans really well. I like it cause it's bagless and it's really really easy to empty. And the best thing about it is that when my sons vacuum up something like a pen or a pencil (yes, I tell them and tell them but they do it anyway!!) and the vacuum starts not sucking so well, it's EXTREMELY EASY to take it apart until you find the obstruction and put it back together and it works good as new! And you don't even have to have a screwdriver or anything!

I love my Dyson.

i bought a used Miele last year, the best thing i ever
did!
alida

I might be swimming up stream here but I like a canister due to having multi surface flooring. I've had a miele too for 5 yrs. and it is far and away so much better than the kenmore I had. Most brands sell an attachment for stairs. I've had a canister all told for 12 yrs and I'm happy. So I think it depends on what surface you mostly have. Also I do most of my heavy dusting with my vacuum cleaner too so I like the different attachments. Just my 2 cents.

I LOVE my Rainbow E2 Canister, I think it's the greatest cleaning tool ever created. That said it aggervates my sciatica (back pain condition) to the point I need to take RX strength Naproxen.

Just got a Kirby Sentria and since it was the maids day off and the cats are in a shedding mood I decided to vacuum the living room and sitting room. Not ONE hint of back pain. The Kirby is self propelled so it pushes itself and it cleans just as well as the Rainbow.

That being said, if you have a lot of carpet, get an upright. You can always get a cheap canister to clean the bare floors. If you have mainly bare floors, then you probably need a canister.

-JJ

I had two Electrolux canisters. One was an old one given by a relative, and the other I bought new,with a "power head" that allowed it to be used like an upright. I especially like the second. It sucked great and lasted about ten years, with heavy duty use. I had a dog and three cats at the time and I vacuumed daily. It got worn out eventually, as I said about 10 years. The hose was constantly getting plugged. I took it in for an overhaul ,which was expensive, like $200, and didn't solve the problem. I have had three uprights since, a Hoover Windtunnel bagless(which I absolutely hated), an upright Eureka and a Bissel. My current vacuum, The Bissell upright is so-so. The attachments are all onboard and the dirt cup is easy to remove and clean. But none of them worked as well as my Electrolux. I paid about $500 for it twenty years ago, I would go back if I had the money.

Canisters are Ideal for mostly floors,miele has the best canister vacuum. 50%Carpeting or more get an upright vacuum, get a german made sebo x4. or the sebo G1 with attachments the G1 is $100.00 cheaper. Use the $100.00 towards the extra attachments which has the bare floor kit.
The x4 can do bare floors.

I had an Electrolux that was the best of two worlds-a canister with a power head that works exactly like a stand-up vacuum. Unfortunately the hose kept getting clogged and I threw it away. Repairs were getting too expensive. I now have a Bissel upright that's just so-so. I do not recommend Hoover Bagless-a repair nightmare for me. And Dysons are just too expensive.

If you can afford it I think the sebo is the only way to go.