The Best Shop Vacs of 2024, Tested

"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links."

This article was updated in March 2024 with new products and information.

Commonly called "shop vacs" after the popular Shop-Vac brand, the trusty wet/dry vacuum is a cornerstone of garage and workspace cleanliness. These handy large-capacity vacuums can suck up both dry and wet messes, from oil-soaked kitty litter to wood, metal, and drywall shavings. Far better than a regular vacuum cleaner around the garage, they're perfect for construction projects, woodworking, and general shop cleansing.

With dozens of types, brands, and styles on the market, which one is the right shop vac for your workspace? With this test, we aim to answer that question.

Looking for more? The Gear Team has tested a number of shop and garage products, including best car vacuums, best garage flooring, and best garage door openers.

Things to Consider When Buying a Shop Vac

Capacity

Capacity is the most important aspect of a wet/dry vacuum. It's quite simple: The larger the capacity, the more gunk and garbage a vacuum can hold before needing to be emptied. The caveat is storage space—not all of us have room to keep a 16-gallon vacuum in our precious garage. Mid-size shop vacs are enough for most people, but consider your usage carefully.

Power

Shop vac power ratings are measured in peak horsepower, and this affects the amount of overall suction power the motor can produce. Generally, the higher power, the more suck (although there are other factors that come into play, such as level of blockage in the filter and hose size). High-power vacuums also excel in wet suction, slurping up liquid and mucky messes much better than a low-power vac.

Wet Capabilities

Typical shop vacs is capable of picking up liquids, which is a huge advantage over your typical household vacuum. This can come in handy if your basement floods or you need to remove water from your toilet, but you must verify that your vac can do it; it's usually quite easy to swap them over from dry to wet mode. Some even feature a drain plug.

Filter

Make sure the vacuum you buy has a changeable filter, or at least a washable filter so you don't need to keep buying new ones. Get one that's fine enough one to capture fine dust particles as well as wet messes. Getting a HEPA filter will ensure the exhaust air is safe to breathe.

Weight and Portability

You'll likely be moving a wet/dry vac around quite a bit. Thankfully, most shop vacs roll on wheels, but not all do. For the wheel-less vacs, you'll want to take weight into consideration. This leads to the portability aspect—you want good casters that move freely. The Vacmaster in our test is wall mountable, which limits some portability while freeing up floor space.

Some folks like to use household stick vacuums to clean their workspace. While they're effective, the job will likely take longer and the life span of your household vacuum will likely suffer from heavy-duty use.

Attachments

Shop vacs usually feature a large hose with a wide mouth. While this large opening is fantastic for sucking up large quantities of dirt and fine dust, you may also want to consider getting one with a crevice tool and a brush nozzle for tricker messes.

Loudness

Running these for extended periods of time can damage your hearing, so it's recommended you use some kind of ear protection. Use a shop vac in a small space like a bathroom and you'll quickly realize how valuable a quiet vacuum is. Take a look at the readings we recorded from our average decibel reading to help you make your decision.

Corded or Cordless?

The vast majority of garage vacuums are powered by your standard 120-volt wall outlet. However, battery-powered models are starting to show up in the market. Picking up a cordless shop vac greatly increases your portability and maneuverability around the car, but you'll always need to take time to recharge the batteries. If you choose a battery-powered option, it's wise to stick with your favored lithium-ion battery system and brand, such as DeWalt's 20V MAX or Milwaukee's M18. If you choose to go corded, you may need an extension cord.

How We Tested Wet/Dry Vacuums

To give our shop vacs the Gear Team treatment, we tested them on both objective and subjective parameters. Of course, we had to know: Do they suck up real-world messes? We fed these hungry machines a buffet of wood chips, trail mix, kitty litter, and even a golf ball. Here's the full list of tested parameters:

• Suction performance on various-sized items

• Wet capacity

• Noise level

• Portability

• Usability

• Weight

After running each vacuum through these testing parameters, we were able to determine which works best in a given situation. For a more in-depth look at our testing, see below.

Here are our picks for the best garage and shop vacs.

6-Gallon Wet/Dry Vacuum

The Stanley 6-Gallon Wet/Dry Vacuum is the best choice for your typical garage. The six-gallon capacity strikes an excellent balance between size and storage, and the price won't break the bank.

It performed fairly well against all our contaminants but struggled with the largest mulch pieces. Aside from that, we loved how easy it was to move around, the low noise level, and its attractive price point.

If you're in the market for a medium shop vac, this is the one to get.

16-Gallon Wet/Dry Vacuum

If you're looking for a wet dry vacuum for a job site or other large-mess areas, Craftsman's option is excellent. The 16-gallon behemoth was unstoppable on our suction test, guzzling everything in its path.

The vacuum rolls around nicely, and a unique hose design with more flexible sections on each end allows for superior usability. Attachments include a nice squeegee-like wet nozzle to aid in liquid pickups.

The one drawback is storing this beast, but Craftsman does offer a 12-gallon option. And if you need something larger, a 20-gallon vacuum exists too. For us, the 16-gallon hits the sweet spot and is our choice for the top shop vac for big messes.

5-Gallon Wall-Mount Wet/Dry Vacuum