These Are the Best Dyson Vacuums You Can Buy

Dyson has a lot of sub-models, because its naming scheme isn’t confusing enough. Each one has a different number of included tool attachments and accessories. Every model (V7, V8, V10, V11, etc.) seems to introduce new sub-models, so the list just keeps growing, and then there are discontinued sub-models that show up as old stock on websites, typically on sale.

Absolute is usually the king-of-the-hill version with the most attachments. We can’t list them all, because they vary based on parent model, but expect a variety of brush nozzles, crevice attachments, and motorized roller heads to scrub tough grit off hard floors and out of deep-pile carpets.

Outsize V11s have a 25-percent-larger head to sweep more floor area on each pass and a dust bin 150 percent larger than non-Outsize V11s.

Allergy used to mean that it came with an upgraded filter that traps 99.99 percent of bacteria and dust so it expels cleaner air than regular models, but after the V7 all Dyson stick vacs started including the upgraded filters. It’s largely a legacy designation now, and it hasn’t been used on newer models.

Motorhead sounds fancy, but it’s the low-end sub-model that comes with a motorized head, a couple of basic brush and crevice tools, and that’s about it. Mostly a holdover from the V7 days. Dyson has found other names for basic sub-models.

Origin and Animal come with relatively few attachments. The Animal doesn’t come with any unique attachments particular to usefulness in cleaning up after pets; it’s just become shorthand for “base model with fewer attachments.” The same is true for the Origin, although its name makes more sense.

Dyson isn’t above combining sub-model names too, so you’ll see some old stock of V7 Motorhead Origins if you’re looking around. Basically, the more names Dyson slaps onto a model, the more attachments it comes with. For example, the V8 Animal Pro comes with more stuff than the Animal, but the Animal Pro+ comes with even more than that.