Vacuum cleaners are essential to keeping a clean home. When your vacuum stops working and becomes broken beyond repair it is time to start looking for a new one. With so many choices on the market how can you possibly decide? You need to start by making a checklist of your needs.

This checklist will help you identify what features you need in a new vacuum.

1. Consider how big of an area you need to vacuum. This includes considering the space you have to move around, any tight spots or extremely large areas. Knowing this information is a good base to start with and should allow you to rule out some vacuum cleaners that just will not work for you.

2. Consider storage space. Where are you going to keep your vacuum? Do you have a small space to put it in or are you not limited by space?

3. Look at the type of carpet you have. Also consider other floors you may wish to vacuum. Do you have different carpet types? If so you may need a vacuum that adjusts to the height of the carpet.

4. Are there other things besides vacuuming floors that you will use the vacuum for? Do you need to be able to sweep down stairs or furniture?

5. Check out the differences between bagged and bagless. Figure out which you like better. Look at the pros and cons for each.

6. If you or anyone in your household has allergies you need to take that into consideration also. There are special filters on some vacuums that can help reduce allergens.

7. Consider the weight of the vacuum. If you have to move it around to different floors or pick it up to move into tight spaces you may want to look for a lightweight model.

These are some general things you really should think of before even looking at a vacuum to buy.

Once you have your list you should start doing research into different vacuums. Compare prices, not only between models and manufactures, but also between stores. Check out new options that are available that you may not have known about. Choose the vacuum that best suits your needs.