Mighty Mite 3670H

We use a purple Bissell Ting in our gym for bare floors. Bought it years ago for $39 shipped direct from Bissell. Eureka Mighty Mite is another good choice. Both corded and bagged which is the holy grail of good vacuum design. A cheap bagged shop vac would probably work ok too, but they don't usually come with a very good floor tool. Eureka tools are probably better and bags probably easier to find. Fit all style attachments so easy to upgrade to horsehair floor tool and dust brush if you so choose.

This is one of those times when Costco is not your friend. Yes they'll take it back after you inevitably find some reason to not like it or feel it doesn't work as well as the minute you unboxed it. But they don't usually sell good vacuums. Well, they do sell Miele in Canada so that should be your signal that Miele is ok. If you have 100% bare floors aka wood/tile/vinyl, no wall to wall carpet, a few throw rugs I'd suggest a straight suction canister. Miele C1 Turbo or similar with both regular and turbo floor brushes. Use the parquet brush for wood/tile, turbo brush for rugs. Every 10 minutes or so you'll need to remove the wand/brush from the hose and use the hose to vigorously clean accumulated/stuck hair and lint from the brushes. There is not a vacuum on the planet that does not require some effort on the part of its owner. If you want to go really cheap you could get a Eureka Mighty Mite which is just about as powerful as the Miele (make sure it's 1200 watts, there seem to be some variants) but has some IMO manageable negatives. No bumpers so you have to watch where you drag it-bonus it's small and easy to maneuver. Hard floor tool and crevice tool are probably fine. Dust/upholstery brush is garbage and should be replaced with separate horsehair versions ($10 each max). Upholstery tools with red directional fabric work well too for lint and hair. You'd need to buy a turbo tool such as the Wessel Werk tk 286. Eureka tools are standard 1-1/4 inch (32mm) friction-fit so replacements should be the same and easy to find. It's not as well sealed as the Miele and no hepa filter though I've read some people hacking the rear port to add a filter. But if you buy genuine Eureka bags and replace them before they get jammed full you should be fine. Finally no automatic cord rewind so you'll have to wind the cord on the bottom of the machine. I prefer this because cord rewinds break. This is a $200 option. IMO even if you buy an upright a second vacuum like this is great for above the floor cleaning.

Mighty Mite but you may need to buy a better upholstery tool. You're going to have to scrub and periodically use the hose wand to clean the removed hair off the brush. If you see hair it works! Same with a floor tool re hair. I wouldn't start with a turbo brush, I think either one of these will work better if the included one doesn't. https://a.co/d/0iW5R992 https://a.co/d/061sZ1kT

Bagged > bagless, corded > cordless. Sanitaire 888 has a 2000 hour (365 hrs/days\*5=1825) motor designed for brutally hard commercial/food service use on carpet. Only carpet. Same basic model for over 40 years. Parts widely available, most user replaceable. Back that up with just about any straight suction canister from a mighty mite to a metrovac or (used) tristar. Tristar and metrovac being all metal will last forever though you may have to replace the motor at some point simply because it's worn out if you really vacuum every single day for an hour per machine. All three of these are basically the same as they were when I worked in a vac shop in the 80s. Of the thousands of random vacuums I saw over 3-4 years of servicing vacs, I distinctly remember these 3 as being dead simple and with the metal canisters, bulletproof. Metrovac requires a bit of care as it has no bumpers to hit walls and furniture and it may roll too easily for its own good in that respect.

Mighty Mite had to make compromises to get you a vacuum that sells for $59. Not great sealing. But you can buy enviro bags and replace the pre motor filter with a hepa one from Amazon. On certain models you can even get a rear hepa exhaust filter. If you can afford and need extreme dust capture I'd get a model that's sealed better and has hepa style filtration designed in from the start.

Eureka Mighty Mite vacuum. I have 2 siberian huskies who shed extreme amounts of hair and this vacuum blows any other one i’ve had out of the water (and only $80!!!)

A lot of cheaper upright vacuums don't work on hard floors because there is no way to turn the brush roller off. This means the rapid brush rotation tends to kick debris around. Not to mention being really loud, wearing out the brush faster, and risking scratching the floors. I'd look at a Kenmore 200 series canister. It's a solid budget pick and it's in budget. You can shut it's brush off for hard floors, and it included a dedicated hard floor brush which is even better. If you want something even less expensive and lighter, but with less functionality, the eureka mighty mite is around $80 and is a good simple hard floor vacuum. It has good suction, no rotating brush so it won't flick debris around. But it lacks the cord rewind and brush roller for carpets, which the Kenmore has.

Something like a Bissell Zing bagged canister or a eureka mighty mite could be the ticket. Both are well under budget, both are canisters, both are good for hard floors and are pretty small as far as canisters go. Both are suction only, which is fine for most/all hard floors and one little rug. The bissell has the advantage of a cord rewind and metal telescopic tube. But on more budget models those can be a reliability liability. The eureka is dead simple, no cable rewind (just a pair of hooks underneath to wind the cable onto) and it comes with plastic wands, but that can be upgraded really easily and cheaply with a generic metal telescopic tube. The eureka also has the advantage of being lighter, and you can buy hepa filter bags for it (which aren't avaliable for the bissell iirc). Both should work fine for your situation, I'd consider if you prefer hepa filter bags or a cord rewind and decide based on those factors.

Am I correct in thinking the main goal is teaching folks how to use a typical vacuum? If that's the case, the eureka airspeed is probably the most "typical" type of vacuum people are going to see. It might be the better example of the ones listed, though it might spit debris around on hard floors. The little sticks are ok but not so good for carpet. Something like a eureka mighty mite canister would also be a good choice.

In that budget probably a eureka mighty mite. It's well under budget, which gives you some left over to upgrade to the Hepa bags and nicer dusting brushes than what is included by default. But as a canister vac, the hose is a good length and body is lite, and it has very good suction for a budget vac. It's ideal for above floor cleaning and dusting, but I would definitely buy a separate dusting brush (standard 32mm tool fitting, easy to find).

It'll "work" but not that well. If you only need to vacuum tile, the eureka mighty mite is better and cheaper.

Plenty of options in budget, but they won't fit all of your requirements exactly. Best way to avoid dealing with hair is to get a vacuum which lacks a rotating brush and instead uses a suction only floorhead. This minimizes the places hair can build up, and even if it does collect on the stationary bristles, swiping the suction hose over the brushes quickly several times usually removes any hairs without having to touch them. But there's way less hair gathering than most normal vacs with spinning brush rollers. Suction only vacuums struggle to clean carpets most of the time, but for hard floors they are ideal. You'll also want a vacuum which collects the debris in disposable bags. That way, everything is contained, you can't see any of it, and you don't have to touch any hair. Just throw away the bag occasionally when it's getting full. Bagless models almost always have various places inside the dust container and filters where hair can build up and require hands on cleaning, going for a bagged model avoids this completely. Problem is, there are no cordless vacuums which fit this criteria, at least not in budget. Cordless vacuums, especially budget ones, rely heavily on brushing action to effectively pick up since they lack suction. The super cheap temu ones which lack a rotating brush aren't worth bothering with. I'd recommend a Eureka mighty mite canister vac. It's inexpensive, has a suction only nozzle with an adjustable brush, you can use it with the stationary brush retracted away from the floor to avoid catching any hairs. And it uses disposable bags, hair will be locked up and you can dispose of it without contact. Plus it has good suction and is a good little vac in general. Other similar canister vacs like the bissell zing bagged exist as well. I like the mighty mite since you can easily find hepa filtration bags for it. Hope this helps.

Wool rugs usually ask you to avoid using any vacuum with a spinning brush roller. At the same time you really need something more powerful than most of the little stick vacs you find in stores which lack spinming brushes. I'd recommend a canister style vacuum. There are plenty of options which have a lot more suction than a little stick vac so they clean a lot more effectively, while still lacking a brush roller so they protect the rugs. Look at the eureka mighty mite or the bissell zing bagged models. Both are fairly inexpensive, really easy to get bags for, and perfect for delicate rugs. Personally I like the mighty mite because you can get upgraded hepa filtration bags if you want.

Stairs can be annoying in general to clean, and I wouldn't say there's one single perfect machine for them tbh. Usually a corded handheld vacuum with a motorized brush is a good choice. The motorized brush is important so you have agitation and not just (weak) handheld suction. But handheld vacs like this are getting a bit harder to find. Dirt devil scorpion comes to mind, but I can't vouch for it's performance. The old school dirt devil handheld vacs with brush rollers and inflating bag on the back are great, but you'd have to find a used one. Another option could be a corded shoulder type mini canister vac, like the Simplicity sport, plus an air driven turbo brush. These provide better suction than the average handheld, plus better tools for the edges and corners of stairs, and a small air driven brush will provide brushing/agitation, all while still being lighter and easier to handle than a full sized vac with no battery worries. Another cheaper option could be the eureka mighty mite canister. It doesn't ride on your shoulder like the simplicity, but it's still small and lite enough for stairs, and has great suction. Add any generic mini turbo brush and it'll work great on stairs.

I use a Miele at someone’s house and I love it, the suction is amazing. If you want something similar for way cheaper I highly recommend the Eureka Might Mite. It’s like $100 and it has the same suction as a Miele. It’s plastic so it’s light, the two tubes together are really long so easy to reach ceilings for cobwebs and stuff. It doesn’t last as long like a Miele would but it’s freakin awesome.

Don't overlook the Eureka/Sanitaire Mighty Mite (and perhaps a better aftermarket floor brush). You just need a "hose vac" with good airflow and a quality brush.

Hmm I'd still recommend bags but so if you'd want one that has the most affordable bags id suggest a mighty mite. They're bags are really cheap and it has a HEPA filter. Though not a power rush. If you need anything upright I'd start at very least with the Hoover bagged upright then possibly upgrading to a commercial vacuum cleaner if you want to splurge a bit more.

Well, I think the extra $300 could be spent elsewhere. You are going to college, any regular vacuum will probably outlast college and be with you for the next 15+ years. $300 would pay for books, lab fees, nice clothes, several pairs athletic shoes, several dates and 1/2 a Playstation 5 :D. My first job out of college was maintaining fan feed printers in mainframe rooms. I had a little Red Eureka MightyMite canister vacuum for the paper shards and dust. That was 45 years ago. I still have it and it still works with all the original attachments. I use it for the car and to clean up project messes now.