Any vacuum can suck dust, hair, and crumbs off your hardwood, tile, or vinyl floors—but some models do it better than others. To avoid scattering debris or possibly damaging sensitive flooring, look for a model that either lets you switch off the spinning brush roll or has a special cleaner head with soft bristles.

After testing dozens of vacuums, we have three models to recommend that gently and effectively clean hardwood floors.

Our pick

This bagged canister model is powerful, durable, and versatile. With the click of a switch, its universal cleaner head protects delicate hardwood floors.

The suction-only Miele Classic C1 Pure Suction features a switch on its brush roll that lets you adjust it depending on whether you’re on bare floors or rugs. Its soft brush-roll bristles protect hardwood floors, and its strong suction dislodges deep-seated dirt from rugs. (This model doesn’t work well on thick rugs, however.)

The Classic C1 Pure Suction is the lowest-priced Miele canister model you can buy. It has decent filtration (it uses the same dust-trapping bags as our upgrade pick), and, while a bit louder than the C3 Calima, the C1 still runs quieter than most other vacuums we tried.

The Classic C1 Pure Suction has a one-year warranty (though Miele canister vacuums are known to last for a decade or more).

Upgrade pick

This proven bagged model has great cleaning power, with a parquet brush that excels on bare floors and a turbo brush that works well on most low-pile carpets.

If you have mainly bare floors and just a few area rugs and you want a durable, nimble canister vacuum with excellent cleaning power—and a proven track record—the Miele Complete C3 Calima PowerLine is a great choice.

We loved this model’s light and agile parquet brush on hard floors, finding it nicer to maneuver and gentler on sensitive surfaces than any cleaner head we tested. Its turbo brush, however, is inconvenient because it is prone to choking on certain types of fluffy carpets, which makes it virtually impossible to push.

The C3 Calima ingeniously stores its three useful attachments inside the canister. It also features superior HEPA filtration, but its filters and bags are a bit pricey.

This model has a three-year warranty, but Miele vacuums are known to last for a decade or more, if maintained properly.

Also great

This nimble, high-tech model is light, powerful, and easy to maneuver. Its microfiber cleaner head is specifically designed to snag dust and fur from bare floors, but its dustbin is minuscule.

The Dyson V12 Detect Slim is equipped with a microfiber brush roll called the Laser Slim Fluffy that grabs dust and detritus, moving it to the vacuum intake and protecting wood floors from scratches. (The Fluffy also has a laser headlight that illuminates dust in dim corners.) But this model’s tiny dustbin requires frequent emptying.

The V12 Detect Slim’s separate Motorbar cleaner head has bristles and hair-removal vanes that work well on carpets and rugs. (Though it doesn’t have the cleaning or battery power to tackle deep-seated dirt.) Both cleaner heads are low-riding and swivel 180 degrees, so you can maneuver around table legs or under furniture easily.

This model has several high-tech features that make it almost fun to use, including a sensor that automatically adjusts suction and an LCD screen with a battery countdown and particle counter.

The V12 Detect Slim has a two-year warranty.